Amazon Takes the Revenue Throne as Walmart Sales Jump Can't Keep Pace[Stocks](https://moneymorning.com/category/article/stocks/) # Amazon Takes the Revenue Throne as Walmart Sales Jump Can't Keep Pace  by Rich Duprey  February 23, 2026  Share it: **Amazon** ( [AMZN](https://moneymorning.com/stocks/amzn/)) has officially claimed the title of the world's largest company by annual revenue, dethroning **Walmart** ( [WMT](https://moneymorning.com/stocks/wmt/)) after more than a decade of the retail giant holding the top spot. Amazon reported its full-year 2025 results [earlier this month](https://moneymorning.com/2026/02/16/stanley-druckenmiller-loaded-up-on-this-stock-thats-down-22-you-can-buy-it-cheaper/), posting net sales of $716.9 billion, up 12% from the prior year. Walmart released its fiscal year 2026 earnings yesterday revealing total revenues of $713.2 billion, a 4.7% increase year-over-year. Walmart's Q4 sales rose 5.6% to approximately $190.7 billion, but the annual figure fell just short of Amazon's calendar-year tally. This narrow gap – about $3.7 billion – marks a symbolic yet significant shift, highlighting the divergent growth trajectories of the two retail powerhouses. ## A Long-Anticipated Milestone This crossover has been on the horizon for some time. Amazon first surpassed Walmart in quarterly sales about a year ago, signaling the momentum building in e-commerce and its diversified businesses. Amazon has consistently delivered double-digit revenue growth – 12% in 2025 – fueled by expanding online retail, advertising, subscriptions like Prime, and third-party seller services. In contrast, Walmart's gains have remained in the single digits, with 4.7% annual growth reflecting its mature brick-and-mortar dominance and slower expansion in digital channels. Analysts and industry observers had widely expected Amazon to eventually overtake Walmart as consumer spending increasingly shifted online and cloud computing became a major revenue driver. The milestone, though, underscores how Amazon's broader ecosystem has outpaced traditional retail scaling.  ## An Apples to Oranges Comparison While Amazon now leads in total revenue, a closer look at core retail operations shows Walmart remains the undisputed king in that arena. Virtually all of Walmart's $713.2 billion comes from retail sales across its stores, e-commerce, and membership income. Amazon, however, generates significant non-retail revenue from Amazon Web Services (AWS), which contributed $128.7 billion in 2025. Subtracting AWS leaves Amazon's retail-related sales – including North America and International segments, advertising, and other – at roughly $588.2 billion, well below Walmart's figure. This distinction illustrates that Amazon's crown is heavily powered by its high-margin cloud business, while Walmart's strength lies in sheer retail volume through physical locations and growing digital efforts. ## Bottom Line AWS continues to be Amazon's growth powerhouse, delivering 20% year-over-year revenue growth to $128.7 billion in 2025, with Q4 accelerating to 24%, around $35.6 billion. This surge, driven by AI demand and core cloud services, provides Amazon with substantial profitability and reinvestment capacity. Meanwhile, Amazon's retail business is also expanding at double-digit rates – albeit at rates slower than AWS – thanks to faster delivery, advertising growth, and marketplace strength. Over time, as e-commerce penetration deepens and Amazon invests aggressively in logistics and AI, it should eventually surpass Walmart in pure retail sales as well. For now, Amazon's diversified model has secured the revenue throne. But that can't buy happiness as its stock remains depressed. Yet with a long runway of still-strong growth ahead of it, AMZN stock remains a buy. **Beat the market, without relying on brokers or biased institutions.** Email(Required) Phone This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged. Subscribe By submitting your email address, you will receive a free subscription to _Money Morning!_ and occasional special offers from us and our affiliates. 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