BTS Leads July Boy Group Brand Reputation Rankings as CORTIS Holds Second

BTS has kept its position at the top of the July boy group brand reputation rankings, extending the group’s lead in a monthly index that tracks how strongly K-pop acts are being discussed, searched, covered, and engaged with online.

The Korean Business Research Institute released its latest list for male idol groups on July 12, based on big data collected from June 11 through July 11. The rankings combine several measurements, including consumer participation, media coverage, interaction, and community activity, to produce a brand reputation index for each group.

BTS ranked No. 1 for July with a brand reputation index of 8,586,669. The group’s keyword analysis highlighted terms including “ARIRANG,” “ARMY,” and “London concert,” while related terms such as “collaborate,” “perform,” and “record” also stood out in the institute’s analysis.

The result reflects BTS’s continued ability to dominate public attention even as the group’s visibility is spread across major music milestones, fan activity, and international performance narratives. For a group already operating at a global scale, staying at No. 1 in a Korean brand index points to a domestic conversation that remains highly active as well.

CORTIS Keeps Momentum Near the Top

CORTIS placed second for the month with a brand reputation index of 4,174,720. Holding the runner-up spot is significant because it keeps the group in direct proximity to the industry’s most established names and suggests that recent discussion around the act has not been limited to a short spike.

Stray Kids rose to third place with a score of 3,448,310, giving the group another strong showing in a year where global touring, album performance, and international fandom engagement have continued to shape its public profile. SEVENTEEN followed in fourth place with 2,983,819, while BIGBANG completed the top five with 2,593,535.

Taken together, the top five show how varied the current boy group conversation has become. BTS and BIGBANG represent long-running names with deep cultural recognition, SEVENTEEN and Stray Kids continue to show the staying power of highly organized fandoms, and CORTIS’s position signals how newer or fast-rising acts can enter the same conversation when public attention gathers quickly.

What the Rankings Measure

Brand reputation rankings are not the same as music chart performance, album sales, or concert revenue. Instead, they are designed to measure visibility and discussion across a wide range of public signals. A group can rise because of a comeback, a viral performance, a major announcement, a concert, variety appearances, or sustained fan conversation across online communities.

That makes the monthly list useful as a snapshot of where public attention is concentrated, though it should be read alongside other indicators. A high ranking can show broad visibility, but it does not automatically explain whether the attention came from music releases, promotional schedules, fandom organizing, news coverage, or legacy interest.

The rest of July’s top 30 included BOYNEXTDOOR, EXO, TWS, SHINee, Wanna One, NCT, ZEROBASEONE, ATEEZ, ENHYPEN, WINNER, MONSTA X, TXT, BTOB, 2PM, RIIZE, TVXQ, HIGHLIGHT, Super Junior, XLOV, INFINITE, Block B, ALPHA DRIVE ONE, THE BOYZ, IDID, and TREASURE.

For fans, the latest ranking is likely to fuel the usual debates about momentum, recognition, and which groups are commanding the widest conversation. For the industry, it offers another monthly signal of how competitive the boy group field remains, especially as established acts and newer contenders appear side by side near the top.