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Stacy Conradt
The Quick 10: 10 Best-Selling Albums
by Stacy Conradt - June 16, 2008 - 2:58 PM

Looks like somebody’s got a case of the Mondays… it’s totally me, you guys. So today’s Quick 10 is one that doesn’t require too much explanation – it’s the top 10 selling albums of all time (world wide). The only one I currently own is Sgt. Pepper, although there was definitely a time when I owned The Bodyguard soundtrack. And I have parts of the Thriller album on my iPod, but not the whole thing.

The 10-Best Selling Albums

1. Thriller, Michael Jackson - 108 million copies
2. Back in Black, AC/DC – 42 million copies
3. The Bodyguard soundtrack, Whitney Houston/Various artists – 42 million
4. Their Greatest Hits, the Eagles 5. Saturday Night Fever, the Bee Gees/Various Artists – 40 million copies
6. Dark Side of the Moon, Pink Floyd – 40 million copies
7. Bat Out of Hell, Meat Loaf – 37 million copies
8. Come on Over, Shania Twain – 36 million copies
9. Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band, the Beatles – 32 million copies
10. Falling Into You, Celine Dion – 32 million copies

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Comments (16)

  1. I have two questions regarding this post:
    a: how many albums did the Eagles sell (not displayed)
    b: should the bee gees and pink floyd be tied for 5th with 40 million sold, or does the this take into consideration the amount past 40 million (i.e. 40,000,000 vs. 40,000,001)?

    Just curious

    posted by Andy on 6-16-2008 at 3:11 pm

  2. It’s amazing that after all this time, and with all the music out there that many of the top 10 were released decades ago!

    posted by Dawn on 6-16-2008 at 5:07 pm

  3. @Dawn: The Eagles’ Greatest Hits and Bat Out of Hell were both big hits at the time and have still sold briskly since. Bat Out of Hell sells about 250,000 copies per year, 30 years after release. That’s why it’ll probably forever remain on the list. Thriller probably does not sell quickly today, but sold so many copies during the 80’s that it’ll be there forever. I think the Eagles’ Greatest Hits stays in the Billboard top 100. It’s worth saying that the author’s iPod comment also tells why this list isn’t likely to change…iTunes returned the Single to the market, and album sales will never again be the same.

    posted by Dave on 6-16-2008 at 5:22 pm

  4. Dawn, Dave made some valid points here. In addition to those, another is the fracturing of the industry into so many genres. Yet another is the dearth of talent that has the staying power to develop this sort of following.

    posted by Mike on 6-16-2008 at 5:37 pm

  5. I have “Pepper’s” and “Dark Side”. The reason these dominate is not due so much to the i-Pod, as to the times. Back in the day, we had one venue fr music. We bought the album. We then made casette copies of each others albums, so the total is really much higher. Today there are many ways to buy music. Also, besides downloads (legal or not) cd’s can be loaded onto computers and shared. Cd’s can also be burned from i-Tunes and shared. So please stop bashing the best thing to happen to music since pot. Don’t tell me about “lossless” as most people can’t hear the difference. I have always felt if I have to use microphones and meters to tell the difference then it doesn’t matter. Thank you for the rant.

    posted by gus on 6-16-2008 at 5:41 pm

  6. Hey, that list makes me laugh every time I see it. One issue though. The reason that Dark Side is on the list at all is because the double vinyl was counted as two sales. The actual number of Dark Side copies is half of whatever is listed due to this counting error. It’s a great album, but should not be in the top 10.

    posted by Joseph Driscoll on 6-16-2008 at 6:07 pm

  7. hey, i own half of those. but i wouldn’t be caught dead with a Celine Dion album…

    ‘cuz I’m back in blaaaaaaaaack!!

    posted by the creature on 6-16-2008 at 6:27 pm

  8. Half of these albums have been commercially released in at least five formats: vinyl, 8-track, cassette, CD, and digital files. It’s not just that they’ve been around for decades, it’s that a lot of people have bought them on more than one format.

    posted by El Tigre on 6-16-2008 at 11:32 pm

  9. 2, 5, 6, and 9 are in my iTunes.

    posted by Emily S S on 6-16-2008 at 11:42 pm

  10. Just a clarification for JD: “Dark Side” was never a double album. Perhaps you’re thinking of “The Wall”?

    Double-albums are counted as two, it’s true, but it’s not a “counting error.”
    They’re more difficult to sell because of the increased price, so they probably deserve the boost.

    In fact, record companies took advantage of this in the 1980s-90s by releasing double-albums on two separate CDs, even when they would have fit on one. It boosted their sales numbers.

    posted by Sandy on 6-17-2008 at 1:05 am

  11. mcdonald’s has sold more “food” than any other business, but that doesn’t make what they sell good for you. end of story.

    posted by gregg yeti on 6-17-2008 at 3:44 am

  12. Gregg Yeti….Excellent point my friend

    posted by andy on 6-17-2008 at 8:59 am

  13. good music on some of these.

    The list will likely never change because of the shifting market and digital transferability.

    I am surprised Floyd’s DSOTM is not higher. There were a few I’d be interested to see where they rank mostly b/c it just seemed I knew so many people who had the albums)…
    • Pink Floyd – The Wall
    • ABBA – Gold
    • Led Zeppelin (anything)
    • Fleetwood Mac – Rumours or GH
    • Jimmy Buffet – songs you know by heart
    • Peter Gabriel – So
    • Tom Petty & the Heartbrakers – GH

    posted by Brian on 6-17-2008 at 12:26 pm

  14. Top 10 (US Sales)

    1. The Eagles Their Greatest Hits 29M
    2. Michael Jackson Thriller 27M
    3. Pink Floyd The Wall 23M
    4. Led Zeppelin Led Zeppelin IV 23M
    5. AC/DC Back in Black 22M
    6. Billy Joel Greatest Hits, V1 & 2 21M
    7. Garth Brooks Double Live 20M
    8. Shania Twain Come on Over 20M
    9. The Beatles The Beatles (”The White Album”) 19M
    10. Fleetwood Mac Rumours 19M

    posted by Florida on 6-17-2008 at 2:31 pm

  15. Regardless what one thinks of poor Michael at this point, Thriller is a timeless album where the non-single tracks are just as good as the single tracks (and 7 of the album’s 9 tracks were in the top 10). Anyone who just has a few scattered singles should really hear the whole album in its entirety.

    Lists like this are pretty useless though: is anyone really going to be listening to Shania Twain or the Bodyguard Soundtrack in 50 years? Does anyone listen to them now?

    posted by Justin on 6-17-2008 at 3:26 pm

  16. Justin, yea, I don’t know what world you live in but Shania’s music is heard and loved and listened to all the time.
    Shania is a music icon and her music will be listened to for decades to come.
    Her songs are also the most requested wedding songs in history globally and have been for over a decade.

    posted by jake on 7-31-2008 at 11:32 am

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