Amazon's Perishables Business Nears $250 Billion Run Rate

Amazon's fresh groceries and everyday essentials rang up gross sales of close to $250 billion over the past year, CEO Andy Jassy told investors Thursday on the company's third-quarter earnings call. That figure anchors a grocery push the company says is now growing three times faster than the rest of its store.

Fresh groceries and everyday essentials accounted for roughly half of all units Amazon sold during Q3, Jassy said. Whole Foods Market is pulling its weight too: the specialty grocer is growing faster than the rest of Amazon's grocery segment.

Why speed is doing the heavy lifting

Jassy credits faster delivery for the grocery gains, and the internal numbers he cited back that up. Customers who buy perishables via same-day delivery purchase nearly seven times more everyday-essentials units than customers who don't. Active grocery customers also shop nearly four times more non-grocery categories — home, apparel — and spend more than double on those categories compared with non-grocery shoppers.

"We really are excited that we feel like we found something with shipping perishables out of our same-day facilities," Jassy said.

Takeaway: perishables aren't a standalone business for Amazon; they're a lever that lifts spending across the entire catalog.

Prime members are tripling down

CFO Brian Olsavsky said Prime members are leaning into the grocery offer. Over the past year, monthly fresh grocery orders placed by Prime members for same-day delivery have more than tripled, he said during the call.

That growth has come despite — or alongside — a physical retreat. Amazon shuttered its brick-and-mortar supermarket and convenience store banners earlier this year, even as it rapidly expanded perishables delivery over the same period. A few months ago it announced an expansion of its 30-minute delivery service to include fresh groceries and nonfood items.

Takeaway: Amazon is trading shelves for speed, and Prime is where the model is proving out.

What's next at Whole Foods

Whole Foods' wins include its small-format Daily Shop concept, which debuted in New York City in 2024 and will keep rolling out over the next couple of years, according to Jassy. That gives the physical side of the grocery business a growth vehicle even as the supermarket banners disappear.

Jassy framed the broader ambition plainly: "We believe that the progress we're making on perishables and grocery is going to ultimately lead to [us] being more relevant to customers for more of their shopping missions."

Amazon didn't break out grocery profitability on the call, so whether that $250 billion in gross sales translates into margin remains an open question. For now, the company is betting that once perishables enter the basket, everything else follows.