The use of the ambient seismic field (ASF) to extract Earth’s response has received significant attention in the last several years. Multiple studies demonstrate the utility of the ASF for estimating high-resolution velocity models in various locations. In this paper, we discuss the amplitude information carried by the ASF. Amplitude information includes both amplification effects due to elastic structure, such as low velocity sedimentary basins, and attenuation effects in the crust and upper mantle or even in buildings. As has been suggested by other authors, amplitude measurements may be biased due to nonuniformities in ambient field excitation; however, we find very similar and stable results for different time intervals for both amplification and attenuation, suggesting that this bias may not be as large as feared. We conclude that valuable amplitude information can be recovered from the ASF through careful processing. Amplitude measurements may be particularly valuable due to the enhanced sensitivity of attenuation to fluids and/or temperature fluctuations. 2011 Acade´mie des sciences. Published by Elsevier Masson SAS. All rights reserved