State Champ Radio album sales
TOMORROW X TOGETHER lands its sixth No. 1 on Billboard’s Top Album Sales chart, as minisode 3: TOMORROW opens atop the tally (dated April 20). The set sold 103,500 copies sold in the U.S. in the week ending April 11, according to Luminate. Also, the top 10 welcomes debuts from Conan Gray, The Black Keys, Vampire Weekend, Khruangbin and J. Cole.
Billboard’s Top Album Sales chart ranks the top-selling albums of the week based only on traditional album sales. The chart’s history dates back to May 25, 1991, the first week Billboard began tabulating charts with electronically monitored piece count information from SoundScan, now Luminate. Pure album sales were the sole measurement utilized by the Billboard 200 albums chart through the list dated Dec. 6, 2014, after which that chart switched to a methodology that blends album sales with track equivalent album units and streaming equivalent album units. For all chart news, follow @billboard and @billboardcharts on both Twitter and Instagram.
TOMORROW X TOGETHER’s minisode 3: TOMORROW enters with 103,500 copies sold. Of that sum, physical sales comprise 101,500 (all from CD sales), while digital downloads comprise 2,000. The album’s sales were supported by its availability across 17 collectible CD editions (including exclusive editions sold by Barnes & Noble, Target and the act’s webstore), all containing randomized paper merchandise (but with the same audio tracklist). It was also issued across multiple digital download variations, including five iterations that each contained a different voice memo as a bonus track, plus an edition that boasted bonus remixes.
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Conan Gray notches his third top 10-charting effort on Top Album Sales as Found Heaven starts at No. 2 with 27,000 copies sold. It also matches his chart-high, as Kid Krow peaked at No. 2 in 2020. Vinyl sales powered more than half of the set’s first week (58%), with nearly 16,000 copies sold of the album across 10 vinyl variants (including exclusives for Amazon, Barnes & Noble, independent record stores, Target and Gray’s official webstore; the latter also offered a signed edition). The album also launches at No. 1 on the Vinyl Albums chart. Seven different iterations of the CD edition of the album were available (most with the same tracklist, just with different cover art) including one that was signed by the artist. Found Heaven was also issued as a standard digital download album, along with an alternative version, with different cover art, sold through the artist’s webstore.
Beyoncé’s Cowboy Carter falls to No. 3 after debuting at No. 1 a week earlier. The set sold 21,000 copies in its second week (down 88%). While Cowboy Carter’s CD and vinyl editions were available to purchase only via Beyoncé’s official webstore in the set’s first two weeks of release, those physical configurations became widely available to all retailers beginning on April 12. (The album has also been purchasable as a digital download, widely, since its release on March 29.)
The Black Keys’ Ohio Players debuts at No. 4 on Top Album Sales with 20,000 copies sold, marking the seventh top 10-charting effort for the band. The set was available in seven vinyl variants, a standard CD, standard cassette, standard digital download, and a deluxe boxed set containing branded merchandise (a T-shirt and sticker set) and a CD.
Vampire Weekend’s Only God Was Above Us bows at No. 5 on Top Album Sales, with 16,000 copies sold. It’s the act’s fourth top 10-charting effort and brings the group its first debut on the ranking since 2019’s Father of the Bride bowed at No. 1 (May 18, 2019 chart). The new album was available in four vinyl variants, a standard CD, standard download, and two deluxe boxed sets (each containing a branded T-shirt and a copy of the CD).
Khruangbin’s A La Sala steps in at No. 6 on Top Album Sales with 14,000 copies sold, garnering the act its fourth top 10-charting effort. 80% of the album’s first-week sales were from vinyl offerings, six in total. It was also issued as a standard CD, cassette and digital download.
J. Hope’s Hope On the Street, Vol. 1 falls 2-7 in its second week on the chart, with 9,000 sold (down 80%).
J. Cole’s Might Delete Later rounds out the six debuts in the top 10 on Top Album Sales, as the surprise release from the rapper bows at No. 8 with 9,000 sold (all from a standard digital download). It’s the seventh top 10-charting set for the artist.
Closing out the top 10 are a pair of former No. 1s from Taylor Swift, as Lover falls 3-9 (7,000; down 28%) and 1989 (Taylor’s Version) drops 4-10 (6,500; down 28%).
In the week ending April 11, there were 1.294 million albums sold in the U.S. (down 3.7% compared to the previous week). Of that sum, physical albums (CDs, vinyl LPs, cassettes, etc.) comprised 964,000 (down 3.3%) and digital albums comprised 329,000 (down 4.9%).
There were 525,000 CD albums sold in the week ending April 11 (up 1.4% week-over-week) and 433,000 vinyl albums sold (down 8.7%). Year-to-date CD album sales stand at 6.698 million (down 31.3% compared to the same time frame a year ago) and year-to-date vinyl album sales total 6.858 million (down 49.3%).
Overall year-to-date album sales total 18.177 million (down 36.8% compared to the same year-to-date time frame a year ago). Year-to-date physical album sales stand at 13.626 million (down 41.9%) and digital album sales total 4.551 million (down 14.5%).
Fletcher’s second full-length studio album In Search of the Antidote debuts at No. 3 on Billboard’s Top Album Sales chart (dated April 6), giving the singer her highest-charting set yet on the tally. The effort launches with just over 13,000 copies sold in the U.S. in the week ending March 28, according to Luminate. Fletcher previously visited the chart with her debut full-length, Girl of My Dreams, debuting and peaking at No. 4 in 2022.
Also in the top 10 of the Top Album Sales chart, the latest efforts from Kenny Chesney, Shakira and Sierra Ferrell debut, while André 3000’s New Blue Sun and Alice In Chains’ Jar of Flies re-enter the chart largely due to new vinyl releases.
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Billboard’s Top Album Sales chart ranks the top-selling albums of the week based only on traditional album sales. The chart’s history dates back to May 25, 1991, the first week Billboard began tabulating charts with electronically monitored piece count information from SoundScan, now Luminate. Pure album sales were the sole measurement utilized by the Billboard 200 albums chart through the list dated Dec. 6, 2014, after which that chart switched to a methodology that blends album sales with track equivalent album units and streaming equivalent album units. For all chart news, follow @billboard and @billboardcharts on both Twitter and Instagram.
Fletcher’s first-week sales of In Search of the Antidote were bolstered by its availability across six vinyl variants (including one signed edition, and exclusive versions for Target and indie retailers), four CD editions (including a Target-exclusive edition with alternate cover art and a poster, a signed CD and a deluxe “Archives” edition in expanded packaging), a standard digital album and a deluxe digital album with bonus tracks. Vinyl sales accounted for 7,500 of Antidote’s first-week sales – or, 57% of the album’s total sales for the week. That 7,500 figure also represents Fletcher’s biggest sales week for a vinyl album.
Meanwhile, Kenny Chesney clocks his 12th No. 1 on Top Album Sales as Born bows atop the list with 18,500 copies sold. The set was available as a standard CD, signed CD, standard digital album, and deluxe digital album with additional bonus live tracks.
Shakira’s Las Mujeres Ya No Lloran debuts at No. 2 on Top Album Sales, marking the seventh top 10-charting effort for the entertainer. The project sold 14,500 copies in its opening week, supported by four vinyl variants (each with a different color vinyl and alternate cover art), four CD variants (each with different cover art) and a digital album.
Kacey Musgraves’ Deeper Well dips 1-4 in its second week on Top Album Sales (10,500; down 84%) and Taylor Swift’s chart-topping 1989 (Taylor’s Version) falls 4-5 (9,500; down 4%).
Alice In Chains’ EP Jar of Flies, originally released in 1994, re-enters the chart at No. 6 following its 30th anniversary reissue on vinyl and cassette. The set was reintroduced across four vinyl variants (including a vinyl edition with actual flies in the vinyl) which, together with existing earlier released vinyl versions, sold a little over 9,000 copies in the tracking week (of its total 9,500 sold across all configurations). Jar of Flies debuted at No. 1 on the Feb. 12, 1994-dated Top Album Sales chart and marked the first of two leaders for the rock band. The set was last on the list in April of 1995.
