Do I need to know SQL to use AMC?

No. AMC includes no-code analysis and audience templates, and Ads Agent in AMC accepts plain-language requests. Amazon announced an AMC Expert Tool at unBoxed 2026 that writes SQL from a request. SQL still helps for custom analysis, and Amazon offers beginner training.

What is the difference between AMC and Amazon Attribution?

Amazon Attribution measures traffic you send from outside Amazon, such as Google or Meta, to your listings. AMC analyzes your Amazon Ads campaigns together, across ad types and time, and builds custom audiences. Many brands use both for different questions.

How far back does AMC data go?

Amazon says advertisers can access 25 months of ad traffic signals in AMC, and that audiences can use a multi-year lookback window. That makes AMC useful for seasonal comparisons and long purchase cycles that standard reports cannot show.

Is Amazon Marketing Cloud safe for customer data?

AMC accepts only pseudonymized information, and Amazon says outputs are aggregated and anonymous. Amazon also states it cannot export or access the signals an advertiser uploads. Small result groups are hidden to protect privacy, which is why AMC works best with larger volumes.

Amazon Marketing Cloud (AMC) Guide for 2026 Advertisers

Q: Is Amazon Marketing Cloud free?

Yes. Amazon says AMC is available at no cost to eligible advertisers through its web interface and API. Advertisers using sponsored ads can sign up on a self-service basis, and others can access it through an account executive or a partner in the Amazon Ads Partner Network.

What changed: A clean room for cross-channel ad analysis and custom audiences
When: Updated October 2026, after unBoxed 2026
Who it affects: Eligible advertisers, including sponsored ads advertisers via self-service sign-up
What to do: Sign up, run template queries, then build one audience to test

Key takeaways

AMC is a free clean room for eligible advertisers, with 25 months of ad traffic signals.
No-code templates and AI query help mean SQL is optional in 2026.
Start with path to conversion and overlap, then test one AMC audience against a control.

1Sign up
Self-service for sponsored ads
2Run templates
No SQL needed
3Find the path
Ad combinations that convert
4Build an audience
Cart abandoners, repeat buyers
5Test with control
Display or video campaign

What is Amazon Marketing Cloud?

AMC is a cloud-based clean room built on AWS Clean Rooms. Advertisers run analysis on pseudonymized signals from their Amazon Ads campaigns and, if they choose, their own uploaded data. Amazon says outputs are aggregated and anonymous, and that it cannot export or access an advertiser's own signals.

The practical difference from normal reporting is detail and reach. Standard reports show each ad type on its own, with last-click credit. AMC lets you join events across ad types and over time, with access to 25 months of ad traffic signals, so you can see how shoppers moved from one ad to another before buying.

Who can access AMC, and what does it cost?

Amazon says AMC is available at no cost to eligible advertisers through a web interface and an API. Advertisers using sponsored ads can sign up on a self-service basis, advertisers wanting advanced display and video settings work through their Amazon Ads account executive, and brands can also use AMC through partners in the Amazon Ads Partner Network. It is available across North America, Brazil, much of Europe, Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Australia, India, Japan and Singapore.

Do you need SQL to use AMC?

Not anymore. AMC offers curated analysis and audience templates that need no SQL. Amazon has also added Ads Agent inside AMC, which takes plain-language requests to create audiences and queries, and at unBoxed 2026 in September it announced an AMC Expert Tool that reasons across AMC schemas and writes the SQL for a request. SQL is still useful for custom work, and Amazon offers a beginner certification of eight courses.

What can you learn from AMC?

AMC is most useful for questions that cross campaigns or time. These are common starting points for brands.

Path to conversion: which combinations of ad types lead to purchase
Overlap: how many shoppers saw both Sponsored Brands and Sponsored Products
Time to conversion: how long shoppers take from first ad to purchase
New-to-brand paths: which ads first reach customers new to your brand
Frequency: how many impressions it takes before a purchase
Upper funnel impact: whether video or display exposure lifts search ad results

Building audiences with AMC

AMC audiences turn analysis into targeting. You can build custom segments from engagement, conversion and segment data, such as shoppers who viewed a product page but did not buy, or past buyers due to repurchase, and activate them in sponsored, video and display ads. The API also supports rule-based and lookalike audiences. Amazon recommends starting with standard Amazon Ads audiences and moving to AMC for multi-channel or bespoke segments.

How to get started with AMC, step by step

A small, focused start beats a long list of queries nobody acts on.

Confirm eligibility and sign up for an AMC instance
Make sure campaigns have been running long enough to give useful data
Run a template query for path to conversion
Run overlap analysis for Sponsored Brands and Sponsored Products
Turn one insight into an audience, such as cart abandoners
Test the audience in a Sponsored Display or video campaign with a control
Write down what changed and repeat monthly

AMC vs standard Amazon Ads reports

Use standard reports for daily management: bids, search terms and budgets. Use AMC for strategic questions that decide how budget is split across ad types and funnel stages. Our Amazon advertising metrics guide covers the daily set, and our Amazon DSP vs sponsored ads guide explains when upper funnel media is worth adding. For off-Amazon traffic, Amazon Attribution is the simpler tool.

Standard reports vs AMC

	Standard reports	Amazon Marketing Cloud
Best for	Daily bids and budgets	Strategy and budget split
Cross ad type paths
Custom audiences
Skill needed	Low	Templates or SQL

Is AMC worth it for smaller sellers?

AMC needs volume to be useful, because aggregated outputs hide small numbers for privacy. Brands with modest spend and only Sponsored Products often learn more from search term and placement reports. AMC earns its time once you run several ad types, spend steadily each month and need to decide how much to put into Sponsored Brands, Display, video or DSP.

How PPC Spider uses AMC

PPC Spider uses AMC to inform budget splits across ad types and to build retargeting and new-to-brand audiences for display and video. It sits within our Amazon DSP agency and Amazon PPC management services. A free Amazon audit will tell you whether your account has enough data for AMC to be worth it yet.

Sources

Amazon Ads: Amazon Marketing Cloud (advertising.amazon.com/solutions/products/amazon-marketing-cloud)
Amazon Ads: unBoxed 2026 news and announcements (advertising.amazon.com/library/news/unboxed-2026-news-announcements)
Amazon Ads: Introducing Amazon Ads Agent (advertising.amazon.com/en-us/library/news/amazon-ads-agent/)

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