Amazon's advertising business hit $70 billion in trailing 12-month revenue, growing 24% in Q1 to $17.2B. Amazon is now the third-largest ad platform globally and the undisputed leader in retail media.
Amazon made $17.2 billion from advertising in a single quarter. Most ad agencies do not generate that in a year.
Amazon's advertising business just crossed $70 billion in trailing 12-month revenue. Q1 advertising services revenue grew 24% year on year to $17.2 billion.
To put that in perspective, Amazon now generates more ad revenue than YouTube, Snapchat and Pinterest combined. It is the third-largest advertising platform on the planet behind Google and Meta, and the gap is closing.
Amazon's trailing 12-month advertising revenue. Growing 24% year on year.
Why it matters
Amazon's ad business is growing faster than its retail business. That is not a side effect. It is the strategy.
Retail media is the fastest-growing channel in advertising globally, and Amazon owns the largest share. The closed-loop attribution (ad impression to purchase on the same platform) makes it uniquely measurable. For performance marketers, that is catnip.
The broader Q1 numbers reinforce how dominant Amazon has become across the digital infrastructure stack. Total revenue hit $181.5 billion, up 17%. AWS grew 28% to $37.6 billion, its fastest growth in 15 quarters. The company is simultaneously the largest cloud provider, the largest retailer and now one of the largest ad platforms.
For Australian marketers, Amazon's ad platform is still early in local market penetration compared to the US. But with Amazon Australia growing its marketplace and logistics footprint, the ad platform follows. Brands selling on Amazon AU that are not running Sponsored Products campaigns are leaving measurable revenue on the table.
What to do about it
If you sell physical products and are not running Amazon Ads, start testing. The platform's self-serve tools have matured significantly. CPCs remain competitive relative to Google Shopping in many categories.
If you are an agency, build Amazon capability now. The $70 billion figure means more client budget is shifting to retail media every quarter. Agencies that cannot execute on Amazon, Woolworths Cartology and Coles 360 will lose share to specialists that can.
Watch the non-endemic advertiser play. Amazon is increasingly selling ads to brands that do not sell on its marketplace. Travel, automotive and financial services brands are buying Amazon DSP inventory for its audience data. That expands the competitive surface well beyond retail.