Fierce Biotech reviewed R&D expenses by international pharmaceutical majors.
The ongoing leader in 2025 stayed Merck&Co. (15.79 billion USD, -12% vs 2024). The drop was attributed to less acquisitions while internal R&D spendings escalated by 700 Mio USD hitting 10.8 billion USD. The Merch R&D team is 24 700 staffs strong. A number of products are under developments to assume the heat from Keytruda whose
patent will expire soon.
The second position was held by Roche with 14.73 billion USD (-6%). Roche proliferated through ranks of the top players list from position 3 a year before. While keeping its efforts in oncology as usual, Roche strongly added a breakthrough in obesity management by developing a dual agonist of GLP-1/GIP CT-388. That product showed promising results in phase 2, comparable with Zepbound of Eli Lilly.
Number 3: Johnson & Johnson with $14.66 billion (-14,9%). J&J slid to position 3 from position 2 a year before due to cutting internal R&D costs by 15% while acquiring more from outside the company, such as Intra-Cellular Therapies Halda Therapeutics. Also, J&J spin-off its orthopedic division DePuy Synthes.
Number 4 : AstraZeneca, $14.23 billion (+5%). The Britain-based major modestly poured more in R&D vs a year before, though R&D budget accounted to a hefty stake of 24.2% of their total revenue. Despite a number of failed products, the company invested in Chinese research operations and in-licensed obesity management products from CSPC Pharmaceutical.
Number 5: Eli Lilly, $13.34 billion (+21,4%). Eli Lilly unleashed its R&D spending instincts in 2025 gaining to lines in the ranking of R&D investments. Its marvelous launch of tirzepatide, the product which overtook Keytruda, turned Eli Lilly from a regular duck in the first beautiful swan that gained 1 trillion USD capitalization. The revenue spree allowed to add 21% to its R&D budget for launching the LillyPod (with Nvidia), acquiring Adverum, a biotech company, and boosting AI R&D platform with Insilico Medicine and XtalPi.
Number 6: Novartis, $11.2 billion (+12%). The biggest advance through the ranks of R&D leaders came from Novartis, who spent heavily on M&A front: swallowed Avidity Biosciences for 12 billion USD and MorphoSys for 2.9 billion. At the same time, Novartis cut off low progress in-house developments.
Pfizer came 7 th in the R&D race with $10.44 billion (-4%) spent in 2025. Despite cutting that budget in 2025, Pfizer climbed to position 7 after acquiring Metsera for $10 billion (a biotech company) after defeating Novo Nordisk’s efforts to buy that obesity management biotech. Also, Pfizer in-licensed a GLP-1 product from Fosun Pharmaceutical for $1.9 billion.
Bristol Myers Squibb, number 8, with $9.95 billion (-11%). BMS played Scrooge through imposing severe spending reduction measures to save 1.5 USD billion within 20 months. Its R&D budget had to pay a price, too.
AbbVie finished 9 th with $9.1 billion (-28,9%). After a spectacular growth by 66% in 2024, AbbVie slowed down in 2025 with its R&D chequebook. Cerevel, an 8.7 billion USD acquisition, failed in phase 2, wiping off 3.5 billion from the company’s balance. Though, AbbVie paid 2.1 billion USD for Gilgamesh. In-house R&D suffered hefty cuts. Sanofi made it 10 th with R&D investments of $8.85 billion in 2025 (+6%). The spendings grew but multiple drug candidates failed. The Board lost patience and Paul Hudson, CEO, retired to give the steering wheel to Belen Garicho, the ex-CEO of Merck KGaA.
“A great growth in R&D and in-licensing expenditures in 2025 among most prominent market players sets the trend for the entire industry and explicitly articulates new products and in-licensing as the key growth driver”, - commented Vladimir V. Krasnikov, CEO and Founder of Prestige Brands Capital LLC, a specialty consulting boutique specialized in M&A, in/out-licensing, and BD in the pharmaceutical industry.