V. Read
The foundational letter. Laid out customer obsession, long-term thinking, and willingness to be misunderstood. He re-attached it to every subsequent annual letter for the next 23 years.
Read on About Amazon →Reframed how investors should think about Amazon — not earnings per share but free cash flow per share. Made the case for why customer experience leads to cash flow.
Read in full PDF compilation →Distinguished between decisions you can solve with data and decisions that require judgment, intuition, and taste. A short, punchy letter that has aged extremely well.
Read in full PDF compilation →Focused on how Amazon's self-service tools let creators and small businesses build without asking permission. A letter about the power of platforms.
Read in full PDF compilation →Celebrated bold bets like AWS, Prime, and Marketplace. Introduced the idea that missionary teams build better products than mercenary ones.
Read in full PDF compilation →The "one-way door vs. two-way door" framework for decision-making. Argued that most companies use heavyweight processes on lightweight decisions and slow themselves down.
Read on SEC.gov →Defined "Day 1 vs. Day 2," introduced the 70% decision rule, and laid out "disagree and commit." Probably the most quoted letter after 1997.
Read on SEC.gov →Warned about letting processes become proxies for results — when companies start managing the process rather than the outcome. Deepened the "high standards" theme.
Read on SEC.gov →Made the case that wandering and efficiency are both essential. Introduced the Echo/Alexa story as an example of invention that no customer asked for.
Read on About Amazon →His farewell letter. Reflected on Amazon's responsibility to employees, the climate pledge, and the idea of creating more than you consume. A fitting capstone to 23 years of letters.
Read on About Amazon →All 24 shareholder letters (1997–2020) are available in a single document: Download the complete PDF →