Amazon + Ecommerce Trends Every Brand Should Watch in 2026

Amazon generated roughly $440 billion in U.S. sales in 2025, capturing a 35.7% share of the entire American e-commerce market. More than 100,000 sellers now pull in over $1 million annually on the platform. At SupplyKick, we've been running Amazon campaigns since 2013, and we've watched the playbook shift every year. What worked in 2021 doesn't work now. What worked six months ago needs adjustment.

Here are the eight trends defining Amazon strategy in 2026, with specifics on what we're seeing across our brand partners and how it changes your planning.

1. AI Is Reshaping How Shoppers Find and Buy Products

Amazon Rufus and AI Shopping Assistants

Amazon's Rufus AI assistant rolled out across the app in 2024 and now handles millions of conversational product queries daily. Instead of typing "hiking boots waterproof," shoppers ask, "What boots should I get for day hikes in the Pacific Northwest?" Rufus parses the question, considers context, and surfaces products.

This changes listing optimization. Keyword stuffing doesn't help an AI model that reads full product descriptions, reviews, and Q&A. You need complete, coherent product information. Rufus rewards clarity and thoroughness, not just keyword density.

Agentic Commerce Arrives

86% of consumers want AI to assist with product research, according to BigCommerce's 2026 survey. AI agents — systems that browse, compare, and purchase on behalf of users — are moving from theory to reality. ChatGPT launched checkout with Shopify integration in early 2026 at a 4% transaction fee. OpenAI estimates 3.9 billion annual product queries are running through ChatGPT now.

For comparison, Amazon's total cut (referral fees, FBA fees, and forced ad spend) runs closer to 25–30%. ChatGPT represents the first genuine organic discovery channel at scale since Amazon advertising eliminated unpaid visibility years ago. If a shopper's AI agent is browsing for them, your brand's product information needs to explain not just what the product is, but why it's the right choice for specific use cases.

AI-Generated Listing Content

AI-generated product descriptions, A/B test variants, and multilingual translations are mainstream now. The risk is that everyone's listings start sounding identical. The opportunity is speed — brands can test 10 headline variations in the time it used to take to write one.

We're seeing the best results when operators use AI as a drafting tool, not a publish button. Generate options fast, then edit for brand voice and specificity.

2. Amazon Advertising Costs Are Rising — ROI Discipline Matters More Than Ever

Ad Revenue Explosion

Amazon's worldwide ad revenue is projected to hit $81.41 billion in 2026, up 18.6% year-over-year (EMARKETER). Sellers paid $56.2 billion in advertising in 2024 alone. Amazon has been described as now "60% services and just 40% retail" — the advertising business is the growth engine, not product sales.

Organic visibility is nearly extinct. Search results are dominated by Sponsored Product placements. The top-of-search real estate that used to be earned is now bought.

CPC Inflation and ROAS Benchmarks

Cost-per-click has climbed steadily. U.S. Sponsored Product ads generated a $5.08 return on ad spend (ROAS) in Q3 2025, according to Pacvue and Helium 10 data. That's the blended average. High-competition categories see worse. Niche categories sometimes see better.

Here's the shift: in a November 2025 Skai and Stratably survey of 166 brand and agency marketers, 50% said their top Amazon retail media priority was improving ROI and efficiency of existing spend — not increasing budgets. The focus has moved from "spend more" to "spend smarter."

When to Shift Spend Off-Amazon

We're advising partners to model total Amazon cost as a percentage of sales, not just look at ACOS (advertising cost of sale). Add referral fees, FBA fees, and ad spend together. If you're giving Amazon 35% of revenue and your product margin is 40%, you have a 5% net margin business. That's fragile.

Some brands are testing redirect strategies: use Amazon ads to build awareness, but drive conversions to DTC channels where unit economics are healthier. Others are reallocating budget to TikTok Shop or Walmart Marketplace where CPC is lower.

Amazon isn't going away, but the era of "just increase AMS budget" is over.

3. Supply Chain by Amazon Changes the Fulfillment Playbook

Amazon keeps tweaking FBA. Inbound placement fees launched in 2024. The inventory performance index (IPI) thresholds keep shifting. Amazon Warehousing and Distribution (AWD) — a low-cost bulk storage option — rolled out to more sellers in 2025.

Roughly 86% of sellers still use FBA because Prime eligibility drives conversion. But fee complexity is forcing sellers to act like logistics analysts. You can't just ship pallets to Amazon and hope for the best anymore.

Multi-channel fulfillment (MCF) — using Amazon's network to fulfill orders from your own website or other marketplaces — is getting more sophisticated. Some brands are experimenting with hybrid models: FBA for Prime-eligible inventory, 3PL for everything else.

The operational skill required to run a seven-figure Amazon brand has doubled in the last three years. Inventory planning and supply chain management are now as important as listing optimization.

4. Marketplace Diversification Is No Longer Optional

Walmart Marketplace Maturation

Walmart's marketplace hit an estimated $10 billion in GMV (gross merchandise value) in 2025. That's still a fraction of Amazon's scale, but it's the only genuine competitor with logistics infrastructure and consumer trust at a comparable level. Walmart's seller onboarding is selective — they approve brands, not arbitrage resellers — which means less competition and better unit economics for approved sellers.

TikTok Shop and Social Commerce

TikTok Shop reached $15.1 billion in U.S. GMV in 2025, only its second full year. The model is fundamentally different from Amazon. Success on TikTok requires constant content creation and creator partnerships. You're not optimizing keywords; you're paying micro-influencers to showcase your product in short-form video that grabs attention.

Some brands are thriving in this environment. Others burn budget on content that doesn't convert. TikTok Shop isn't a "set it and forget it" channel like Amazon FBA once was.

