Amazon Ads

The largest retail media network and the third-largest digital advertising business overall. Amazon sells sponsored placements on its own store, display and video across its properties and the open web through Amazon DSP, and streaming TV on Prime Video, Twitch, and Fire TV, all measured against Amazon purchase data.

Where ads run

• Amazon search results and product detail pages (Sponsored Products, Sponsored Brands, Sponsored Display)
• Prime Video ads (since 2024), Freevee, Twitch, Fire TV
• Amazon-owned sites and apps (IMDb, Amazon Music) and third-party inventory through Amazon DSP
• Amazon Publisher Services (publisher header bidding and CTV)

Campaign types

• Sponsored Products
• Sponsored Brands (including video)
• Sponsored Display
• Sponsored TV
• Amazon DSP (display, video, audio, STV)

Targeting

• Keywords and product targeting (ASINs, categories) for Sponsored ads
• Amazon audiences: in-market, lifestyle, interests, life events (DSP)
• Purchase and browsing behavior, including for brands not sold on Amazon
• Advertiser audiences: hashed lists, pixel, app
• Contextual and lookalike audiences (DSP)

Buying

Sponsored ads are auction-based CPC with no minimum; Sponsored TV and Sponsored Display are CPM or vCPM. Amazon DSP is self-service or managed, with a managed-service minimum that has historically been in the tens of thousands of dollars per month (verify current terms). Prime Video inventory is bought through the DSP or upfronts.

Measurement

Closed-loop attribution to Amazon sales, including new-to-brand metrics; Amazon Marketing Cloud (clean room) for custom analysis across sponsored ads and DSP; Amazon Attribution for measuring off-Amazon campaigns that drive Amazon sales; brand lift and omnichannel metrics for DSP; third-party measurement integrations for STV.

Watch

For brands sold on Amazon, sponsored ads are close to mandatory because organic placement depends on sales velocity that ads drive. For brands not sold on Amazon, Amazon DSP and Prime Video are an audience buy with retail data behind it. Amazon Marketing Cloud is the most capable clean room in retail media and rewards analytical investment.

Documentation

https://advertising.amazon.com/help

See also: benchmarks for typical costs, and the glossary for any term used above.