Amazon’s Sea of Ads: Why 25+ Sponsored Products Per Page Still Works

In this episode, I expand on my latest column in The Drum, where I unpack new data showing that Amazon now averages 25+ sponsored products per page load—far more than Walmart or Home Depot. Despite fears that ad overload would harm the customer experience, Amazon maintains near-universal ad coverage while keeping relevance high, even on complex long-tail searches. That level of performance is only possible because Amazon invested early in sophisticated ad tech capable of matching ads to intent across every type of query.I also explore why Amazon’s high-density ad surface still works economically. By expanding formats and inventory, Amazon moderates CPC inflation while still driving huge revenue volumes—something most mid-tier retailers can’t replicate without upgrading their ad tech. For retailers, brands, and agencies, Amazon’s model is both a blueprint and a warning: dense ad monetization only works if relevance, user experience, and supply all scale together.This episode is sponsored by Mirakl AdsTimeline00:00 – Amazon really is a sea of ads!00:30 – How Amazon’s ad load compares to Walmart and Home Depot01:35 – Why Amazon’s dense ad surface still works02:45 – Long-tail queries and why most retailers fail to monetize them04:00 – The “doom loop” for mid-tier retail media networks05:10 – Amazon’s Unified Campaign Manager and keeping relevance high06:45 – The economics of abundant inventory and moderated CPCs08:15 – What Amazon’s ad saturation means for everyone elseLinks & ResourcesRead my full article on The Drum - You're not imagining it: Amazon really is a sea of ads (and it still works)Get Pentaleap's H2 2025 Sponsored Products Benchmarks ReportRead my articles:The Retail Media Doom LoopBest Buy Wants To Become An Ad Platform, Not Just Another RMNSubscribe to Retail Media Breakfast Club's daily newsletterFollow Kiri on LinkedIn