Taylor Swift’s former No. 1 Lover descends 6-7 on Top Album Sales with nearly 9,500 copies sold (up 5%).
André 3000’s New Blue Sun re-enters Top Album Sales at No. 8, a new peak (and its first week in the top 10), following its release on physical configurations on March 22. The set (his first solo charting effort on Top Album Sales) was originally released via digital download and streaming services last November, and then saw its release on vinyl, CD and cassette on March 22. Combined, all configurations of the album sold nearly 9,000 copies for the week (up from a negligible sum in the previous week).
Sierra Ferrell captures her first top 10 on Top Album Sales as Trail of Flowers blooms at No. 9 in its debut frame, selling 8,500 copies. The set was supported by eight vinyl variants, a standard CD and a digital album download. Vinyl sales accounted for 6,000 of the album’s total first-week sales, marking Ferrell’s best week ever on vinyl.
Rounding out the top 10 of the new Top Album Sales chart is Ariana Grande’s former No. 1 Eternal Sunshine, falling 3-10 in its third week with nearly 8,000 sold (down 39%).
In the week ending March 28, there were 1.201 million albums sold in the U.S. (down 0.5% compared to the previous week). Of that sum, physical albums (CDs, vinyl LPs, cassettes, etc.) comprised 892,000 (down 1%) and digital albums comprised 309,000 (up 0.9%).
There were 427,000 CD albums sold in the week ending March 28 (down 2.5% week-over-week) and 461,000 vinyl albums sold (up 0.6%). Year-to-date CD album sales stand at 5.656 million (down 32.2% compared to the same time frame a year ago) and year-to-date vinyl album sales total 5.951 million (down 48.4%).
Overall year-to-date album sales total 15.54 million (down 36.9% compared to the same year-to-date time frame a year ago). Year-to-date physical album sales stand at 11.664 million (down 41.7%) and digital album sales total 3.875 million (down 16.5%).
TWICE and LE SSERAFIM make history on Billboard’s 32-year-old Top Album Sales chart (dated March 9), as the South Korean female pop groups debut at Nos. 1 and 2 — marking the first time two all-women groups have been in the top two positions at the same time.
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Top Album Sales’ chart history dates to May 25, 1991, the first week Billboard began tabulating charts with electronically monitored piece count information from SoundScan, now Luminate.
TWICE’s With YOU-th launches at No. 1 with 90,000 copies sold in the U.S. in the week ending Feb. 29, according to Luminate. LE SSERAFIM’s Easy starts at No. 2 with 34,000 copies sold. The majority of each album’s sales come from CD purchases in assorted collectible editions, as is usual with major K-pop releases
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Also in the top 10 of the new Top Album Sales chart, the latest albums from French Montana and Ace Frehley arrive, while BTS’ former No. 1 Love Yourself: Tear re-enters the chart in the top 10 following its release on vinyl.
Billboard’s Top Album Sales chart ranks the top-selling albums of the week based only on traditional album sales. The chart’s history dates back to May 25, 1991, the first week Billboard began tabulating charts with electronically monitored piece count information from SoundScan, now Luminate. Pure album sales were the sole measurement utilized by the Billboard 200 albums chart through the list dated Dec. 6, 2014, after which that chart switched to a methodology that blends album sales with track equivalent album units and streaming equivalent album units. For all chart news, follow @billboard and @billboardcharts on both Twitter and Instagram.
For TWICE, With YOU-th marks the fourth No. 1 on Top Album Sales and fifth top 10 overall. For LE SSERAFIM, Easy is the act’s third top 10 set.
At No. 3 on Top Album Sales, French Montana’s Mac & Cheese 5 debuts with 22,500 copies sold. Of that sum, physical sales comprise 19,000 (9,000 on vinyl — his best week on the configuration, 10,000 on CD) and digital sales comprise about 3,500. Sales were boosted by the album’s availability across six CD variants (three alternative covers, and three signed editions each with a different cover) and three vinyl variants (all with alternative covers) — and all were sold through the artist’s webstore. The physical albums were deeply discounted to $5 for standard vinyl and CD editions, and $10 for the signed CD editions. The digital album was also issued in three variants: a standard album (clean and explicit), a deluxe edition (with one bonus track, clean and explicit) and a super deluxe edition, dubbed the “Versions” variant (with all of the album’s standard explicit tracks, plus versions of each song in clean, sped-up, slowed-down, instrumental and acapella mixes).
Mac & Cheese 5 is French Montana’s fourth top 10-charting effort on Top Album Sales and his highest-charting set yet, surpassing the No. 4 peak of his three earlier top 10 sets.
Ace Frehley logs his highest-charting album ever on Top Album Sales, as his latest release, 10,000 Volts, charges in at No. 4 with 13,000 copies sold. Of that sum, vinyl sales comprise 5,500, marking the former KISS guitarist’s biggest sales week on vinyl since Luminate began tracking sales in 1991. In total, 10,000 Volts is Frehley’s fifth top 10-charting set on Top Album Sales.
BTS’ former No. 1 Love Yourself: Tear re-enters Top Album Sales at No. 5 with about 9,500 sold — nearly all from vinyl sales, as the album was released on the configuration for the first time during the tracking week. With nearly 9,500 copies sold on vinyl, the album also bows at No. 1 on the Vinyl Albums chart, BTS’ second leader on that list, following Love Yourself: Her in 2023.
Four former No. 1s, all from Taylor Swift, are next on Top Album Sales. 1989 (Taylor’s Version) falls 3-6 (9,000; down 19%); Lover dips 4-7 (7,000; down 22%); Midnights slips 7-8 (6,000; down 19%); and Folklore descends 8-9 (nearly 6,000; down 21%). Bob Marley and The Wailers’ Legend: The Best of Bob Marley and The Wailers, rises 11-10 (nearly 6,000; though down 17%), marking the set’s first week in the top 10 since April 17, 2021, when it ranked at No. 9. (The album earlier peaked at No. 5 on the Sept. 20, 2014-dated chart.) The hits album returns to the top 10 on the latest chart following publicity and promotion generated by the release and success of the Marley biopic film Bob Marley: One Love.
In the week ending Feb. 29, there were 1.276 million albums sold in the U.S. (up 9.4% compared to the previous week). Of that sum, physical albums (CDs, vinyl LPs, cassettes, etc.) comprised 976,000 (up 13.8%) and digital albums comprised 300,000 (down 2.9%).
There were 533,000 CD albums sold in the week ending Feb. 29 (up 30.6% week-over-week) and 438,000 vinyl albums sold (down 1.7%). Year-to-date CD album sales stand at 3.875 million (down 29.9% compared to the same time frame a year ago) and year-to-date vinyl album sales total 4.197 million (down 47.3%).
Overall year-to-date album sales total 10.783 million (down 35.3% compared to the same year-to-date time frame a year ago). Year-to-date physical album sales stand at 8.113 million (down 40.2%) and digital album sales total 2.669 million (down 13.7%).
Jennifer Lopez achieves her third No. 1 on Billboard’s Top Album Sales chart (dated March 2), as her new studio album This Is Me… Now opens atop the tally. Lopez was last at No. 1 more than 20 years ago, when J to Tha L-O! The Remixes spent two weeks atop the chart in February and March of 2002. She scored her first No. 1 on the list with J.Lo in 2001.
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In total, This Is Me… Now marks Lopez’s ninth top 10 on Top Album Sales and 13th chart entry overall. The new release is a sister project to Lopez’s third album, This Is Me… Then, which was released 2002 and peaked at No. 2 on the chart.
Also debuting in the top 10 of the new Top Album Sales chart, Yeat’s 2093, Blackberry Smoke’s Be Right Here and IDLES’ TANGK.
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Billboard’s Top Album Sales chart ranks the top-selling albums of the week based only on traditional album sales. The chart’s history dates back to May 25, 1991, the first week Billboard began tabulating charts with electronically monitored piece count information from SoundScan, now Luminate. Pure album sales were the sole measurement utilized by the Billboard 200 albums chart through the list dated Dec. 6, 2014, after which that chart switched to a methodology that blends album sales with track equivalent album units and streaming equivalent album units. The new March 2-dated chart will be posted in full on Billboard‘s website on Feb. 27. For all chart news, follow @billboard and @billboardcharts on both Twitter and Instagram.
