Korean brands accounted for seven of the 10 most-clicked beauty products during Amazon's fall discount event. Medicube topped both the beauty search and product click rankings, while Anua, Illiyoon and Dr.Althea also placed near the top.
Seven of the 10 most-clicked beauty products on Amazon during the event week were K-beauty items, according to a report on the October 2026 Amazon Prime Big Deal Days released recently by Market Defense, a U.S. digital commerce firm. This year's Prime Big Deal Days ran on the 6th and 7th of this month.
Medicube stood out in both searches and product clicks. The brand held the No. 1 spot among beauty search terms and ranked third across all Amazon searches, matching its performance at Prime Day in June. By product, its Zero Pore Pad ranked first in beauty clicks and also made the top 10 in skin care sales.
The individual products drawing consumer attention shifted, however. Medicube's PDRN balm stick, which ranked first in beauty clicks in June, fell to 92nd this time. Anua's PDRN hyaluronic acid cream, Illiyoon's ceramide cream and Dr.Althea's 345 Relief Cream all entered the top 10 in beauty clicks.
That interest translated into sales. Four Korean brands — Medicube, Biodance, Anua and Dr.Althea — together held a 12.8% share of Amazon's beauty sales.
The Amazon results reflect rapidly growing demand for K-beauty in the U.S. market. K-beauty skin care sales in the United States rose 51% from a year earlier over the 12 months through the first quarter of this year, according to data released in July by Numerator, a U.S. consumer research firm. The share of U.S. households buying K-beauty climbed to 25% from 8% in 2020, and the repurchase rate rose to 48% from 26% over the same period.
Amazon is the key sales channel behind that growth. About two-thirds of U.S. K-beauty sales came from online channels, according to a June survey by Numerator, a U.S. data firm, of 2,300 K-beauty buyers and more than 750 non-buyers. Amazon accounted for the largest share of total K-beauty sales at 44%, followed by Sephora at 24% and Ulta Beauty at 11%. Online sales grew twice as fast as offline sales over the past year. Amazon sales rose 62% and TikTok Shop sales jumped 223%, leading the growth.
Social media appears to be a major driver of those online sales. Among K-beauty buyers, 68% said social media had somewhat, considerably or very significant influence on their skin care purchases. Only 49% of non-buyers said the same.
"The share of U.S. households that have purchased K-beauty rose to 25% last year from 8% in 2020," Numerator said. "By 2030, one in three U.S. households will buy K-beauty." The firm added that the repurchase rate roughly doubled to 48% last year from 26% in 2020.
Kim Yeon-ha's Killing Issue covers key developments and trends in the food, fashion and beauty industries, along with corporate strategy and market shifts. It offers insights for industry professionals and interested readers alike. Subscribe to receive the latest updates.