List of best-selling albums worldwide
This is a list of the world's best-selling albums. The criteria are that the figure must have been published by a reliable source and the album must have sold at least 20 million copies worldwide. Most albums have different estimates of sales. In this list, the highest sales reported for an album is added to the list. Groupings are based on different sales benchmarks. The highest benchmark is for claims of at least 100 million copies, and the lowest are for claims of 20–29 million copies. Albums are listed in order of number of copies sold and by the artist's first name. This list contains all types of albums, including studio, greatest hits, compilation, various artists, soundtrack and remix.
A number of issues make exact figures difficult to calculate, as historical data before the 1980s and from developing countries is incomplete. Also, fans, record companies and the media are prone to making the sales figures higher than they actually are to boost the image of the act. The list also does not take into account the resale of used albums or as the emergence of illegal downloading of digital music.
Michael Jackson's Thriller is the best selling album of all time. The album is cited as selling as many as 110 million copies worldwide.[1]
Legend
Colors | |
---|---|
Studio Albums | |
Greatest Hits & Compilations | |
Soundtracks |
Over 50 million copies
Artist | Album | Released | Genre | Sales (millions) | Source | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Michael Jackson | Thriller | 1982 | Pop / R&B / Rock | 130 | [1]|[2] | |
Himesh Reshammiya | Aap Kaa Surroor | 2006 | Indipop | 55 | [1][2][3][4] |
40–49 million copies
Artist | Album | Released | Genre | Sales (millions) | Source |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Pink Floyd | The Dark Side of the Moon | 1973 | Progressive rock | 50 | [3] |
AC/DC | Back in Black | 1980 | Hard rock / Heavy metal | 49 | [4] |
Whitney Houston / Various artists | The Bodyguard | 1992 | Soundtrack | 44 | [5] |
Meat Loaf | Bat Out of Hell | 1977 | Rock | 43 | [6] |
Eagles | Their Greatest Hits (1971–1975) | 1976 | Rock | 42 | [1] |
Various artists | Dirty Dancing | 1987 | Dance / Pop | 42 | [7] |
Backstreet Boys | Millennium | 1999 | Pop | 40 | [8] |
Bee Gees / Various artists | Saturday Night Fever | 1977 | Disco | 40 | [9] |
Fleetwood Mac | Rumours | 1977 | Rock | 40 | [10] |
30–39 million copies
Artist | Album | Released | Genre | Sales (millions) | Source | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Michael Jackson | Bad | 1987 | Pop / R&B | 39 | [11] | |
Shania Twain | Come On Over | 1997 | Country / Pop | 40 | [12] | |
Led Zeppelin | Led Zeppelin IV | 1971 | Hard rock / Heavy metal | 37 | [13] | |
Alanis Morissette | Jagged Little Pill | 1995 | Rock | 33 | [14] | |
Michael Jackson | Dangerous | 1991 | Pop / R&B / New jack swing | 32 | [11] | |
The Beatles | Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band | 1967 | Rock | 32 | [15] | |
Celine Dion | Falling into You | 1996 | Pop | 32 | [16] | |
Eminem | The Marshall Mathers LP | 2000 | Hip Hop | 32 | [17] | |
Mariah Carey | Music Box | 1993 | Pop / R&B | 32 | [18] | |
The Beatles | 1 | 2000 | Rock | 31 | [19] | |