In the tracking week ending Feb. 22, This Is Me… Now sold 14,000 copies in the U.S. Of that sum, physical sales comprise 11,000 (6,000 on CD and 5,000 on vinyl) and digital download sales comprise 3,000. The album was available in four CD variants (including one that had a signed insert), nine vinyl editions (all were color variants, including one with a signed insert) and three digital album variations (a standard version, a deluxe edition with two bonus tracks and a commentary edition sold via Lopez’s official webstore).
This Is Me… Now also debuts at No. 1 on Top Current Album Sales, No. 1 on Tastemaker Albums, No. 7 on Vinyl Albums, No. 7 on Independent Albums and No. 38 on the Billboard 200. Top Current Album Sales ranks the week’s top-selling new/current albums (non-catalog/older titles). Vinyl Album tallies the week’s top-selling vinyl releases. Tastemaker Albums measures the top-selling titles at independent and small chain record stores. Independent Albums ranks the most popular independently released albums of the week, by units.
On the Billboard 200, This Is Me… Now marks Lopez’s 13th total chart entry and 11th top 40-charting effort. It’s her first studio album in nearly a decade, and her first release outside the major label system, as the new set was issued via Nuyorican/BMG.
“This is the first step of an immediate strategy with a long-term goal as the incredible content to support the album continues to roll out,” says Cyndi Lynott, SVP marketing at BMG, “including the This Is Me…Now: A Love Story Amazon Original, a documentary entitled The Greatest Love Story Never Told, and of course her massive summer tour.”
Meanwhile, Yeat debuts at No. 2 with 2093 – his second entry on Top Album Sales and first to reach the top 40. The set sold 12,000 copies, all from digital downloads, as the album was not available to purchase in any physical configurations. The set’s digital sales were boosted by its availability across three variations. 2093 was released initially as a 22-song standard album on Feb. 16, boasting features from Future and Lil Wayne. A day later, the album was reissued in a deluxe edition, dubbed 2093 P2, with two bonus tracks, including one featuring Drake. Then, on Feb. 21, the album saw another reissue, termed 2093 P3, with four bonus tracks. This version of the album was only available as a digital download via the artist’s official webstore (and the four bonus tracks were only available as part of the full album purchase).
Taylor Swift’s chart-topping 1989 (Taylor’s Version) rises 4-3 with 11,000 sold (though down 25%) and Swift’s former leader Lover climbs 6-4 with 9,000 (down 24%). Toby Keith’s chart-topper 35 Biggest Hits rises 9-5 with nearly 9,000 sold (up 28%).
Blackberry Smoke clocks its fourth top 10-charting set on Top Album Sales as Be Right Here arrives at No. 6 with 8,500 sold.
Taylor Swift’s former No. 1s Midnights and Folklore are up next, non-movers at Nos. 7 and 8, with nearly 7,500 (down 32%) and 7,000 (down 17%), respectively.
P1Harmony’s Killin’ It falls 2-9 in its second week with 7,000 sold (down 60%).
IDLES’ TANGK starts at No. 10, marking the second top 10 for the act. The set starts with 7,000 sold.
In the week ending Feb. 22, there were 1.166 million albums sold in the U.S. (down 7.3% compared to the previous week). Of that sum, physical albums (CDs, vinyl LPs, cassettes, etc.) comprised 858,000 (down 5.3%) and digital albums comprised 308,000 (down 12.6%).
There were 408,000 CD albums sold in the week ending Feb. 22 (down 6.1% week-over-week) and 446,000 vinyl albums sold (down 4.6%). Year-to-date CD album sales stand at 3.342 million (down 32.1% compared to the same time frame a year ago) and year-to-date vinyl album sales total 3.759 million (down 47.1%).
Overall year-to-date album sales total 9.507 million (down 35.8% compared to the same year-to-date time frame a year ago). Year-to-date physical album sales stand at 7.137 million (down 41%) and digital album sales total 2.37 million (down 12.7%).
In the first five weeks of 2024, Taylor Swift won two Grammy Awards (including a record-breaking fourth for album of the year, for Midnights), announced a new studio album (onstage at the Grammys!), got her ninth No. 1 on the Adult Contemporary chart with the revived Lover hit “Cruel Summer,” topped Billboard’s annual Power 100 list for the first time, and saw two of her albums surpass the 2 million U.S. sales mark: 1989 (Taylor’s Version) and Lover.
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1989 (Taylor’s Version), released in 2023, jumped past the 2 million mark – counting only traditional album sales (purchases of CD, vinyl, cassette and digital download copies) – in the week ending Jan. 11, according to Luminate. Meanwhile, Lover, released in 2019, flew past the 2 million threshold in the week ending Jan. 18. They mark her ninth and 10th albums to sell at least 2 million in the U.S.
Swift’s top-selling album in the U.S. is Fearless, with 7.286 million copies sold.
Plus, on the latest Top Album Sales chart, the former No. 1 Lover locks up its 200th nonconsecutive week on the tally, as it rises 8-4 on the list dated Feb. 10. It sold 8,000 copies in the week ending Feb. 1 (the tracking week captured on the Feb. 10-dated chart) – up 21% compared to its sales in the previous week. Only two other Swift albums have spent at least 200 weeks on Top Album Sales: her self-titled album, with 286 weeks (and counting), and Fearless, with 224 weeks.
Billboard’s Top Album Sales chart ranks the top-selling albums of the week based only on traditional album sales. The chart’s history dates back to May 25, 1991, the first week Billboard began tabulating charts with electronically monitored piece count information from SoundScan, now Luminate. Pure album sales were the sole measurement utilized by the Billboard 200 albums chart through the list dated Dec. 6, 2014, after which that chart switched to a methodology that blends album sales with track equivalent album units and streaming equivalent album units. For all chart news, follow @billboard and @billboardcharts on both Twitter and Instagram.
Elsewhere on the new Top Album Sales chart, Grateful Dead score its first No. 1 as Dave’s Picks, Volume 49: Frost Amphitheatre, Stanford U., Palo Alto, CA (4/27/85 & 4/28/85) debuts atop the list. It sold 21,000 in its first week. Rock supergroup The Smile sees its new album Wall of Eyes starts at No. 2 (14,500) while Swift’s chart-topping 1989 (Taylor’s Version) is steady at No. 3 (10,000; down 9%). Green Day’s Saviors slips 1-5 in its second week with 7,000 (down 82%), while Alkaline Trio’s Blood, Hair and Eyeballs bows at No. 6 with just over 6,000. Stray Kids’ chart-topping ROCK-STAR is stationary at No. 7 with 6,000 (down 2%) and Swift’s former leader Midnights falls 5-9 with nearly 6,000 (down 13%).
Two debuts close out the top 10, as Static-X’s Project Regeneration, Volume 2 launches at No. 9 with nearly 5,000, and Future Islands’ People Who Aren’t There Anymore bows at No. 10 with 4,000.
In the week ending Feb. 1, there were 1.118 million albums sold in the U.S. (up 1.3% compared to the previous week). Of that sum, physical albums (CDs, vinyl LPs, cassettes, etc.) comprised 827,000 (up 0.5%) and digital albums comprised 291,000 (up 3.6%).
There were 404,000 CD albums sold in the week ending Feb. 1 (up 3.9% week-over-week) and 418,000 vinyl albums sold (down 2.4%). Year-to-date CD album sales stand at 2.108 million (down 31% compared to the same time frame a year ago) and year-to-date vinyl album sales total 2.413 million (down 46.4%).
Overall year-to-date album sales total 5.915 million (down 36.1% compared to the same year-to-date time frame a year ago). Year-to-date physical album sales stand at 4.545 million (down 40.2%) and digital album sales total 1.370 million (down 17.7%).
Green Day’s latest studio album, Saviors, makes an eye-catching debut across Billboard’s charts, as it debuts atop seven different U.S. album charts (all dated Feb. 3). Plus, the set scores the band its best sales week ever on vinyl in the U.S.
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All told, Saviors starts at No. 1 on Top Album Sales, Top Current Album Sales, Top Rock & Alternative Albums, Top Rock Albums, Top Alternative Albums, Vinyl Albums and Tastemaker Albums.
