Amazon Returns to Google Shopping in International Markets

In July, Amazon suddenly pulled all investment from Google Shopping Ads in the U.S. and internationally, catching both Google and other advertisers completely offguard. The ecommerce giant previously held a near 60% impression share in the U.S. market for Google Shopping results.

Across major markets Amazon’s share of Shopping ad impressions dropped from significant levels (often 50‑60% in some verticals) down to zero. However, that absence only lasted one month as Amazon returned to Google Shopping in some international markets in August. Notably, they did not reactivate in the U.S.

Amazon likely made this decision for a variety of reasons:

Incrementality Testing: To understand how much value Amazon gets from Google Shopping ads—e.g. whether they bring in incremental traffic versus traffic Amazon would already get via its own channels.

Reducing Dependency On Google: Amazon may be looking to gain leverage in its relationship with Google—possibly in terms of ad rates, fee structures, or how listings are handled.

Focus on Own Ecosystem and Development of AI: Amazon has been developing its own AI-assisted search function on its site that would allow users to shop brand sites directly even if the brand does not sell directly through the giant. In addition, big ecommerce players are worried about owning as much of the customer journey as possible. By reducing reliance on external marketing channels, Amazon could be pushing users to start searches on Amazon rather than on Google.

What Was the Impact?

Reduced CPC – Other Google Shopping advertisers saw significant decreases in their costs as a result of a bidder as large as Amazon not competing in the auction. On average, advertisers saw an 8.3% CPC decrease with some verticals seeing larger drops.

Reduction in Conversion Value and ROAS – While click traffic improved, average conversion values fell around 5.5% while ROAS fell on average by 4.4%.

However, this could also be due to current economic conditions as consumers are becoming more conservative with their discretionary spending.

It’s still not fully clear what reasons Amazon has for exiting the Google Shopping auction temporarily only to return without advertising in the largest market.
However, a few reasons could be:

• The U.S. might have shown less incremental return—perhaps Amazon determined the benefit of Google Shopping ads in its home market does not outweigh cost, or that its reach via other channels offsets the absence there.
• Amazon may be testing a differentiated ad strategy by geography—perhaps pushing more investment into its own search and discovery tools in the U.S. rather than external listings.

Amazon did not return to Google shopping for the ecommerce giant’s famous “Prime Days” sale occurring October 7-8. Amazon’s move underscores how important flexibility and testing are in large ecommerce advertising strategies. For marketers, it’s a reminder to avoid overdependence on any single channel and to stay agile. We’ll be watching closely to see if Amazon returns to Google Shopping in the U.S. for Black Friday / Cyber Monday.

This article is featured in Media Impact Report No. 69. View the full report here.