List_of_best-selling_albums_in_the_United_States_of_the_Nielsen_SoundScan_era

List of best-selling albums in the United States of the Nielsen SoundScan era

List of best-selling albums in the United States of the Nielsen SoundScan era

List of best-selling albums in the United States since 1991

This is a list of best-selling albums in the United States of the Nielsen SoundScan era. SoundScan began tracking sales data for Billboard on March 1, 1991. SoundScan data is unrelated to the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) certifications, and is based on actual sales while the RIAA's certification process is based on shipments.

Metallica's self-titled album is the highest selling record under Nielsen SoundScan, selling over 17 million copies

Best-sellers (overall)

Shania Twain's Come On Over (released in 1997) has sold over 15.7 million copies.
Alanis Morissette's Jagged Little Pill (released in 1995) has sold over 15.3 million copies.
The Beatles' 1 (released in 2000) has sold over 13 million copies.
More information Album, Release year ...

Best-selling albums by decade

1991–1999

More information Album, Release year ...

2000–2009

More information Album, Release year ...

2010–2019

More information Album, Release year ...

Best-selling albums by year

Taylor Swift is the first artist to have the annual best seller seven times (2009, 2014, 2017, 2019, 2020, 2022, 2023).[26]
Adele has the annual best seller five times (2011, 2012, 2015, 2016, 2021).
Eminem has the best-selling album of a calendar year twice (2002 and 2010).
Drake has the year's top-consumed album (based on album-equivalent units) twice (2016 and 2018).

The following list includes the annual best-selling albums since 1991, as reported by MRC Data (formerly Nielsen SoundScan). For albums released after 2015, the best-performing album of the year is determined by album-equivalent units consisted of album sales, digital songs sales, and on-demand streaming, while the best-selling album is determined by album sales only.[27]

Key
† Indicates album-equivalent units
More information Year, Album ...

Single week best-sellers

See also: Lists of fastest-selling albums § United States

The first album in the SoundScan era to sell a million copies or more in a week is the soundtrack of The Bodyguard by Whitney Houston in 1992; the most recent album to do so is The Tortured Poets Department by Taylor Swift in 2024. The following is a list of all of the albums that sold at least one million copies in a single week:[60][61][62][63][64]

Key
† Indicates album-equivalent units
More information Week ending, Title ...

See also

References

Footnotes

  1. Not including an additional 1.59 million copies sold through BMG Music Clubs. Nielsen SoundScan does not count albums sold through clubs like the BMG Music Service, which were significantly popular in the 1990s.[6]
  2. As of October 2014, No Strings Attached sold 11.16 million copies per SoundScan.[10] An additional 1.52 million copies sold through the BMG Music Club are not included in SoundScan's total.[11]
  3. As of May 2020, ...Baby One More Time has sold 10,700,000 copies in the US according to Nielsen SoundScan,[14] with an additional 1,600,000 copies sold through BMG Music Clubs.[15] Nielsen SoundScan does not count albums sold through clubs like the BMG Music Service, which were significantly popular in the 1990s.[16]
  4. Not including an additional 3 million copies sold through CD clubs. Nielsen SoundScan does not count albums sold through CD clubs, which were significantly popular in the 1990s.[19]
  5. Not including an additional 1.72 million copies sold through BMG Music Clubs. Nielsen SoundScan does not count albums sold through clubs like the BMG Music Service, which were significantly popular in the 1990s.[21]
  6. Following an abbreviated single-day first week.
  7. Abbreviated sales week of four days.
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