In the tracking week ending Jan. 25, Saviors sold 39,000 copies in the U.S., according to Luminate. Of that sum, physical sales comprise 30,000 (18,000 on vinyl – the band’s best week ever on vinyl; 11,000 on CD and 1,000 on cassette) and digital album download sales comprise 9,000.
Saviors is Green Day’s fifth No. 1 on Top Album Sales and Top Current Album Sales; fourth No. 1 on Top Rock & Alternative Albums, Top Rock Albums and Top Alternative Albums, third No. 1 on Vinyl Albums and fifth leader on Tastemaker Albums.
Billboard’s Top Album Sales chart ranks the top-selling albums of the week based only on traditional album sales. The chart’s history dates back to May 25, 1991, the first week Billboard began tabulating charts with electronically monitored piece count information from SoundScan, now Luminate. Pure album sales were the sole measurement utilized by the Billboard 200 albums chart through the list dated Dec. 6, 2014, after which that chart switched to a methodology that blends album sales with track equivalent album units and streaming equivalent album units. For all chart news, follow @billboard and @billboardcharts on both Twitter and Instagram.
Top Rock & Alternative Albums, Top Rock Albums and Top Alternative Albums rank, respectively, the week’s most popular rock and alternative, rock, and alternative albums by equivalent album units. Vinyl Album tallies the week’s top-selling vinyl releases. Tastemaker Albums measures the top-selling titles at independent and small chain record stores. Top Current Album Sales ranks the week’s top-selling new/current albums (non-catalog/older titles).
The first-week sales of Saviors were bolstered by its availability across more than 15 vinyl variants (all with the same tracklist, just different colored vinyl), an autographed CD sold through the band’s webstore and two deluxe boxed sets containing a CD and an artist branded t-shirt (both exclusive to Green Day’s Webstore).
A quartet of former No. 1s follows Saviors on the new Top Album Sales chart, as Taylor Swift’s Folklore is a non-mover at No. 2 (11,000; down 42%), as is Swift’s 1989 (Taylor’s Version) at No. 3 (nearly 11,000; down 18%). Kali Uchis’ Orquideas falls 1-4 in its second week with 7,000 (down 78%), while Swift’s Midnights rises 6-5 (nearly 7,000; down 15%).
NMIXX notches its first top 10-charting effort on Top Album Sales as Fe3O4: Break debuts at No. 6 with a little over 6,000 sold. Its sales were encouraged by its availability in five collectible CD packages, all containing branded paper merchandise (including some randomized), including two signed editions sold through the act’s official webstore.
Stray Kids’ former No. 1 ROCK-STAR is steady at No. 7 (6,000; down 19%) and Swift’s chart-topping Lover is stationary at No. 8 (nearly 6,000; down 9%). The Rolling Stones’ Hackney Diamonds returns to the top 10, re-entering the chart at No. 9 with just over 5,000 sold, following the release of a new deluxe edition containing seven live bonus tracks recorded in October 2023. Swift’s former leader Evermore rounds out the top 10, dipping 9-10 with 5,000 sold (down 12%).
In the week ending Jan. 25, there were 1.103 million albums sold in the U.S. (up 1.8% compared to the previous week). Of that sum, physical albums (CDs, vinyl LPs, cassettes, etc.) comprised 823,000 (up 0.1%) and digital albums comprised 280,000 (up 7.4%).
There were 388,000 CD albums sold in the week ending Jan. 25 (up 5.1 week-over-week) and 429,000 vinyl albums sold (down 4.6%). Year-to-date CD album sales stand at 1.704 million (down 26.9% compared to the same time frame a year ago) and year-to-date vinyl album sales total 1.995 million (down 45.8%).
Overall year-to-date album sales total 4.797 million (down 35% compared to the same year-to-date time frame a year ago). Year-to-date physical album sales stand at 3.718 million (down 38.5%) and digital album sales total 1.079 million (down 19%).
Kali Uchis scores her first No. 1 on Billboard’s Top Album Sales chart (dated Jan. 27), as Orquídeas arrives atop the list with her biggest sales week ever – 31,000 copies sold in the U.S. in the week ending Jan. 18, according to Luminate. Of that sum, vinyl sales accounted for 20,000 – marking the largest week for a Spanish-language album on vinyl since Luminate began tracking sales in 1991. The effort also launches at No. 1 on the Vinyl Albums ranking, No. 1 on Top Latin Albums (her first leader there) and starts at a career-high No. 2 on the Billboard 200.
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Elsewhere in the top 10 of the new Top Album Sales chart, Jimin’s former No. 1 FACE re-enters at No. 4 following its vinyl release and Kid Cudi’s new album Insano starts at No. 5.
Billboard’s Top Album Sales chart ranks the top-selling albums of the week based only on traditional album sales. The chart’s history dates back to May 25, 1991, the first week Billboard began tabulating charts with electronically monitored piece count information from SoundScan, now Luminate. Pure album sales were the sole measurement utilized by the Billboard 200 albums chart through the list dated Dec. 6, 2014, after which that chart switched to a methodology that blends album sales with track equivalent album units and streaming equivalent album units. All of Billboard’s new Jan. 27, 2024-dated charts will be posted in full on Billboard‘s website on Jan. 23. For all chart news, follow @billboard and @billboardcharts on both Twitter and Instagram.
Of the 31,000 copies sold of Orquídeas, physical sales comprise 30,000 (20,000 on vinyl, 10,000 on CD and negligible sum on cassette) and digital download album sales comprise 1,000. Its sales were bolstered by its availability across seven vinyl variants and four CD editions, including exclusive versions sold through independent record stores, Target, Urban Outfitters and the artist’s webstore.
Six Taylor Swift albums populate the top 10, all former No. 1s, led by Folklore, which pushes 3-2 with 19,000 (up 92%, owed to a replenishment of CD stock at retail). 1989 (Taylor’s Version) falls 1-3 (13,000; down 20%), Midnights dips 2-6 (8,000; down 29%), Lover descends 5-8 (7,000; down 28%), Evermore falls 7-9 (6,000; down 8%) and Speak Now (Taylor’s Version) drops 6-10 (5,000; down 25%).
Jimin’s FACE re-enters at No. 4 with nearly 10,000 sold (up 3,501%) following the set’s release on vinyl. It sold 8,000 copies on vinyl in the week ending Jan. 18, and enters at No. 2 on the Vinyl Albums chart. FACE was issued in only one vinyl edition, and included a photo book, postcard and photocard inside its packaging.
Kid Cudi scores his sixth top 10-charting effort on Top Album Sales, as his latest studio album Insano starts at No. 5 with 8,500 sold. Of that sum, physical sales comprise 7,000 (about 5,500 on vinyl and 1,500 on CD) and digital downloads comprise 1,500. The album’s sales were enhanced by its availability across four vinyl variants and four CD editions.
Stray Kids’ chart-topping ROCK-STAR falls 4-7 on Top Album Sales, with nearly 8,000 sold (down 19%).
In the week ending Jan. 18, there were 1.083 million albums sold in the U.S. (down 9.3% compared to the previous week). Of that sum, physical albums (CDs, vinyl LPs, cassettes, etc.) comprised 822,000 (down 12.1%) and digital albums comprised 261,000 (down 0.6%).
There were 370,000 CD albums sold in the week ending Jan. 18 (down 15.7 week-over-week) and 449,000 vinyl albums sold (down 8.8%). Year-to-date CD album sales stand at 1.316 (down 27.2% compared to the same time frame a year ago) and year-to-date vinyl album sales total 1.566 million (down 45.9%).
Overall year-to-date album sales total 3.694 million (down 35.5% compared to the same year-to-date time frame a year ago). Year-to-date physical album sales stand at 2.895 million (down 38.8%) and digital album sales total 799,000 (down 19.5%).
Taylor Swift claims her ninth album to reach 2 million in U.S. sales, as 1989 (Taylor’s Version) surpassed the threshold in the week ending Jan. 11. According to data tracking firm Luminate, the album sold 17,000 copies that week, uppping its total sales figure since its release in October to 2.014 million. (Sales are traditional album purchases – inclusive of all physical configurations [CD, vinyl, cassette] and digital album downloads.)
