Amazon earned $30.3 billion of net income in the first quarter of 2026 (three months to 31 March), up from $17.1 billion a year earlier, on operating income of $23.9 billion. That net figure includes $16.8 billion of pre-tax gains from its investments in Anthropic, so operating income is the cleaner measure of the business. For the full year 2025, Amazon reported operating income of $80.0 billion and net income of $77.7 billion; in the latest quarter (to 30 September 2026) operating income reached $28.1 billion, a 13.9% operating margin, Amazon’s highest.
Where the profit comes from
What changed in 2026
Net income was $30.3 billion in Q1 2026, $62.6 billion in Q2 and $20.7 billion in Q3. Q3 was below the $21.2 billion of Q3 2025, which had included $9.5 billion of pre-tax gains on the Anthropic investment.
Operating income rose from $23.9 billion in Q1 2026 to $27.5 billion in Q2 and $28.1 billion in Q3, when the operating margin hit 13.9%. AWS operating income was $17.8 billion in Q3, against $11.4 billion a year earlier.
Free cash flow was an outflow of $7.6 billion for the twelve months to June 2026 and an outflow of $42.4 billion to September 2026. Amazon expects 2026 cash capital expenditures of about $220 billion.
In Q1 2026 Amazon signed a commercial arrangement with OpenAI and invested in its Series C preferred stock; by 30 September 2026 that investment stood at $50.0 billion on the balance sheet. Future value changes will also run through other income.
Amazon profits by period
What it means for you
- Read operating income first; Amazon's net income now moves by tens of billions with the value of its Anthropic stake.
- Check each segment's operating income: AWS, North America and International are reported separately every quarter.
- Set profit against free cash flow; in 2026 rising profit and negative free cash flow happened at the same time.
- Treat gains on private stakes as one-offs when you compare quarters, and say so when you quote a figure.
- Use the latest earnings release for quarterly figures and the Form 10-K for full-year figures, with the period next to each number.
Amazon’s profit now comes mostly from renting computing capacity, while its cash goes into building more of it for AI. The Business Engineer reads the two together: operating income shows the engine, free cash flow shows the size of the bet.
Read: Amazon: The Everything AI Factory →Explore everything we publish →Related: Is Amazon profitable without AWS? · Amazon revenue · Amazon cost structure · Amazon free cash flow · Amazon business model
Frequently asked questions
How much profit did Amazon make in Q1 2026?
Amazon reported net income of $30.3 billion and operating income of $23.9 billion for the quarter to 31 March 2026. Net income included $16.8 billion of pre-tax gains from its Anthropic investments.
How much did Amazon earn in 2025?
Amazon's 2025 operating income was $80.0 billion and net income was $77.7 billion, on net sales of $716.9 billion, according to its Form 10-K.
Which part of Amazon makes the most profit?
AWS. It made $45.6 billion of operating income in 2025, against $29.6 billion for North America and $4.75 billion for International.
Why did Amazon's net income jump in Q2 2026?
Q2 2026 net income of $62.6 billion included $53.4 billion of non-operating pre-tax other income, primarily from Amazon's investments in Anthropic.
Sources
- Amazon.com, Inc. (29 April 2026), Amazon.com announces first quarter results, Form 8-K Exhibit 99.1, SEC
- Amazon.com, Inc. (30 July 2026), Amazon.com announces second quarter results, Form 8-K Exhibit 99.1, SEC
- Amazon.com, Inc. (29 October 2026), Amazon.com announces third quarter results, Form 8-K Exhibit 99.1, SEC
- Amazon.com, Inc. (2026), Annual Report on Form 10-K for 2025, SEC
- Amazon.com, Inc. (2026), Form 10-Q for the quarter ended 30 September 2026, SEC
The full guide
The complete explainer, cleaned up and reformatted for mobile.
Amazon earned $80.0B of operating income and $77.7B of net income in 2025. Q2 2026 net income jumped to $62.6B, but $53.4B of that was non-operating gains, mainly from its Anthropic investment.
Sources: Amazon Form 10-K for 2025 and Q2 2026 earnings release (SEC EDGAR). Analysis by The Business Engineer.
How we source: figures on this page come from the company’s own filings (SEC 10-K, 10-Q and earnings releases, or its annual report), with the period stated next to each number. Last refreshed October 2026. Our methodology.
| Figure | Value |
|---|---|
| Operating income, 2025 filing | $80.0B (11% of revenue) |
| Net income, 2025 filing | $77.7B |
| Revenue, 2025 filing | $716.9B |
Source: Amazon Form 10-K (2025). Calculated figures are labelled.
Company explainer · Amazon, explained
A 3-minute explainer of Amazon's business model and latest numbers, built from its SEC filings. Analysis by The Business Engineer.
How Amazon’s Q1 2020 Financial Structure Worked
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