Amazon edged out Apple to become the most reputable company in the U.S., a new study suggests.

Harris Interactive interviewed over 14,000 members of the general public for its 2013 Reputation Quotient, which measures corporate reputation among the "most visible" companies in the U.S. The market-research firm assessed businesses based on six criteria: social responsibility, emotional appeal, products and services, workplace environment, financial performance, and vision and leadership.

Amazon ranked in the top five in five of the six criteria, leading in emotional appeal, as well as products and services. The ecommerce retailer beat its competitors with an "RQ score" of 82.62. (Any score above 80 is considered "excellent." Apple — last year's leader — followed close behind with 82.54, while the Walt Disney Company came in third with 82.12. Google and Johnson & Johnson round out the top five with scores of 81.32 and 80.95, respectively.

Amazon, which jumped from fourth place last year, has maintained a golden reputation for five consecutive years, with RQ scores of over 80, Harris Interactive said.

The firm added that technology companies enjoy the best reputations, with a 79% positive rating — up from 76% in 2012 and 75% in 2011. On the other end of the spectrum, tobacco companies have the worst rep with a 73% negative rating.

Overall, the general public still has "strong negative perceptions" of Corporate America, according to the study. A considerable 44% see it has poor or terrible, while only 28% view it as excellent or good.

Which company do you consider the most and least reputable? Tell us in the comments, below.

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