Top of Search (TOS)

Top of Search (TOS) is Amazon's placement classification for the first row of paid placements on the search results page — the row that appears above any organic result. On desktop this is typically positions 1–4 of Sponsored Products on a SERP, plus the Sponsored Brands headline banner above that row when present.

Why TOS matters disproportionately

CTR and CVR at TOS dominate the rest of the placement mix:

• TOS CTR is typically 2–4× rest-of-search CTR.
• TOS CVR is typically 1.3–1.8× rest-of-search CVR (higher-intent shoppers click higher-position results).
• TOS CPC is typically 1.5–3× rest-of-search CPC — the auction is more competitive.

The math usually still favours TOS: even at 3× the CPC, the 4× CTR × 1.5× CVR multiplier means TOS delivers more profitable ad-driven sales than the same bid spread across other placements.

The TOS bid modifier

In Sponsored Products campaign settings, advertisers can add a TOS placement bid modifier from 0% to 900%. Setting Top of Search +50% means: when the auction is for a TOS placement, multiply the keyword bid by 1.5×. The modifier applies on top of dynamic-bidding adjustments, so a Dynamic — Up and Down campaign with +50% TOS modifier can produce a winning bid of base × dynamic-multiplier × 1.5.

Defensible modifier patterns:

• +0% (no modifier) — baseline; campaign accepts whatever placement mix the auction yields.
• +50% to +100% — typical for branded keywords where you want to defend position 1.
• +200% to +400% — aggressive launch posture; buying ranking velocity at any cost.
• +0% with a separate TOS-only campaign — the precision approach: duplicate the campaign, set one to +900% (effectively TOS-only) and the other to +0%, and bid each at the placement's true value.

Top of Search Impression Share (TOS IS)

In the Amazon Ads console, the TOS Impression Share metric tells you: of all the TOS auctions you were eligible for, what fraction did you win? A TOS IS of 12% on a high-volume keyword means 88% of TOS opportunities went to competitors. This is the single most actionable diagnostic for "why isn't this keyword scaling?" — usually the answer is "you're losing the auction, raise the bid or the modifier."

Common mistakes

• No TOS modifier on branded keywords. Competitors will out-bid you on your own brand if you don't defend position 1.
• TOS modifier on weak-CVR keywords. Multiplying a bid 2× on a keyword that converts at 4% just multiplies the wasted spend.
• Reading TOS performance from the standard campaign report. Use the Placement Report to isolate TOS vs. rest-of-search vs. product pages.
• Setting TOS modifier and then keeping the daily budget cap unchanged. A successful TOS modifier 2× the spend per click — the budget runs out by noon.