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1989 (Taylor’s Version) is the only album released in 2023 to have sold 2 million copies in the U.S. — it’s also the only album to have surpassed 1 million copies in 2023 (It cleared the million-mark in its debut week, ending Nov. 2.) The last-released album to cross both marks was Swift’s own Midnights, which was released in October of 2022. Midnights sold more than a million copies in its first week, and then reached the 2 million-mark in February of 2023.
Here’s a recap of Swift’s nine albums that have sold at least 2 million copies each, ranked by largest total sales: Fearless (7.285 million), 1989 (6.472 million), her self-titled album (5.871 million), Speak Now (4.817 million), Red (4.582 million), Midnights (2.814 million), Reputation (2.478 million), Folklore (2.289 million) and 1989 (Taylor’s Version) (2.014 million).
Swift has four more albums that have sold at least 1 million each, lifting her sum of million-selling albums to a lucky 13.
Swift’s continued strong sales should come as no surprise, as she was the year’s top-selling act in the U.S., by album sales, in each of the last five years (2019-23). And, she’s done so while an increasing number of music fans have adopted streaming as a primary means of music consumption. Swift, like many acts, has leaned in to creating additional versions of an album for purchase by superfans, which helps increase sales figures. Her albums sold spectacularly on vinyl as well, and was the configuration’s top-seller in 2023 when she accounted for one of every 15 vinyl albums sold.
On Billboard’s latest Top Album Sales chart (dated Jan. 20), 1989 (Taylor’s Version) spends a sixth non-consecutive week at No. 1, with its 17,000 copies sold (down 28%). Swift has a total of seven albums in the top 10, as 1989 (Taylor’s Version) is joined by six other former Swift leaders in the region. She ties her own record for the most concurrent titles in the top 10 by a single act.
Billboard’s Top Album Sales chart ranks the top-selling albums of the week based only on traditional album sales. The chart’s history dates back to May 25, 1991, the first week Billboard began tabulating charts with electronically monitored piece count information from SoundScan, now Luminate. Pure album sales were the sole measurement utilized by the Billboard 200 albums chart through the list dated Dec. 6, 2014, after which that chart switched to a methodology that blends album sales with track equivalent album units and streaming equivalent album units. For all chart news, follow @billboard and @billboardcharts on both Twitter and Instagram.
Swift’s other six titles in the Jan. 20-dated top 10 on Top Album Sales are: Midnights (rising 3-2 with 11,000; down 14%), Folklore (4-3 with 10,000; down 21%), Lover (6-5 with 9,000; down 25%), Speak Now (Taylor’s Version) (8-6 with 7,000; down 30%), Evermore (5-7 with nearly 7,000; down 47%) and Red (Taylor’s Version) (14-10 with nearly 6,000; down 18%).
As for the non-Swift titles in the top 10, they are: Stray Kids’ former No. 1 ROCK-STAR (falling 2-4 with a little over 9,000; down 39%), Olivia Rodrigo’s chart-topping Guts (7-8 with 6,000; down 41%) and ATEEZ’s The World EP.Fin: Will (holding at No. 9 with nearly 6,000; down 34%).
In the week ending Jan. 11, there were 1.195 million albums sold in the U.S. (down 15.6% compared to the previous week). Of that sum, physical albums (CDs, vinyl LPs, cassettes, etc.) comprised 936,000 (down 17.7%) and digital albums comprised 259,000 (down 6.8%).
There were 439,000 CD albums sold in the week ending Jan. 11 (down 13.6 week-over-week) and 492,000 vinyl albums sold (down 21.1%). Year-to-date CD album sales stand at 946,000 (down 25.5% compared to the same time frame a year ago) and year-to-date vinyl album sales total 1.117 million (down 44%).
Overall year-to-date album sales total 2.611 million (down 34.1% compared to the same year-to-date time frame a year ago). Year-to-date physical album sales stand at 2.073 million (down 36.9%) and digital album sales total 538,000 (down 20.4%).
Morgan Wallen’s One Thing at a Time closed out 2023 as the most popular album of the year in the U.S., according to music data tracking firm Luminate. The album’s lead single, “Last Night,” was the year’s most-streamed song by on-demand audio streams, while Miley Cyrus’ “Flowers” was the most-heard song on the radio. Total music consumption in the U.S. – as measured in equivalent album units – increased by 12.6% in 2023. (View the U.S. 2023 Luminate Year-End Music Report.)
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See the year’s top 10 albums chart, along with other year-end rankings and overall industry volume numbers, below.
But first, the fine print:
Equivalent album units – for album titles and chart rankings cited below (but not industry volume numbers) – comprise traditional album sales, track equivalent albums (TEA) and streaming equivalent albums (SEA). Each unit equals one album sale, or 10 individual tracks sold from an album, or 3,750 ad-supported on-demand official audio and video streams generated by songs from an album, or 1,250 paid/subscription on-demand official audio and video streams generated by songs from an album. Album titles and album chart rankings by equivalent album units do not include user-generated content (UGC) streams, but UGC streams are included in Luminate’s industry volume numbers. (UGC streams are not factored into any of Billboard’s weekly charts.)
For the sake of clarity, equivalent album units do not include listening to music on broadcast radio or digital radio broadcasts. All numbers cited in this story are rounded, and reflect U.S. consumption only.
Luminate’s equivalent album unit totals include SEA and TEA for an album’s songs registered before an album’s release, but during the tracking period of Dec. 30, 2022, through Dec. 28, 2023.
Luminate began tracking music sales in 1991 when the company was known as SoundScan. Luminate’s sales, streaming and airplay data is used to compile Billboard’s weekly charts. Luminate’s 2023 tracking year ran from Dec. 30, 2022, through Dec. 28, 2023.
Luminate is an independently operated company and a subsidiary of PME TopCo, a joint venture between Penske Media Corporation and Eldridge. Billboard is an independently operated company owned by PME Holdings, a subsidiary of PME TopCo.
Highlights from Luminate’s 2023 year-end data:
Morgan Wallen’s One Thing at a Time was Luminate’s top album of 2023. It’s the second time Wallen has led the year-end list. He also was tops in 2021 with Dangerous: The Double Album.
On Luminate’s 2023 U.S. year-end top 10 most popular albums ranking, Taylor Swift has five of the top 10 titles – a single-year Luminate-era record.
Total U.S. album consumption increased by 12.6% in 2023.
R&B/hip-hop continues to hold firm as the top U.S. core genre by total album consumption; the world music genre – inclusive of the Korean pop (K-pop) genre – had the largest percentage gain year-over-year.
Morgan Wallen’s “Last Night” tallied 1.015 billion U.S. on-demand audio streams in 2023 — the most U.S. on-demand audio streams a song has earned in a calendar year. It is only the second song ever to exceed 1 billion on-demand audio streams in a calendar year.
Yearly U.S. on-demand audio streams surpassed 1 trillion for the second time.
27% of all on-demand audio streams in the U.S. in 2023 were R&B/hip-hop songs, the largest share of any core genre.
Swift’s 1989 (Taylor’s Version) is the first vinyl album in Luminate history to sell 1 million copies in a calendar year in the U.S.
Swift sold more albums in 2023 than any other act, accounting for 6% of all albums sold, industry-wide.
The top 10-selling CD albums of 2023 were all by Swift or K-pop acts.
Total U.S. album sales grew 5.2% in 2023 – just the second year that album sales grew in the last 10 years.
U.S. vinyl album sales outsold CDs for the third year in a row. 2023 marked the 18th consecutive year vinyl album sales grew in the U.S., and the largest year for vinyl album sales since Luminate began tracking data in 1991.
47.1% of all albums sold in 2023 in the U.S. – across all configurations, physical & digital combined – were vinyl LPs. 57% of all physical albums sold were vinyl.
Total U.S. album sales for the year (physical and digital download purchases combined) grew by 5.2%.
Swift’s 1989 (Taylor’s Version) sold 1.975 million in traditional album sales in the U.S. in 2023 – the biggest-selling album of any year since 2015.
