Amazon set to pass Walmart in annual revenue for the first time after hitting $700 billion in sales
When Walmart crossed $1 trillion in market value on Tuesday, it marked a significant step in its effort to better compete with its e-commerce rival Amazon. But Amazon may soon outpace Walmart when it comes to total revenue.
Amazon said on Wednesday that it brought in $716.9 billion in revenue for 2025, up 12% from last year. Analysts surveyed by FactSet forecast annual revenue of $714 billion. Not only did Amazon’s annual sales exceed $700 billion for the first time, but the Seattle-based company is also on track to overtake Walmart, often referred to as the world’s biggest retailer by revenue. Walmart is expected to announce annual revenue of $712 billion when it reports earnings later this month.
This wouldn’t be the first time Amazon has dethroned Walmart in some shape or form. Amazon overtook Walmart in quarterly revenue a year ago, ending the Bentonville, Arkansas retailer’s 12-year run as the top revenue-generating company each quarter. Amazon — currently worth over $2.5 trillion — has also boasted a higher market cap than Walmart since 2015.
If Amazon does surpass Walmart in annual revenue, it would sharpen an already intense rivalry between the two retail giants — and underscore how much each has taken from the other’s playbook. Amazon has spent years experimenting with grocery and physical stores to extend its reach beyond e-commerce, while Walmart has beefed up its tech capabilities to defend its dominance. The result is a fierce battle for market share.
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While the milestone, if achieved, would be significant, comparing Amazon’s revenue with Walmart’s is “not an apples-to-apples comparison,” said Neil Saunders, managing director of GlobalData Retail. Although both companies are retail giants, Amazon’s cloud-computing division, AWS, is responsible for much of the company’s profits. AWS generated $35.6 billion in fourth-quarter sales, up 24% from the year-ago period and marking the division’s fastest growth in 13 quarters. Advertising also grew 22% during the quarter.
Amazon is betting that artificial intelligence will drive the company’s future growth. Amazon said it expects capital expenditures to reach $200 billion in 2026. Those expenditures will “predominantly” be in AWS, CEO Andy Jassy said on an earnings call with analysts. Investors balked at Amazon’s announced capex plans, which far exceeded Wall Street estimates; Amazon’s stock was down as much as 10% after the company reported earnings.
“We have very high demand,” Jassy said. “Customers really want AWS for core and AI workloads, and we’re monetizing capacity as fast as we can install it.”
Meanwhile, Walmart has taken cues from Amazon by adopting a more tech-focused strategy. That includes building out its e-commerce business, which is now growing faster than Amazon’s. Walmart has also expanded its same-day delivery service to 93% of U.S. households to better compete with Amazon.
“Walmart is setting a new standard for omnichannel retail by integrating automation and AI to build smarter, faster and more connected experiences for customers, while enabling our associates to deliver even greater value at scale,” Walmart CFO John David Rainey said in November.
Walmart also has a lucrative advertising business; its U.S. ads unit, Walmart Connect, grew 33% year over year in the third quarter. And like Amazon, Walmart is heavily investing in AI. In January, Walmart announced a buzzy partnership with Google to sell the retailer’s products inside the AI assistant Gemini.
The Covid-19 pandemic played a significant role in Amazon’s growth, pushing quarantined consumers to online shopping. Amazon experienced unprecedented sales growth during the pandemic, with annual revenue jumping 38% to $386 billion in 2020.
Amazon, for its part, is continuing to grow its market share in grocery to compete with Walmart. One way Amazon is doing that is by providing faster delivery, especially for perishables. Amazon announced earlier this week that U.S. Prime members received over 8 billion items the same or next day in 2025, an over 30% increase compared to the prior year, with groceries and everyday essentials making up half of the total items.
“There has always been this view from Amazon that where they provide faster delivery unlocks a greater share of spending from customers, and it helps them push up growth,” Saunders said.
Amazon is also testing a 30-minute delivery option called Amazon Now in Seattle and Philadelphia. Grocery — particularly brick-and-mortar grocery — hasn’t been an easy area for Amazon to break into. Last week, Amazon announced it was closing its remaining Fresh and Go locations, converting some sites into Whole Foods Market stores.
“Where the real battle is, is in grocery e-commerce,” said Sky Canaves, principal retail analyst at eMarketer, “because most of Walmart’s online sales still come from grocery.”