AWS brought in $46.0 billion in revenue in the third quarter of 2026, up 39% from a year earlier, and posted $17.8 billion in operating profit, more than half of Amazon’s total operating profit. The group reported $201.9 billion in revenue (+12%) and reached a 13.9% operating margin, its highest ever according to the company, which released results on October 29, 2026.
Amazon and AWS Q3 results in 30 seconds
- AWS brought in $46.0 billion (+39%) and posted $17.8 billion in operating profit.
- Amazon’s revenue reached $201.9 billion (+12%), with a record 13.9% operating margin.
- Capital spending reached $210.7 billion over twelve months, pushing free cash flow negative.
- Amazon expects about $220 billion in 2026 capex and forecasts AWS growth above 40% in 2027 and 2028.
CEO Andy Jassy summed up the quarter in one line: “our investment in AWS capabilities and infrastructure is paying off.” According to the earnings release, AWS’s annualized revenue run rate has already reached $184 billion, and Jassy expects growth above 40% in 2027 and 2028. He also offered a headline-worthy line: “there has never been a trillion-dollar revenue business, and we may end up with two in the next 5 to 10 years.”
Bedrock, agents, and Trainium
Amazon shared several indicators of usage for its AI platform. Spending by Fortune 500 companies on Bedrock, its foundation-model service, has nearly multiplied by seven over the past year, and total token volume has grown nearly 17-fold. Bedrock now includes models such as OpenAI’s GPT-6 family, Anthropic’s Claude 5.x, Kimi K3, Grok 4.7, and GLM 5.3, and it is launching Bedrock Managed Agents in public preview.
Tens of thousands of customers already use AgentCore, the platform for deploying agents, which Amazon says deployed twice as many agents in the third quarter as in the previous three quarters combined. On the custom-silicon side, TorchNeuron lets existing PyTorch code run on Trainium without rewriting it. Lambda has topped $1 billion in annualized revenue, and AWS has acquired DuckLabs, the company behind DuckDB. Among new deals, the company cites Meta, NVIDIA, OpenAI, Oracle, Qualcomm, Verizon, and NATO, without disclosing amounts. CloudNews has previously covered other moves in Amazon’s supply chain, including its stake in Gold Circuit, a maker of AI server boards.
An investment spree that’s eating into cash
The scale of the investment shows up clearly in the numbers. Over the past twelve months, Amazon spent $210.7 billion net on property and equipment, up 82%, and while operating cash flow rose 29% to $168.3 billion, free cash flow was negative $42.4 billion, compared with a positive $14.8 billion a year earlier. Long-term debt has risen from $65.6 billion in December 2025 to $173.1 billion, including $48.1 billion in new issuances in this quarter alone. For all of 2026, the company expects about $220 billion in cash capital expenditures.
Net income was $20.7 billion, slightly below the $21.2 billion from a year earlier, because that prior-year figure included $9.5 billion in pre-tax gains tied to Amazon’s investment in Anthropic. Sales in North America grew 6% and international sales grew 5%, affected by the fact that Prime Day fell in the second quarter this year in most major countries.
For the fourth quarter, Amazon expects revenue of $240 billion to $247 billion, up 12% to 16%, and operating profit of $28.5 billion to $33.5 billion, compared with $25.0 billion a year earlier. The forecast excludes any new acquisitions, restructurings, or legal settlements.
Frequently asked questions
How much revenue did AWS report in the third quarter of 2026?
$46.0 billion, up 39% from a year earlier, with $17.8 billion in operating profit.
How much is Amazon investing in infrastructure?
$210.7 billion net over the past twelve months, up 82%, with about $220 billion in cash capital expenditures expected for all of 2026.
Why did Amazon’s net income fall?
Because a year earlier it included $9.5 billion in pre-tax gains tied to its investment in Anthropic. It came in at $20.7 billion, compared with $21.2 billion.
What is Amazon’s outlook for the fourth quarter?
Revenue of $240 billion to $247 billion and operating profit of $28.5 billion to $33.5 billion.
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