Best-selling albums by year (USA)
Encyclopedia
This is a list of the best-selling albums by year in the United States. Billboard magazine
began publishing year-end lists for album sales in 1956. Until 1991, the Billboard album chart was based on a survey of representative retail outlets that determined a ranking, not a tally of actual sales. Likewise, the year-end chart was a measure of chart performance over the twelve months from December to November rather than total sales. Weekly surveys and year-end charts by Billboard and other publications such as Cash Box magazine sometimes differed. For instance, during the 1960s and 1970s, the number-one album as determined by these two publications differed in 10 out of 20 years.
From 1991, Billboard year-end and weekly charts were calculated by Nielsen SoundScan
.
Harry Belafonte
's 1956 record entitled Calyspo
was the first product to be recognized as a top-selling album for a year once Billboard magazine
started tracking sales figures. Eminem
's 2010 rap record Recovery currently holds the title for the US's top-selling digital album. British glam rock
performer Elton John
and rapper Eminem
each have had two of their albums be top sellers in two separate years in the US. Pop singer Michael Jackson
's 1982 Thriller
became the best-selling record in the country for two consecutive years in the 1980s (and later became the best-selling album of all time). Other albums to achieve the same accomplishment included the My Fair Lady Original Cast Recording from the hit 1950s Broadway production between 1957–1958.
Billboard (magazine)
Billboard is a weekly American magazine devoted to the music industry, and is one of the oldest trade magazines in the world. It maintains several internationally recognized music charts that track the most popular songs and albums in various categories on a weekly basis...
began publishing year-end lists for album sales in 1956. Until 1991, the Billboard album chart was based on a survey of representative retail outlets that determined a ranking, not a tally of actual sales. Likewise, the year-end chart was a measure of chart performance over the twelve months from December to November rather than total sales. Weekly surveys and year-end charts by Billboard and other publications such as Cash Box magazine sometimes differed. For instance, during the 1960s and 1970s, the number-one album as determined by these two publications differed in 10 out of 20 years.
From 1991, Billboard year-end and weekly charts were calculated by Nielsen SoundScan
Nielsen SoundScan
Nielsen SoundScan is an information and sales tracking system created by Mike Fine and Mike Shalett. Soundscan is the official method of tracking sales of music and music video products throughout the United States and Canada...
.
Harry Belafonte
Harry Belafonte
Harold George "Harry" Belafonte, Jr. is an American singer, songwriter, actor and social activist. He was dubbed the "King of Calypso" for popularizing the Caribbean musical style with an international audience in the 1950s...
's 1956 record entitled Calyspo
Calypso (album)
Calypso is the 3rd album by Harry Belafonte, released by RCA Victor in 1956. The CD was released on April 28, 1992 . It is the first full-length gramophone LP to sell over one million copies...
was the first product to be recognized as a top-selling album for a year once Billboard magazine
Billboard (magazine)
Billboard is a weekly American magazine devoted to the music industry, and is one of the oldest trade magazines in the world. It maintains several internationally recognized music charts that track the most popular songs and albums in various categories on a weekly basis...
started tracking sales figures. Eminem
Eminem
Marshall Bruce Mathers III , better known by his stage name Eminem or his alter ego Slim Shady, is an American rapper, record producer, songwriter and actor. Eminem's popularity brought his group project, D12, to mainstream recognition...
's 2010 rap record Recovery currently holds the title for the US's top-selling digital album. British glam rock
Glam rock
Glam rock is a style of rock and pop music that developed in the UK in the early 1970s, which was performed by singers and musicians who wore outrageous clothes, makeup and hairstyles, particularly platform-soled boots and glitter...
performer Elton John
Elton John
Sir Elton Hercules John, CBE, Hon DMus is an English rock singer-songwriter, composer, pianist and occasional actor...
and rapper Eminem
Eminem
Marshall Bruce Mathers III , better known by his stage name Eminem or his alter ego Slim Shady, is an American rapper, record producer, songwriter and actor. Eminem's popularity brought his group project, D12, to mainstream recognition...
each have had two of their albums be top sellers in two separate years in the US. Pop singer Michael Jackson
Michael Jackson
Michael Joseph Jackson was an American recording artist, entertainer, and businessman. Referred to as the King of Pop, or by his initials MJ, Jackson is recognized as the most successful entertainer of all time by Guinness World Records...
's 1982 Thriller
Thriller (album)
Thriller is the sixth studio album by American recording artist Michael Jackson. It was released on November 30, 1982, by Epic Records as the follow-up to Jackson's critically and commercially successful 1979 album Off the Wall...
became the best-selling record in the country for two consecutive years in the 1980s (and later became the best-selling album of all time). Other albums to achieve the same accomplishment included the My Fair Lady Original Cast Recording from the hit 1950s Broadway production between 1957–1958.
1950s
| Performing artist(s) | Nationality | Album | Ref. | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1956 | United States | |||
| 1957 | – | |||
| 1958 | – | |||
| 1959 | United States |
1960s
| Performing artist(s) | Nationality | Album | Ref. | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1960 | – | |||
| 1961 | – | |||
| 1962 | – | |||
| 1963 | – | |||
| 1964 | – | |||
| 1965 | – | |||
| 1966 | United States | |||
| 1967 | United States | |||
| 1968 | UK | |||
| 1969 | United States |
1970s
| Performing artist(s) | Nationality | Album | Ref. | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1970 | United States | |||
| 1971 | – | |||
| 1972 | Canada | |||
| 1973 | United States | |||
| 1974 | UK | |||
| 1975 | UK | |||
| 1976 | UK | |||
| 1977 | UK | |||
| 1978 | – | |||
| 1979 | United States |
1980s
| Performing artist(s) | Nationality | Album | Ref. | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1980 | UK | |||
| 1981 | United States | |||
| 1982 | UK | |||
| 1983 | United States | |||
| 1984 | United States | |||
| 1985 | United States | |||
| 1986 | United States | |||
| 1987 | United States | |||
| 1988 | UK | |||
| 1989 | United States |
1990s
| Performing artist(s) | Nationality | Album | Ref. | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990 | United States | |||
| 1991 | United States | |||
| 1992 | United States | |||
| 1993 | - | |||
| 1994 | - | |||
| 1995 | United States | |||
| 1996 | Canada | |||
| 1997 | UK | |||
| 1998 | - | |||
| 1999 | United States |
2000s
| Performing artist(s) | Nationality | Album | Ref. | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | United States | |||
| 2001 | United States | |||
| 2002 | United States | |||
| 2003 | United States | |||
| 2004 | United States | |||
| 2005 | United States | |||
| 2006 | – | |||
| 2007 | United States | |||
| 2008 | United States | |||
| 2009 | United States |
2010s
| Performing artist(s) | Nationality | Album | Ref. | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2010 | United States |
See also
- Billboard Year-EndBillboard Year-EndBillboard Year-End charts are a cumulative measure of a single or album's performance in the United States, based upon the Billboard magazine charts during any given chart year. Billboard's "chart year" runs from the first week of December to the final week in November...
- List of best-selling albums worldwide
- List of best-selling albums in Argentina
- List of best-selling albums in Australia
- List of best-selling albums in Brazil
- List of best-selling albums in Canada
- List of best-selling albums in France
- List of best-selling albums in Germany
- List of best-selling albums in Japan
- List of best-selling albums in the Philippines
- List of best-selling albums in Taiwan
- List of best-selling albums in the United Kingdom