Amazon Hiring 300,000 Workers for 2026 Holiday Season Rush

Amazon plans to hire more than 300,000 workers across the United States for the 2026 holiday season, marking the first increase in Amazon holiday hiring in three years, according to a Reuters report on Tuesday’s announcement. The e-commerce giant is ramping up staffing as it prepares for a surge in orders during its busiest time of the year.

The announcement signals a shift for Amazon, which had held its seasonal workforce steady at 250,000 for the past three years, Reuters reported. This year’s larger hiring plan reflects both an expanding operations network and expectations of strong consumer demand this holiday season.

Keeping seasonal hiring flat for three consecutive years was unusual for a company whose fulfillment footprint kept growing. The return to year-over-year growth in seasonal recruitment suggests Amazon expects the 2026 holiday season to strain even its current capacity, making a larger temporary workforce a strategic priority rather than a routine one.

Amazon holiday hiring: what to know

Amazon said it is hiring for seasonal, part-time and full-time roles across its U.S. core operations, with job openings posted weekly from October through December, according to Reuters and Dow Jones/Morningstar. Here are the key facts:

• Roles: More than 300,000 seasonal, part-time and full-time positions across Amazon’s U.S. core operations.
• Pay: Seasonal employees earn an average of $20 an hour, while full-time operations employees start at a minimum of $20 an hour with average hourly pay reaching nearly $24 before benefits, Dow Jones reported.
• Benefits: Seasonal employees who work at least 30 hours per week will receive the healthcare benefits offered to regular full-time employees starting next year; seasonal healthcare plans start at $5 a week with $5 copays, Amazon said.
• Timeline: New openings are being posted weekly from October through December.
• Scale: The 300,000-plus target is the company’s first seasonal hiring increase in three years, after three years at 250,000 workers.

Record holiday sales on the horizon

Amazon’s aggressive hiring push lines up with rosy industry forecasts. U.S. holiday sales growth is expected to accelerate 4.2% from a year earlier to more than $1 trillion this year, the National Retail Federation forecast last week, according to Reuters.

The figure underscores why retailers are staffing up despite broader economic uncertainty. As surging healthcare expenses pressure Americans facing rising costs of living, strong holiday demand remains a critical pillar of consumer spending, Reuters noted.

Why Amazon is expanding its network

Amazon spokesperson Branden Baribeau explained the reasoning behind the larger hiring plan, telling the Tennessean: “Our hiring reflects a mix of things, including the growth of our operations network with new sites coming online across the country, our planning for the holiday season, and the natural staffing needs of our busiest time of year.”

The announcement came weeks after Amazon announced a smaller round of job reductions in its retail division earlier this month, the Financial Express reported. The contrast highlights the company’s dual approach: trimming corporate and retail headcount in some areas while investing heavily in the frontline workers needed to move holiday packages.

Such a pattern is not uncommon in retail, where companies adjust salaried and support roles separately from the hourly workforce that handles peak seasonal volume. For Amazon, the holiday hiring surge represents its single largest seasonal staffing commitment in years.

Retailers compete on benefits

Amazon is not the only major retailer sweetening the deal for seasonal workers. Last week, retailer Walmart expanded healthcare benefits for its workforce, as surging healthcare expenses pressure Americans facing rising costs of living, Reuters reported.

Industry watchers say the benefit expansions reflect a tight seasonal labor market where major employers compete to attract and retain hourly workers. Amazon’s move to extend full-time-style healthcare to seasonal employees working at least 30 hours per week marks a notable commitment for the company, which has faced ongoing scrutiny over warehouse working conditions.

What the seasonal roles involve

Seasonal workers at Amazon typically staff fulfillment centers, sortation centers and delivery stations, handling the picking, packing and shipping of orders during the peak shopping period. Openings posted weekly through December mean candidates can apply on a rolling basis throughout the fall.

With the National Retail Federation projecting holiday sales to top $1 trillion, the 2026 season could test just how much growth Amazon’s expanding operations network can absorb. The 300,000-worker hiring plan suggests the company intends to meet the moment head-on.