Amazon has released its Q4 2021 financial report, announcing that customers purchased a record $600 billion worth of goods on the marketplace last year. Total GMV for the retail giant, including 1P and 3P sales, is now double what it was in 2018. Among the most eye-catching details of the report is the growth of Amazon Ads. While the company has avoided releasing figures related to its ad business in the past, Amazon reported $31.2 billion in advertising revenue for 2021, a 32% increase from the previous year.
Amazon’s latest earnings report is good news for brands. Ready-to-spend customers continue to flock to the marketplace in record numbers – with no signs of slowing down. To highlight Amazon’s role in the future of ecommerce, we’ve compiled ten additional statistics that sellers need to know in 2022.1.
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- Amazon is the most visited ecommerce website in the U.S.
Amazon consistently attracts more than 2 billion monthly visitors, making it the most trafficked ecommerce website in the U.S. Coming in second is eBay with 885 million monthly visits, followed by Walmart with 410 million. (Source: Statista)
- Amazon is the most visited ecommerce website in the U.S.
- Amazon has more than 200 million Prime Members worldwide.
In April 2021, Jeff Bezos announced in his annual letter to shareholders that Amazon’s Prime membership program had crossed the 200 million subscriber milestone. Of these, 153 million Prime members live in the U.S., up from 124 million a year earlier. (Source: CIRP) - Amazon Third-Party Marketplace Sales reached $390 Billion in 2021.
Amazon 3P sellers set a new record in 2021, generating $390 billion in sales – a 30% increase from 2020. The third-party marketplace is responsible for over 80% of Amazon’s incremental GMV, which the company stated is now $600 billion. (Source: Marketplace Pulse) - Amazon Prime maintains over 90% customer retention.
Amazon Prime members are loyal. Data shows that 93% of Prime members renewed their membership after one year, and 98% renewed it for a second year during the first three months of 2021. (Source: Consumer Intelligence Research Partners) 
- Amazon Prime Video has more than 175 million unique viewers.
In its Q1 2021 earnings report, Amazon stated that over 175 million Prime members streamed shows and movies in the past year, a 70% YoY increase. This growth is due to the company’s increased focus on original programming and exclusive content, including the acquisition of MGM studios in 2021 for $8.4 billion. (Source: Amazon) - Amazon sells over 350 million products on its marketplace.
More than 353 million products are currently available on the Amazon marketplace, not including books, media, and services. This includes 12 million sold by Amazon, meaning the vast majority of products are listed by 3rd– Party sellers. (Source: Retail Touchpoints) - Amazon accounts for 41% of the U.S. ecommerce market.
As of October 2021, Amazon accounted for 41% of the U.S. ecommerce market, making it by far the leading online retailer in the country. Walmart took second place with 6.6%, followed by eBay with 4.2%. (Source: Statista)
- 74% of shoppers begin their online search on Amazon.
According to the “Amazon Advertising Report,” 74% of U.S. consumers start searching for a product on Amazon, with 56% claiming that they would choose Amazon if there was only one store they could select. (Source: Jungle Scout) - Prime members spend almost $2,000 per year on Amazon.
A survey of U.S. shoppers found that Prime members spend an average of $1,968 per year on Amazon, roughly four times as much as non-Prime shoppers. An important caveat to note is that Amazon recently announced the cost of monthly Prime memberships will soon increase from $12.99 to $14.99, while annual memberships will increase from $119 to $139. (Source: Bank of America) - Amazon now has a larger ad business than YouTube.
Amazon generated $31.2 billion in advertising revenue in 2021, representing 32% growth from the previous year. The company reported $9.7 billion in ad sales in the fourth quarter alone – a 33% YoY increase. This marks the first time that Amazon has a larger ad business than YouTube, which reported $28.8 billion in revenue for 2021. (Source: Amazon)