Celine Dion | Let's Talk About Love | 1997 | Pop | 31 | [20] | |
Adele | 21 | 2011 | Pop/Soul | 31 | [21] | |
Britney Spears | ...Baby One More Time | 1999 | Pop | 30 | [22] | |
Bee Gees | Spirits Having Flown | 1979 | Disco / Pop | 30 | [23] | |
Bruce Springsteen | Born in the U.S.A. | 1984 | Rock | 30 | [24] | |
Dire Straits | Brothers in Arms | 1985 | Rock | 30 | [25] | |
James Horner | Titanic | 1997 | Soundtrack | 30 | [26] | |
Madonna | The Immaculate Collection | 1990 | Pop / Dance | 30 | [27] | |
Pink Floyd | The Wall | 1979 | Progressive rock | 30 | [28] |
20–29 million copies
Artist | Album | Released | Genre | Sales (millions) | Source |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
ABBA | ABBA Gold: Greatest Hits | 1992 | Pop | 28 | [29] |
Backstreet Boys | Backstreet's Back | 1997 | Rock | 28 | [30] |
Bon Jovi | Slippery When Wet | 1986 | Hard rock | 28 | [31] |
Guns N' Roses | Appetite for Destruction | 1987 | Hard rock / Heavy metal | 28 | [32] |
Various artists | Grease | 1978 | Pop | 28 | [26] |
Eminem | The Eminem Show | 2002 | Hip Hop | 27 | [17] |
Santana | Supernatural | 1999 | Rock | 27 | [33] |
Nirvana | Nevermind | 1991 | Grunge / Alternative rock | 26 | [34] |
Carole King | Tapestry | 1971 | Pop | 25 | [35][36] |
Iron Butterfly | In-A-Gadda-Da-Vida | 1968 | Rock | 25 | [37] |
Mariah Carey | Daydream | 1995 | Pop / R&B | 25 | [38] |
Queen | Greatest Hits | 1981 | Rock | 25 | [39] |
Simon & Garfunkel | Bridge over Troubled Water | 1970 | Folk Rock | 25 | [40] |
U2 | The Joshua Tree | 1987 | Rock | 25 | [41] |
Whitney Houston | Whitney Houston | 1985 | Pop / R&B | 25 | [42] |
Backstreet Boys | Black & Blue | 2000 | Pop | 24 | [30] |
Linkin Park | Hybrid Theory | 2000 | Nu metal / Rap metal / Alternative rock | 24 | [43] |
Madonna | True Blue | 1986 | Pop | 24 | [44] |
Britney Spears | Oops!...I Did It Again | 2000 | Pop | 24 | [45] |
Ace of Base | Happy Nation/The Sign | 1994 | Pop | 23 | [46] |
Spice Girls | Spice | 1996 | Pop | 23 | [47] |
Oasis | (What's the Story) Morning Glory? | 1995 | Britpop / Rock | 22 | [48][49] |
Dido | No Angel | 1999 | Pop | 21 | [50] |
Madonna | Like A Virgin | 1984 | Pop / Dance | 21 | [51] |
Andrea Bocelli | Romanza | 1997 | Pop / Operatic Pop | 20 | [52] |
Billy Ray Cyrus | Some Gave All | 1992 | Country | 20 | [53] |
Bob Marley & The Wailers | Legend: The Best of Bob Marley & The Wailers | 1984 | Reggae | 20 | [54] |
Blondie | Parallel Lines | 1978 | Rock | 20 | [55] |
Bon Jovi | Cross Road | 1994 | Rock | 20 | [56] |
Cher | Believe | 1999 | Pop | 20 | [57] |
Def Leppard | Hysteria | 1987 | Rock | 20 | [58] |
George Michael | Faith | 1987 | Pop / R&B | 20 | [59] |
Janet Jackson | janet. | 1993 | Pop / R&B | 20 | [60] |
Madonna | Ray of Light | 1998 | Pop / Electronic | 20 | [61] |
Mariah Carey | #1's | 1998 | Pop / R&B | 20 | [62] |
Michael Jackson | HIStory: Past, Present and Future, Book I | 1995 | Pop/Rock/R&B | 20 | [63] |
Michael Jackson | Off the Wall | 1979 | Pop/Disco/R&B | 20 | [63] |
Norah Jones | Come Away with Me | 2002 | Jazz | 20 | [64] |
Prince & the Revolution | Purple Rain | 1984 | Rock | 20 | [26] |
Spice Girls | Spiceworld | 1997 | Pop | 20 | [65] |
Tina Turner | Private Dancer | 1984 | Rock | 20 | [66] |
Usher | Confessions | 2004 | R&B | 20 | [67] |