Amazon's ad machine hits $19.8bn — up 26% as sports inventory sells out
- Aug 3
- 3 min read
Updated: 5 days ago
Amazon's advertising business grew around 26% year on year to $19.8bn in Q2 2026 — outpacing its own retail and cloud growth — as Prime Video and live-sports ad inventory sold out.
Advertising is now Amazon's quiet powerhouse
Amazon reported second-quarter 2026 results on 30 July, and buried beneath the AWS and AI headlines was the number marketers care about most: advertising revenue of $19.8bn, up around 26% year on year. That growth rate comfortably outpaced Amazon's overall net sales, which rose about 20%.
For context, ads are now a bigger, faster-growing line than most of Amazon's retail categories. The company said live-sports inventory — including Prime Video's NBA and Thursday Night Football coverage — effectively sold out, a sign that Amazon's move into premium video advertising is landing with big brands.
Why the mix matters more than the money
Amazon's group profit ballooned to $62.6bn, flattered by a roughly $53bn gain on its Anthropic stake, while AWS grew 37% — its fastest in 18 quarters. But the strategic story for advertisers is the blend Amazon now controls: search-like retail media at the bottom of the funnel, and premium streaming and sports at the top.
That combination is what makes Amazon the credible 'third force' alongside Google and Meta. It can now show a brand's ad to a shopper on Prime Video during a live game and then close the sale on the retail site days later — all inside one measurable ecosystem.
Marketing Minute's read: retail media is eating the funnel
We've argued before that retail media is no longer just a bottom-of-funnel sponsored-product game. Amazon's sold-out sports inventory is the proof: the same platform that owns purchase intent is now buying its way into the living room. UK marketers should stop thinking of 'retail media' and 'CTV' as separate line items — Amazon is deliberately merging them.
The flip side is pricing power. When a platform owns both attention and the transaction, it sets the terms. As Amazon's inventory sells out, expect CPMs to firm up — and expect the walled garden to keep more of the measurement inside its own walls.
What UK businesses should do
If you sell physical products, audit how much of your Amazon spend is pure keyword defence versus genuine incremental reach — and test Prime Video and sponsored TV formats before they get more expensive. If you don't sell on Amazon, treat this as a signal: retail media networks like Tesco and Sainsbury's Nectar360 are racing to build the same full-funnel offer, and the learnings transfer. Either way, insist on clean incrementality measurement rather than accepting platform-graded homework.
Quick FAQ
How much did Amazon make from advertising in Q2 2026?
Amazon's advertising revenue was $19.8bn in Q2 2026, up around 26% year on year — faster than its overall sales growth of roughly 20%. Amazon said live-sports ad inventory on Prime Video sold out.
Why is Amazon's advertising business growing so fast?
Amazon combines high-intent retail-media search ads with premium streaming and live sports on Prime Video. That full-funnel mix, plus sold-out sports inventory, is drawing brand budgets from TV and other platforms.
What does it mean for UK advertisers?
Amazon is merging retail media and connected TV into one measurable ecosystem. As inventory sells out, prices are likely to rise — so test Prime Video and sponsored formats early and demand independent incrementality measurement.
— Christie McCormack, Retail & Consumer Editor at Marketing Minute
Amazon has fused retail media and premium streaming into one closed loop — so treat CTV and retail media as a single strategy, and measure incremental sales, not platform-marked clicks.
Is your Amazon budget buying genuine incremental reach — or just defending branded keywords you'd win anyway?
If you would like to know more about this topic, please contact us on danieln@merxmarketing.co.uk
Sources: Amazon Q2 2026 earnings release; Variety; PPC Land; Storyboard18; Mi3; CNBC.
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Written by Christie McCormack, Retail & Consumer Editor at Marketing Minute
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