Amazon Edges Past Walmart To Take Fortune 500 Crown For The First Time In 13 Years
Amazon.com (NASDAQ:AMZN) has overtaken Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT) to secure the top spot in the Fortune 500 list for the first time in 13 years.
Walmart’s total revenue for the recently concluded fiscal year was $713.2 billion, marking a 4.7% increase from the previous year. However, this was marginally less than Amazon’s full-year revenue of $716.9 billion, reported two weeks ago.
The Fortune 500 list with Amazon at the top is scheduled for release in early June, barring any unexpected developments.
Amazon's Retail Strategy Pivot
Amazon’s rise to the top of the Fortune 500 list can be traced back to strategic decisions made in recent years. In January 2026, Amazon decided to scrap its Amazon Fresh and Amazon Go initiatives, freeing up capital for more profitable ventures like Whole Foods and bringing the fight directly not only to Walmart but also Target (NYSE:TGT) and Costco (NASDAQ:COST).
Notably, Amazon’s revenue in 2010 was a mere $34.2 billion, compared to Walmart’s $422 billion. But the boom in online spending fueled by the pandemic benefited Amazon.
The company is pivoting toward expanding its same-day online delivery service and intends to open over 100 new Whole Foods stores in the next few years.
AWS Drives Amazon's Profit Engine
Beyond online retail, Amazon has also established a dominant presence in the rapidly growing cloud computing services sector through its AWS division, one of its fastest-growing segments.
In 2025, AWS reported $45.6 billion in operating income on $128.7 billion in revenue, up 20% year over year. Though it contributes less than 20% of Amazon's total revenue, AWS accounts for over half of the company's operating profit, effectively funding new product development.
Walmart's AI, E-Com Expansion
Walmart, on the other hand, is reinventing itself to catch up with changing consumer patterns. In the latest quarter, Walmart's U.S. e-commerce grew 27% year-on-year, with global online sales up 24%. E-commerce made up 23% of Walmart's U.S. sales, marking a record high for the company.
The retail giant is also doubling down on AI-driven shopping, partnering with OpenAI to enable in-app browsing and instant checkout within ChatGPT, and offering its own generative AI assistant, Sparky, for personalised, conversational shopping support.
Walmart also reached a historic $1 trillion valuation in early February after its shares more than doubled over the past two years, outperforming the S&P 500.
Price Action: On a year-to-date basis, Walmart stock climbed 10.74%, while Amazon.com stock declined 9.55% amid a broader tech sell-off, as per data from Benzinga Pro.
Image via Shutterstock
Disclaimer: The content of this article solely reflects the author's opinion and does not represent the platform in any capacity. This article is not intended to serve as a reference for making investment decisions.
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