One Thing at a Time debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard 200 chart dated March 18, 2023, and spent 16 nonconsecutive weeks atop the tally. That marked the most weeks at No. 1 for any album since Adele’s blockbuster 21 spent 24 nonconsecutive weeks at No. 1 in 2011-12. One Thing at a Time is the second Wallen album to be named Luminate’s year-end No. 1 album, after his previous release, Dangerous: The Double Album, in 2021. Wallen is the first artist to have Luminate’s year-end No. 1 album twice in a three-year span since Drake led the year-end ranking in 2018 (with Scorpion) and in 2016 (with Views).
Nearly all of One Thing at a Time’s units earned in 2023 were powered by on-demand streams of its 36 songs. Its collected tracks generated 6.657 billion on-demand streams in the U.S., equaling 92.5% of the album’s total activity for the year (or, 4.962 million SEA units of its total 5.362 million units). One Thing at a Time was also the most-streamed album of 2023.
One Thing at a Time sold 326,000 in traditional album sales in 2023 (making it the No. 13-biggest-selling album of the year). The set also generated 745,000 in individual digital track sales, equaling nearly 75,000 in TEA units.
2023 marks the eighth year in a row in which Luminate’s year-end top album is by a solo male artist. The last time a solo male didn’t finish at No. 1 was in 2015, when Adele’s 25 ruled.
One Thing at a Time’s 5.362 million equivalent album units earned in 2023 is the largest sum for any album measured in a calendar year since 2015, when Adele’s 25 tallied 8.008 million and was the year’s top album.
One Thing at a Time spun off the massive multi-format chart hit “Last Night,” which spent 16 weeks atop the all-genre Billboard Hot 100. The tune also closes 2023 as the most-streamed song by on-demand audio streams.
TOP 10 ALBUMS OF 2023 IN U.S., BY TOTAL EQUIVALENT ALBUM UNITS1. Morgan Wallen, One Thing at a Time (5.362 million)2. Taylor Swift, Midnights (3.209 million)3. SZA, SOS (3.172 million)4. Taylor Swift, 1989 (Taylor’s Version) (2.872 million)5. Morgan Wallen, Dangerous: The Double Album (2.179 million)6. Taylor Swift, Lover (1.875 million)7. Travis Scott, Utopia (1.782 million)8. Taylor Swift, Speak Now (Taylor’s Version) (1.775 million)9. Taylor Swift, Folklore (1.612 million)10. Metro Boomin, Heroes & Villains (1.573 million)
Source: Luminate, for the tracking period Dec. 30, 2022, through Dec. 28, 2023. UGC streams are not included in this chart, but are included in Luminate’s on-demand streaming charts (below).
While Wallen has a pair of titles in the year-end top 10, Taylor Swift looms even larger. Swift has five albums among Luminate’s year-end top 10 – the first time any act has placed that many albums among Luminate’s year-end top 10 since the company began tracking data in 1991. Previously, the most titles any single act had among the year’s top 10 was three, achieved by Garth Brooks in 1993.
On Luminate’s year-end top 10 albums ranking, Swift is found at No. 2 (Midnights, 3.209 million units), No. 4 (1989 [Taylor’s Version], 2.872 million), No. 6 (Lover, 1.875 million), No. 8 (Speak Now [Taylor’s Version], 1.775 million) and No. 9 (Folklore, 1.612 million). Just two of those albums were released in 2023: Speak Now (Taylor’s Version) and 1989 (Taylor’s Version). Midnights was issued in late 2022, while Folklore bowed in 2020 and Lover arrived in 2019. All of Swift’s catalog in 2023 was buoyed by her stadium-filling The Eras Tour and its film adaptation Taylor Swift: The Eras Tour.
Swift also has five of the top 10-selling albums of 2023, five of the year’s top 10-selling vinyl albums and three of the top 10-selling CD albums. She’s also No. 1 on each of the three rankings. (See lists, below.)
TOTAL ALBUM CONSUMPTION INCREASES 12.6%: Equivalent album units increased by 12.6% in 2023, to 1.097 billion (up from 974.9 million in 2022). There were 28 albums that earned at least 1 million equivalent album units in 2023 – up from 19 in 2022.
R&B/HIP-HOP LEADS AMONG GENRES: R&B/hip-hop continues to hold firm as the top genre by total album consumption, with 277.27 million units earned in 2023 – equating to 25.3% of total volume (1.097 billion units) last year across all of Luminate’s core genres measured. R&B/hip-hop consumption increased by 5.9% in 2023 over its volume in 2022 (261.72 million). However, R&B/hip-hop’s share of total consumption decreased from 26.8% in 2022 to 25.3% in 2023. (R&B/hip-hop is an umbrella genre for Luminate that contains most titles categorized as R&B and/or rap.)
2023’s second-largest genre, by total album consumption, was rock with 212.42 million units (up 9.1% from 194.72 million in 2022). Pop music was third, with 135.32 million (up 9.4% from 123.72 million in 2022), country was fourth, with 92.19 million (up 21.8% from 75.69 million in 2022) and Latin was fifth, with 75.26 million (up 21.9% from 61.73 million in 2022).
In terms of the largest percentage gains among Luminate’s core genres, year-over-year, the world music genre had the biggest increase in 2023. The genre’s 34.1% gain last year (29.94 million units vs. 22.32 million in 2022) is inclusive of Korean pop (K-pop) music. (K-pop is one of the many music genres housed within the larger world music core genre.) The second-and-third-largest percentage increases in 2023 among Luminate’s core genres belonged to Latin (up 21.9%, to 75.26 million in 2023, vs. 61.73 million in 2022) and country (up 21.8%, to 92.19 million, vs. 75.69 million in 2022).
TAYLOR SWIFT’S ‘1989 (TAYLOR’S VERSION)’ IS 2023’s TOP-SELLING ALBUM: Taylor Swift’s most recent release, and her fourth re-recorded project, 1989 (Taylor’s Version), was 2023’s top-selling album in the U.S., with 1.975 million copies sold across all configurations (physical and digital combined: CD, vinyl LP, cassette, digital download album). See the top 10-selling albums, below.
TOP 10-SELLING ALBUMS OF 2023 IN U.S. (PHYSICAL & DIGITAL SALES COMBINED)1. Taylor Swift, 1989 (Taylor’s Version) (1.975 million)2. Taylor Swift, Midnights (973,000)3. Taylor Swift, Speak Now (Taylor’s Version) (908,000)4. Travis Scott, Utopia (575,000)5. Stray Kids, 5-STAR (526,000)6. Taylor Swift, Folklore (466,000)7. TOMORROW X TOGETHER, The Name Chapter: TEMPTATION (444,000)8. Taylor Swift, Lover (425,000)9. Olivia Rodrigo, Guts (404,000)10. Stray Kids, ROCK-STAR (229,000)Source: Luminate, for the tracking period Dec. 30, 2022, through Dec. 28, 2023.
With 1.975 million copies sold, 1989 (Taylor’s Version) is the biggest-selling album of any year since 2015, when Adele’s 25 sold 7.441 million copies. An album by Swift has been the year’s top-seller in six of the last 10 years: 1989 (Taylor’s Version) in 2023, Midnights in 2022, Folklore in 2020, Lover in 2019, Reputation in 2017 and 1989 in 2014. She also had the top-seller in 2009 with Fearless. Swift is the only act to have the top-selling album of the year at least seven times since Luminate began tracking sales in 1991.
1989 (Taylor’s Version) was also the top-selling vinyl LP of 2023 (1.014 million sold) and the top-selling CD album of the year (800,000 sold). 1989 (Taylor’s Version) is the first album to sell a million copies on vinyl in a calendar year since Luminate began tracking sales in 1991.
Sales of 1989 (Taylor’s Version) were bolstered by its availability across 15 physical configurations: five color vinyl variants, eight CD editions and two cassette albums. Further, of the five vinyl variants, Target carried a color edition that includes one bonus track (“Sweeter Than Fiction”). The set was also issued in two download editions – a standard 21-song version and a deluxe 22-track edition which adds a re-recorded version of the album’s “Bad Blood,” featuring Kendrick Lamar.
Swift, like many acts, leaned into creating additional versions of an album for purchase by superfans. All of the top 10-selling albums of 2023 were aided by their availability across multiple iterations, including many that contained collectible branded merchandise or color vinyl.
