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July 27, 2026Short & citedBlog
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Money & Work • Oil & Gas

Esso

Esso is a global retail and fuel brand used by ExxonMobil and related companies outside the United States.

Updated July 27, 20261 min readCited sources

Esso is a global fuel and retail brand operated by ExxonMobil outside the United States. In Canada, it is run by Imperial Oil, which is majority-owned by ExxonMobil.

What is Esso?

Esso is a trading name that originated from the phonetic pronunciation of the initials S and O from Standard Oil. It is one of ExxonMobil’s main retail fuel brands outside the United States, where Exxon is used instead. The brand appears on service stations and petroleum products in many countries.

Why it matters in Canada

In Canada, Esso is a trademark of Imperial Oil, a Canadian petroleum company headquartered in Calgary, Alberta. Imperial Oil supplies Esso-branded fuel to a network of company-owned and independent dealer stations across the country. Because Imperial Oil is majority-owned by ExxonMobil, Esso remains a familiar Canadian brand within a global corporate family.

Key details about Esso stations

Esso stations operate through a mix of company-owned sites and independent dealers. Fuel prices are not set nationally; they vary by station, location, competition, taxes, and time of day. There is no single Canada-wide station count available from the supplied sources, but the network is widespread.

In short

  • Esso is a brand of ExxonMobil, not a standalone company.
  • In Canada, Esso stations are operated by Imperial Oil.
  • The name comes from Standard Oil's initials S and O.
  • Gas prices vary by location, not set nationally.
Canadian angle

Esso is a familiar Canadian fuel brand operated by Imperial Oil, one of Canada’s major petroleum companies and a subsidiary of ExxonMobil.

Quick questions

What is Esso?
Esso is a fuel and retail brand used by ExxonMobil and related companies outside the United States, including on service stations and petroleum products.
Is Esso the same as Exxon?
No. Esso and Exxon are different brand names within the ExxonMobil corporate family. Exxon is used mainly in the United States, while Esso is used in many other countries.
Where is Esso headquarters?
There is no single global Esso headquarters because Esso is a brand used by different companies. ExxonMobil is headquartered in Irving, Texas, while Esso in Canada is operated by Imperial Oil, headquartered in Calgary, Alberta.

Sources

  1. Esso Canada — https://www.esso.ca/en-ca/our-history
    Supports: Esso brand history; Esso is a trademark of Imperial Oil Limited; Imperial Oil is the Canadian licensee.
  2. Wikipedia — https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Esso
    Supports: Esso is a global trading name for ExxonMobil and one of its primary retail brands outside the United States.
  3. Wikipedia — https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Imperial_Oil
    Supports: Imperial Oil is a Canadian petroleum company, headquartered in Calgary, and supplies Esso-brand service stations.
  4. Wikipedia — https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ExxonMobil
    Supports: ExxonMobil is headquartered in Spring, Texas, and is the parent company associated with the Esso brand family.
  5. Dun & Bradstreet — https://www.dnb.com/business-directory/company-profiles.esso_petroleum_companylimited.1066c26a8ba831d7374def07fde22387.html
    Supports: Esso Petroleum operates service stations and refinery/distribution activities in the UK; demonstrates that station counts and operations vary by country.