mazon officially surpassed Walmart to become the world’s largest company by annual revenue, ending Walmart’s 13-year reign at the top of the global rankings.
This milestone reflects a historic shift in the retail and technology landscape, as Amazon’s diversified ecosystem finally outpaced Walmart’s brick-and-mortar-focused scale.
The Revenue Breakdown
The rankings shifted following the release of full-year financial data for both giants. Despite the slim margin, the gap represents a significant symbolic victory for the e-commerce titan.
| Metric | Amazon (FY 2025) | Walmart (FY ending Jan 31, 2026) |
| Total Revenue | $716.9 Billion | $713.2 Billion |
| YoY Growth | ~11% | 4.7% |
| Key Driver | AWS & Advertising | Store Sales & E-commerce |
| Ranking | #1 Globally | #2 Globally |
The “AWS Engine” vs. Pure Retail
Analysts have noted that while the revenue title is a major achievement, the two companies operate under very different models.
- The Cloud Advantage: Amazon’s victory was largely fueled by Amazon Web Services (AWS), which generated approximately $128.7 billion in 2025. Without its cloud division, Amazon’s revenue would have been roughly $588 billion, placing it significantly behind Walmart.
- Profitability: AWS continues to be the primary profit engine for Amazon, allowing it to maintain thinner margins in its retail business while still outgrowing its competitors.
- Walmart’s Resilience: Walmart still maintains the crown for physical retail, with over 10,000 stores globally. Its own e-commerce business grew at a faster percentage rate (up to 27%) than Amazon’s in late 2025, but it lacks a high-margin services division like AWS.
Market Context: Revenue vs. Value
While Amazon leads in revenue, the title of “World’s Largest Company” often shifts depending on the metric used.
- By Market Cap: As of February 2026, Nvidia is the world’s most valuable company with a market capitalization of $4.5 trillion, followed by Apple and Microsoft. Amazon sits around $2.2 trillion, which is still more than double Walmart’s valuation.
- The Fortune 500: Amazon is now expected to claim the No. 1 spot on the official Fortune 500 list when it is released in June 2026.
Historical Significance
In 2010, Walmart’s revenue ($422B) was more than 12 times larger than Amazon’s ($34.2B). Over the last 15 years, Amazon’s revenue has grown at nearly 10 times the pace of Walmart’s, driven by the mass migration of consumer spending to digital channels and the explosion of the cloud computing industry.