Swift by far sold the most albums of any act in 2023 in the U.S., as her collected catalog sold 6.172 million copies (across all configurations, physical and digital combined). Her sales accounted for 6% of all album sales last year across all albums by all artists. The second-biggest selling act, in terms of album sales in 2023, was K-pop group Stray Kids with 1.205 million copies sold.
TOTAL U.S. ALBUM SALES INCREASE BY 5.2%: Total U.S. album sales increased by 5.2% in 2023 to 105.32 million copies sold (up from 100.09 million in 2022). 2023 marked just the second year album sales increased in the last 10 years, following 2021. Album sales declined in every year from 2012-20, and again in 2022, as fans increasingly adopt streaming services as a means to consume music.
Total U.S. physical album sales (CD, vinyl LP, cassette, etc.) increased by 8.9% to 87 million in 2023 (up from 79.89 million in 2022). Digital album sales declined by 9.3% to 18.32 million in 2023 (down from 20.2 million in 2022).
VINYL REIGNS: For the third consecutive year, and the third year since Luminate began tracking sales in 1991, vinyl albums outsold CD albums in the U.S. Vinyl once again is the leading configuration for album purchases for the third year in a row.
Vinyl was the dominant configuration for album purchases in the U.S. up until the early 1980s. After that, cassettes took hold until the early 1990s, when the CD configuration blossomed and remained king until 2021, when vinyl retook the top slot.
49.61 million vinyl albums were sold in 2023 (up 14.2% from 43.46 million in 2022). 2023 marked the 18th consecutive year vinyl album sales grew in the U.S., and the largest year for vinyl album sales since Luminate began tracking data in 1991.
TOP 10-SELLING VINYL ALBUMS OF 2023 IN U.S.1. Taylor Swift, 1989 (Taylor’s Version) (1.014 million)2. Taylor Swift, Speak Now (Taylor’s Version) (510,000)3. Taylor Swift, Midnights (492,000)4. Travis Scott, Utopia (373,000)5. Taylor Swift, Folklore (308,000)6. Olivia Rodrigo, Guts (267,000)7. Taylor Swift, Lover (256,000)8. Lana Del Rey, Did You Know That There’s a Tunnel Under Ocean Blvd (215,000)9. Fleetwood Mac, Rumours (206,000)10. Lana Del Rey, Born to Die (192,000)Source: Luminate, for the tracking period Dec. 30, 2022, through Dec. 28, 2023.
The top-selling vinyl album of 2023 is Swift’s 1989 (Taylor’s Version) with 1.014 million sold. That marks the largest yearly sales total for a vinyl album, and the first vinyl set to sell a million in a calendar year, since Luminate began tracking sales in 1991. The effort also scored the largest sales week for a vinyl set since 1991 when it debuted with 693,000 copies sold in its first week.
Swift closed 2023 with five of the top 10-selling vinyl albums. Further, her catalog of albums sold 3.484 million copies on vinyl in 2023 – the most of any artist. (Lana Del Rey was the second-biggest selling act on vinyl in 2023, with 646,000 sold.) Swift’s vinyl sales accounted for 7% of the industry’s total vinyl album sales in 2023.
Vinyl album sales comprised 47.1% of all album sales in the U.S. in 2023 (49.61 million of 105.32 million). Vinyl LPs accounted for 57% of all physical album sold last year (49.61 million of 87 million). Both sums are Luminate-era records for vinyl’s share of the album sales market in the U.S.
In 2023 a total of 99 albums each sold at least 50,000 copies on vinyl – up from 88 in 2022. Comparatively, 65 albums on the CD configuration sold at least 50,000 copies in 2023 (up from 56 in 2022).
CD ALBUM SALES INCREASE, SWIFT & K-POP DOMINATE: 36.83 million CD albums were sold in 2023 (up 2.7% compared to 35.87 million in 2022), making it the second-most popular configuration for album purchases.
The top 10-selling CD albums of 2023 are comprised entirely of releases by Swift and K-pop artists. All profit from their availability across multiple collectible editions for superfans.
Swift sold the most CD albums in 2023, with 1.985 million copies sold across her entire catalog of titles. Stray Kids wrap as the No. 2-seller on CD, with 1.188 million sold. Swift’s CD sales represented 5.4% of all CD albums sold in 2023, industry-wide.
TOP 10-SELLING CD ALBUMS OF 2023 IN U.S.1. Taylor Swift, 1989 (Taylor’s Version) (800,000)2. Stray Kids, 5-STAR (520,000)3. TOMORROW X TOGETHER, The Name Chapter: TEMPTATION (442,000)4. Stray Kids, ROCK-STAR (381,000)5. NewJeans, 2nd EP Get Up (332,000)6. TWICE, Ready to Be (303,000)7. SEVENTEEN, SEVENTEEN 10th Mini Album Fml (288,000)8. Taylor Swift, Midnights (276,000)9. Taylor Swift, Speak Now (Taylor’s Version) (267,000)10. Jung Kook, Golden (244,000)Source: Luminate, for the tracking period Dec. 30, 2022, through Dec. 28, 2023.
Digital album sales were the third-most popular configuration in 2023 for album purchases, and the category dropped by 9.3% to 18.32 million (down from 20.2 million in 2022). The top-selling digital album of 2023 was Swift’s Midnights, with 201,000 downloads sold. Swift additionally was the top-selling artist in terms of digital albums in 2023, with 667,000 downloads sold. Morgan Wallen was the second-biggest-selling artist in terms of download albums, with 187,000 sold. Swift’s digital sales presented 3.6% of all download albums sold, industry-wide.
CASSETTE SALES STEADY: After cassette album sales jumped 28% in 2022, the niche configuration mostly stayed steady in 2023, slipping just 0.75%. In 2023, a total of 436,400 cassette albums were sold – a sliver less than the 439,700 sold in 2022. Cassettes were the leading album configuration for purchases from the early 1980s until the early 1990s. Today, cassette tapes are frequently sold exclusively on an artist’s webstore and in collectible editions. In 2023, the Billboard 200 chart saw No. 1 albums that boasted a cassette configuration from Blink-182’s One More Time, Olivia Rodrigo’s Guts and Swift’s 1989 (Taylor’s Version), Speak Now (Taylor’s Version) and Midnights (which first led the list in 2022).
TOTAL STREAMING INCREASES 14.6%, ON-DEMAND AUDIO UP 12.7%: Total U.S. on-demand song streams (audio and video combined, inclusive of UGC streams) increased by 14.6% to 1.453 trillion in 2023 (up from 1.268 trillion in 2022). Yearly on-demand audio streams (again, inclusive of UGC) surpassed 1 trillion for a second time, with 1.249 trillion (up 12.7% from 1.108 trillion in 2022).
On-demand audio streams comprised 86% of all on-demand streams in 2023, with the remainder generated by on-demand video.
The R&B/hip-hop genre accounted for the most on-demand streams (audio and video combined, inclusive of UGC) in 2023, among Luminate’s core genres, with 26.6% of the year’s volume (387.09 billion of 1.453 trillion).
Rock had the second-largest share of on-demand song streams (audio and video combined, inclusive of UGC) in 2023, with 16.2% of volume (235.11 billion of 1.453 trillion). Pop was third with 12.6% (182.63 billion of 1.453 trillion), Latin was fourth with 8.3% (120.18 billion of 1.453 trillion) country was fifth with 7.8% (113.09 billion of 1.453 trillion).
As for year-over-year growth in total on-demand streams (audio and video combined, inclusive of UGC) among Luminate’s core genres, world music had the largest percentage growth, increasing by 33.3% to 35.97 billion, as compared to 26.98 billion in 2022. The respective second- and third-biggest increases, by percentage, belonged to the genres of dance/electronic (23.2% to 54.37 billion, up from 44.14 billion in 2022) and country (22.2% to 113.09 billion, up from 92.52 billion in 2022).
Looking just at on-demand audio streams for 2023 (inclusive of UGC), R&B/hip-hop was tops with 27% of volume (337.21 billion of 1.249 trillion). Rock (17%; 211.72 billion of 1.249 trillion), pop (11.8%; 147.11 billion of 1.249 trillion), country (8.5%; 106.28 billion of 1.249 trillion) and Latin (8%; 99.71 billion of 1.249 trillion) were Nos. 2-5 for 2023, respectively, as they were in 2022 and 2021.