ChatGPT Checkout and AI-Powered Discovery

ChatGPT's Shopify checkout integration charges a 4% transaction fee, compared to Amazon's 15% referral fee (plus FBA, plus ads). The discovery model is conversational. A shopper describes what they need, and ChatGPT recommends products based on attributes, not who bid the most on a keyword.

This is the first scaled organic discovery channel since Amazon's early days. It's early — AI search contributed just 0.15% of website visits by end of 2025, according to Northbeam data. But that's a 15-fold increase from 0.01% earlier in the year. Trajectory matters.

eBay's Collector and Enthusiast Focus

eBay pulled in $39.1 billion in U.S. GMV in 2025, up 10% year-over-year. The platform repositioned around enthusiasts and collectors — categories like trading cards, sneakers, and vintage items. If your brand serves a collector audience, eBay is worth testing.

5. Video and Rich Media Are Table Stakes, Not Differentiators

Premium A+ Content, Sponsored Brands Video, and shoppable video used to be competitive advantages. Now they're baseline expectations. Shoppers skip listings without video.

The 2021 version of this article cited a 29.4% conversion rate increase from adding video to a listing. That data still holds directionally — video works. But the bar is higher now. Static product shots on white backgrounds don't cut it. Shoppers expect lifestyle context, use-case demos, and comparison charts.

AI-generated video tools are making production faster and cheaper. You can create a 15-second product demo video from a product photo and a text prompt. Quality varies, but speed matters. Brands that can test 10 video concepts in a week will outpace brands still waiting on agency retainer schedules.

Check our A+ Content guide and Amazon Storefront best practices for updated 2026 examples.

6. Creator Partnerships and Influencer Marketing Evolve

Amazon Creator Connections, the platform's influencer matchmaking tool, expanded significantly in 2025. Micro-influencers (10K–100K followers) are the most cost-effective tier. A creator with 30,000 engaged followers in a niche category often drives better ROAS than a celebrity with 2 million followers and no category relevance.

Attribution is getting better. Amazon's influencer storefront links now track post-click sales with more granularity. You can see which creator drove which product sales, not just lump "influencer traffic" into one bucket.

The challenge is volume. Influencer marketing on Amazon isn't a one-and-done campaign. It's an ongoing creator relationship program. Brands running successful influencer strategies are managing 10-30 creator relationships simultaneously, with rotating product shipments and performance tracking.

We're seeing the best results when brands treat creators as product testers first, marketers second. Send the product, get honest feedback, iterate on messaging, then formalize the partnership. Creators spot messaging problems that internal teams miss.

7. Brand Protection and Review Integrity Get Harder

Amazon's active seller base dropped from 2.4 million in 2021 to 1.65 million by the end of 2025. But Chinese sellers now represent over 50% of that base and 59.9% of new registrations. The competitive intensity is higher, and so is the risk of counterfeits and listing hijacks.

Amazon's review policies keep tightening. The platform deleted millions of reviews in 2024-2025 enforcement sweeps. Vine reviews, Amazon's official early reviewer program, now carry more weight than standard customer reviews in the algorithm.

Brand Registry, the Transparency Program (unique product codes on every unit), and Project Zero (automated brand protection) are no longer optional if you're doing meaningful volume. These programs used to feel like administrative overhead. Now they're operational necessities.

We've seen partners lose five-figure months of sales because a hijacker changed a listing's variation structure and diverted buy box traffic. Product review management and brand defense are part of the 2026 playbook.

8. Sustainability Signals Start Influencing Buy Decisions

Amazon's Climate Pledge Friendly badge launched in 2020, but adoption and consumer awareness have grown significantly. Products with the badge get a small placement boost in some categories, and certain shopper segments actively filter for it.

The program has multiple certification pathways — Compact by Design (smaller packaging), Carbon Neutral, Energy Star, Fair Trade, and others. Brands that qualify can add the badge and use it in marketing.

Amazon also introduced stricter FBA prep and packaging requirements tied to waste reduction. Excessive packaging triggers removal fees. Some categories now require frustration-free packaging as a condition of FBA eligibility.

Consumer demand for eco-conscious brands is real in certain categories (home, personal care, baby products). It's not universal, and it won't override poor product-market fit. But when two comparable products sit side by side, the one with a sustainability certification gets the nod more often in 2026 than it did in 2021.

What This Means for Your 2026 Amazon Strategy

Amazon isn't getting simpler. The platform is layering new complexity every quarter — AI search, fee changes, creator tools, sustainability badges. The brands winning in 2026 are the ones that treat Amazon as a specialized operational discipline, not a side project.

Here's what shifts:

Advertising is now the largest line-item cost for most brands. ROI discipline matters more than budget size. If you're not running structured A/B tests on creative, headlines, and targeting, you're leaving margin on the table.

Marketplace diversification spreads risk. Walmart, TikTok Shop, ChatGPT checkout, and other channels offer different economics. Amazon is still the biggest channel, but it shouldn't be the only channel.

Operational sophistication separates seven-figure brands from eight-figure brands. Supply chain management, inventory planning, brand protection, and influencer relationship programs are table stakes now.

AI changes discovery. Rufus, ChatGPT, and agentic commerce models reward clear, structured product information. Listings that read like they were optimized for keyword stuffing won't surface in AI-driven search results.

If you're managing Amazon strategy in-house and these trends feel overwhelming, that's a signal. The playbook is more specialized than it was five years ago. Agencies like SupplyKick exist because Amazon is now a full-time operational discipline, not something a marketing generalist can manage alongside five other channels.

FAQ: Amazon Ecommerce Trends 2026