Amazon changes course on its checkout-free tech

• Key insights: Amazon is closing Amazon Go and Amazon Fresh, along with a biometric option called One. 
• What's at stake: Checkout-free retail is fast and provides actionable data, but the technology has not caught on due to challenges. 
• Forward look: Amazon plans to repurpose the underlying technology for other uses. 

Amazon made a big splash when it introduced its Amazon Go stores in 2017, but the checkout-free stores didn't catch on as a standalone option for shoppers. The e-commerce giant has decided to shut down the stores and use the underlying technology for other purposes. Amazon, which is planning to cut 14,000 corporate jobs and 30,000 total employees, according to Reuters, is also discontinuing its Amazon Go and Amazon Fresh stores as well as a palm-payment technology called Amazon One. 

The move comes as Amazon refocuses on other parts of its business. It plans to open 100 new locations for its Whole Foods division, and more locations for its Whole Foods Market Daily Shop, a smaller store that features "grab and go" meals. It also plans to expand its same-day delivery options.

"We'll also continue to explore integrated experiences like Amazon Grocery, which we launched alongside Whole Foods Market in Chicago, that make it easier for customers to shop our extensive grocery selection, all in one place," Amazon's media relations office said in an email. "Looking ahead, we'll continue to expand both our online and physical presence, prioritizing convenience, selection, and value."

A small footprint

There are 14 Amazon Go locations and 58 Amazon Fresh locations.

"After a careful evaluation of the business and how we can best serve customers, we've made the difficult decision to close our Amazon Go and Amazon Fresh physical stores, converting various locations into Whole Foods Market stores," Amazon said on its website. "While we've seen encouraging signals in our Amazon-branded physical grocery stores, we haven't yet created a truly distinctive customer experience with the right economic model needed for large-scale expansion."

Amazon said Amazon Fresh is still available for online orders in available areas, and it is working to find roles for Amazon Go and Amazon Fresh staff elsewhere in Amazon where possible. Amazon Go, which carried the "Just Walk Out" slogan, uses camera sensing and other technology to "check in" consumers when they walk into the stores, which are generally the size of a small convenience store.

Once inside, according to the company, the technology "sensed" when an item was picked up from a shelf, then charged the consumer's Amazon account for the items. According to reports, workers in India reviewed the sales. Amazon Fresh was a similar concept for a brick and mortar version of its online supermarket. Amazon additionally paired the Amazon Go/Fresh technology with other innovations, such as placing checkout sensors in shopping carts, and in the early 2020s began scouting for locations in shopping malls and in Amazon's Whole Foods chain for Amazon Go locations. 

Why payment tech firms like checkout-free

While checkout-free retail has not taken off, dozens of other companies have built their own versions of the technology with plans to sell it to brick and mortar merchants in an effort to counter Amazon. The underlying technology also has appeal as a way to accrue data that is not available through conversational means, such as how long consumers spend looking at items while shopping and how often they pick up items, only to put them back on the shelf. This information can inform cross-selling and incentive marketing, and other tasks such as inventory management.

Checkout-free retail has not yet become mainstream, with technology challenges including retrofitting the technology to existing stores, or opening stores in large footprints. The technology has found demand at sports facilities and transportation venues. Amazon said it has had success selling Amazon Go's technology elsewhere, adding the checkout-free option is live in more than 360 third-party locations in five countries, with sports facilities and hospitals being among the adopters. 

"Building on this success, we're expanding Just Walk Out technology to Amazon's own operations, with more than 40 North American Fulfillment Centers using it in breakrooms today, and many more planned for 2026, helping employees maximize break time by grabbing meals without checkout delays," Amazon said. 

Closing Amazon Go and Amazon Fresh will allow the company to focus on expanding its Whole Foods Market brand, while further growing its same-day delivery service to new cities and towns in 2026, according to a research report from Wedbush Securities. 

"Amazon introduced perishables into their same-day delivery last year, with sales of perishables through the offering growing 40x since January 2025," Wedbush said "Additionally, the company recently introduced an ultra-fast option, delivering a wide selection of essentials and perishables to customers in about 30 minutes or less."

These new plans will bolster the company's same-day efforts, adding even more value to Prime memberships, according to Wedbush, noting the value proposition of Amazon Prime has become more compelling as users pay $139/year (or $14.99/month) for access to several discounts and features, including a revamped grocery offering. 

This week's announcement is "an important step forward in Amazon's broader strategy and should help the company capture incremental share in perishable categories where they have struggled historically. The reason this announcement is so significant is that Amazon has yet to displace incumbents in the grocery category, at least for perishables," Wedbush said.