The genres that saw the largest percentage growth in year-over-year on-demand audio streams (inclusive of UGC) were world music (up 26.2% to 27.52 billion, up from 21.8 billion in 2022), Latin (up 24.1% to 99.71 billion, up from 80.34 billion in 2022) and country (up 23.7% to 106.28 billion, up from 85.91 billion in 2022).
Note: UGC streams are included in Luminate’s industry streaming on-demand volume numbers and its year-end streaming song charts. UGC streams are not factored into any of Billboard’s weekly charts.
‘LAST NIGHT’ SURPASSED 1 BILLION ON-DEMAND AUDIO STREAMS: Morgan Wallen’s “Last Night” was the most-streamed song of 2023 in the U.S. by on-demand audio streams (inclusive of UGC), with 1.015 billion – the most U.S. on-demand audio streams a song has earned in a calendar year.
“Last Night” is the second song to surpass 1 billion on-demand audio streams in a calendar year in the U.S., following Lil Nas X’s “Old Town Road” (featuring Billy Ray Cyrus), which cleared 1.002 billion in 2019.
See the top 10 most-streamed songs, by on-demand audio, below.
TOP 10 MOST STREAMED SONGS OF 2023 IN U.S., ON DEMAND AUDIO1. Morgan Wallen, “Last Night” (1.015 billion)2. SZA, “Kill Bill” (802.60 million)3. Zach Bryan, “Something in the Orange” (656.07 million)4. Miley Cyrus, “Flowers” (634.42 million)5. SZA, “Snooze” (550.83 million)6. The Weeknd, “Die for You” (539.29 million)7. Eslabon Armado x Peso Pluma, “Ella Baila Sola” (526.34 million)8. Luke Combs, “Fast Car” (525.51 million)9. Morgan Wallen, “You Proof” (517.58 million)10. Taylor Swift, “Cruel Summer” (507.78 million)Source: Luminate, for the tracking period Dec. 30, 2022, through Dec. 28, 2023. Includes UGC streams.
DIGITAL TRACK SALES DECLINE FOR 11TH YEAR IN A ROW: Digital track sales declined for an 11th consecutive year, falling 11.9% to 133.88 million in 2023 (down from 151.9 million in 2022). The top-selling digital song of 2023 was Jason Aldean’s “Try That in a Small Town” with 497,000 downloads sold. It was the second year in a row that no song sold more than a half-million downloads. Prior to 2022, it last happened in the early days of downloading, in 2004 (the first full year of the iTunes Store, which launched in mid-2003). Further, 2023 marks the second year in a row that no song sold 1 million copies. Before 2022, the industry last had a year without a million-selling download in 2005.
TOP 10-SELLING DIGITAL SONGS OF 2023 IN U.S.1. Jason Aldean, “Try That in a Small Town” (497,000)2. Miley Cyrus, “Flowers” (428,000)3. Oliver Anthony Music, “Rich Men North of Richmond” (358,000)4. Morgan Wallen, “Last Night” (302,000)5. Jimin, “Like Crazy” (296,000)6. Luke Combs, “Fast Car” (251,000)7. Jung Kook featuring Latto, “Seven” (228,000)8. Jelly Roll, “Need a Favor” (181,000)9. Jung Kook, “Standing Next to You” (163,000)10. Rema & Selena Gomez, “Calm Down” (159,000)Source: Luminate, for the tracking period Dec. 30, 2022 through Dec. 28, 2023.
CYRUS’ ‘FLOWERS’ BLOOMED ON RADIO: Miley Cyrus’ “Flowers” was tops on radio in 2023, with 3.919 billion audience impressions earned across all monitored radio stations in the U.S. Audience impressions are measured by cross-referencing plays with Nielsen Audio audience data – i.e., a play of a song on a top-rated New York station at 8 a.m. on a Monday has more listeners (audience) than an overnight weekend play in a smaller city.
TOP 10 RADIO SONGS OF 2023 IN U.S. (BASED ON AUDIENCE IMPRESSIONS)1. Miley Cyrus, “Flowers” (3.919 billion)2. Rema & Selena Gomez, “Calm Down” (3.643 billion)3. Metro Boomin, The Weeknd & 21 Savage, “Creepin’” (3.529 billion)4. The Weeknd, “Die for You” (2.628 billion)5. SZA, “Kill Bill” (2.623 billion)6. Taylor Swift, “Anti-Hero” (2.491 billion)7. David Guetta & Bebe Rexha, “I’m Good (Blue)” (2.448 billion)8. Morgan Wallen, “Last Night” (2.435 billion)9. Luke Combs, “Fast Car” (2.358 billion)10. Harry Styles, “As It Was” (2.199 billion)Source: Luminate, for the tracking period Dec. 30, 2022, through Dec. 28, 2023.
Taylor Swift dominates Billboard’s Top Album Sales chart (dated Dec. 30), as she holds the entire top four titles. That marks the first time any act has claimed the entire top four at the same time, since the chart bowed in May of 1991. For good measure, Swift has five of the top six titles, and six out of the top 10, as her titles populate Nos. 1-4, 6 and 10. Swift tops the list with 1989 (Taylor’s Version), which rises 2-1 for a third nonconsecutive week on top.
Swift leads a busy Top Album Sales chart, as the latest tally reflects the tracking week of Dec. 15-21 — capturing pre-Christmas Day shopping activity. Many titles see increases thanks to general holiday purchases, retailer promotions and sale pricing. On the 50-position chart, of the 49 non-debuts, a total of 44 titles boast weekly sales gains. Only five titles see weekly declines.
Billboard’s Top Album Sales chart ranks the top-selling albums of the week based only on traditional album sales. The chart’s history dates back to May 25, 1991, the first week Billboard began tabulating charts with electronically monitored piece count information from SoundScan, now Luminate. Pure album sales were the sole measurement utilized by the Billboard 200 albums chart through the list dated Dec. 6, 2014, after which that chart switched to a methodology that blends album sales with track equivalent album units and streaming equivalent album units. For all chart news, follow @billboard and @billboardcharts on both Twitter and Instagram.
The Swift parade in the top 10 of the chart is led by 1989 (Taylor’s Version), which climbs 2-1 for its third nonconsecutive week at No. 1 (95,000 copies sold; up 47%). Swift’s Midnights rises 5-2 (43,000; up 79%), Lover ascends 8-3 (30,000; up 55%) and Speak Now (Taylor’s Version) steps 6-4 (29,000; up 32%). The latter three are also former No. 1s.
Swift is also found in the top 10 at No. 6 with her chart-topping Folklore (falling two spots with 25,000; though up 4%) and at No. 10 with former leader Fearless (Taylor’s Version) (up from No. 16 with 19,000; up 70%).
Rounding out the non-Swift titles in the top 10 are these former No. 1s: Olivia Rodrigo’s Guts (9-5 with 26,000; up 37%), Stray Kids’ ROCK-STAR (holding at No. 7 with 24,000; up 20%), ATEEZ’s The World EP.Fin: Will (down 3-8 with 22,000; down 29%) and Dolly Parton’s Rockstar (10-9 with 19,000; up 8%).
In the week ending Dec. 21, there were 3.553 million albums sold in the U.S. (up 15.6% compared to the previous week). Of that sum, physical albums (CDs, vinyl LPs, cassettes, etc.) comprised 3.219 million (up 18.7%) and digital albums comprised 334,000 (down 7.6%).
There were 1.150 million CD albums sold in the week ending Dec. 21 (up 8.7% week-over-week) and 2.055 million vinyl albums sold (up 25.3%). Year-to-date CD album sales stand at 36.072 million (up 2.8% compared to the same time frame a year ago) and year-to-date vinyl album sales total 48.203 million (up 15.1%).
Overall year-to-date album sales total 102.809 million (up 5.6% compared to the same year-to-date time frame a year ago). Year-to-date physical album sales stand at 84.823 million (up 9.4%) and digital album sales total 17.986 million (down 9.3%).
