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Q3 EARNINGS

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EARNINGS REPORT

Amazon ad revenue climbs to $19.6 billion during Q3

Ad revenue increased nearly 11 percent, the slowest rate of growth in five years, but still earning a healthy amount for the tech-focused company.

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Key Financial Data

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  • Q3 Total revenue: $201.94 billion (+12.1% year-over)
  • Net product sales: $75.3 billion (+1.7%)
  • Operating income: $28.08 billion (+61.2%)
  • Cost of sales: $94.57 billion (+6.7%)
  • Sales and marketing expenses: $11.65 billion (-0.3%)
  • Technology and infrastructure expenses: $34.81 billion (+20.2%)
  • North America revenue: $112.85 billion (+6.2%)
  • International revenue: $43.11 billion (+5.4%)
  • Amazon Web Services revenue: $45.98 billion (+39.3%)
  • AWS operating income: $17.77 billion (+55.4%)
  • Online stores revenue: $68.47 billion (+1.6%)
  • Advertising services revenue: $19.64 billion (+10.9%)
  • Subscription services revenue: $14.01 billion (+11.4%)
  • Read more Q3 2026 earnings coverage

Amazon reported strong revenue from its advertising business during the third quarter (Q3) of the year spurred by an uptick in interest across its connected TV platform, streaming app and online goods store, though the company’s overall revenue fell short of Wall Street expectations.

The e-commerce and technology company generated $201.9 billion in revenue during the three months ending September 30, an increase of 12 percent from $180.2 billion last year. Net income totaled $20.7 billion, while diluted earnings declined to $1.89 per share from $1.95 one year earlier. Analysts had expected revenue of approximately $202.3 billion and earnings of $1.97 per share, and Wall Street sent Amazon’s stock price down more than 7 percent in after-hours trading.

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Stock Price

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Amazon’s advertising business generated $19.6 billion in revenue, an increase of 12 percent from the prior year when excluding currency fluctuations. The growth rate was slower than in previous quarters, when advertising revenue had regularly increased by more than 20 percent.

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Executives attributed some of the slowdown to the timing of Amazon’s Prime Day shopping event, which took place during the second quarter this year rather than the third quarter as it did in 2025. The company expects advertising revenue growth to return to the high teens during the fourth quarter.

Advertising has become an increasingly important part of Amazon’s business, particularly as the company expands its commercial offerings across Prime Video, where advertisements were introduced as the default experience for subscribers in 2024.

During a conference call with investors, Amazon CEO Andy Jassy said Prime Video had become profitable on its own, with annualized revenue in the tens of billions of dollars. The company has continued investing in original programming and live sports rights as it develops the streaming service’s advertising business.

Amazon Web Services (AWS), the company’s cloud computing division, generated approximately $46 billion in third-quarter revenue, an increase of 39 percent compared to last year. The result exceeded analyst estimates of $45.7 billion.

Jassy said AWS could sustain annual revenue growth above 40 percent in 2027 and 2028, supported by additional computing capacity and demand for artificial intelligence services.

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(Infographic by Matthew Keys for The Desk)
(Infographic by Matthew Keys for The Desk)

The company has committed substantial resources to expanding its data center infrastructure, with planned capital expenditures of approximately $220 billion this year. That spending has drawn scrutiny from investors concerned about when the investments will produce sufficient financial returns.

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About the Author:

Matthew Keys

Matthew Keys is the award-winning founder and editor of TheDesk.net, an authoritative voice on broadcast and streaming TV, media and tech. With over ten years of experience, he's a recognized expert in broadcast, streaming, and digital media, with work featured in publications such as StreamTV Insider and Digital Content Next, and past roles at Thomson Reuters and Disney-ABC Television Group.