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

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.

Best-sellers (overall)

+ List of the best-selling albums in the United States since 1991, showing title, release year, artist, and sales figure Album Release year Artist(s) Pure sales figures Metallica 1991 Metallica 17,810,000 Come On Over 1997 Shania Twain 15,730,000 Jagged Little Pill 1995 Alanis Morissette 15,200,000 12000 The Beatles 13,000,000 Legend1984 Bob Marley and the Wailers 12,300,000 Millennium 1999 Backstreet Boys 12,300,000 The Bodyguard 1992 Whitney Houston 12,140,000 212011 Adele 12,100,000 Supernatural 1999 Santana 11,850,000 Human Clay 1999 Creed 11,700,000 The Marshall Mathers LP 2000 Eminem 11,400,000 No Strings Attached2000 NSYNC 11,160,000Hybrid Theory 2000 Linkin Park 11,130,000 Come Away with Me 2002 Norah Jones 11,100,000 Falling into You 1996 Celine Dion 10,900,000 Ten 1991 Pearl Jam 10,790,000 ...Baby One More Time 1999 Britney Spears 10,700,000 The Eminem Show 2002 Eminem 10,700,000 Nevermind 1991 Nirvana 10,400,000 Confessions 2004 Usher 10,300,000 Cracked Rear View 1994 Hootie & the Blowfish 10,270,000 Titanic1997 James Horner 10,175,000 Backstreet Boys 1997 Backstreet Boys 10,120,000

Best-selling albums by decade

1991–1999 + Best-selling albums in the United States in the 1990s Album Release year Artist(s) Sales Jagged Little Pill 1995 Alanis Morissette 13,542,393 Come On Over 1997 Shania Twain 12,110,660 Metallica 1991 Metallica 11,715,533 The Bodyguard 1992 Whitney Houston 11,605,690 Falling into You 1996 Celine Dion 10,224,282 Cracked Rear View 1994 Hootie & the Blowfish 9,817,666 Titanic 1997 James Horner 9,806,175 Human Clay 1999 Creed 9,495,000 Millennium 1999 Backstreet Boys 9,445,732 Ropin' the Wind 1991 Garth Brooks 9,370,863 Backstreet Boys 1997 Backstreet Boys 9,258,265

2000–2009 + Best-selling albums in the United States in the 2000s Album Release year Artist(s) Sales 1 2000 The Beatles 11,564,000 No Strings Attached 2000 NSYNC 11,113,000 The Marshall Mathers LP 2000 Eminem 11,100,000 The Eminem Show 2002 Eminem 10,900,000 Come Away With Me 2002 Norah Jones 10,579,000 Confessions 2004 Usher 9,730,000 Hybrid Theory 2000 Linkin Park 9,697,000 Oops!... I Did It Again 2000 Britney Spears 9,184,000 Country Grammar 2000 Nelly 8,464,000

2010–2019 + Best-selling albums in the United States in the 2010s Album Release year Artist(s) Sales 21 2011 Adele 12,009,000 25 2015 Adele 9,517,000 1989 2014 Taylor Swift 6,215,000 Recovery 2010 Eminem 4,867,000 Speak Now 2010 Taylor Swift 4,694,000 Red 2012 Taylor Swift 4,465,000 Christmas 2011 Michael Bublé 4,379,000 Frozen 2014 Various artists 4,314,000 Need You Now 2010 Lady Antebellum 4,221,000 The 20/20 Experience 2013 Justin Timberlake 3,743,000

Best-selling albums by year

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.

+KeyIndicates album-equivalent units + Best-selling albums by year in the United States since 1991 Year Album Artist(s) Figures 1991 Mariah Carey Mariah Carey 4,885,000 1992 Some Gave All Billy Ray Cyrus 4,700,000 1993 The Bodyguard Whitney Houston 5,460,000 1994 The Lion King Various Artists 4,900,000 1995 Cracked Rear View Hootie & the Blowfish 7,000,000 1996 Jagged Little Pill Alanis Morissette 7,400,000 1997 Spice Spice Girls 5,300,000 1998 Titanic James Horner 9,338,061 1999 Millennium Backstreet Boys 9,445,732 2000 No Strings Attached NSYNC 9,936,104 2001 Hybrid Theory Linkin Park 4,812,852 2002 The Eminem Show Eminem 7,607,925 2003 Get Rich or Die Tryin' 50 Cent 6,535,809 2004 Confessions Usher 7,978,594 2005 The Emancipation of Mimi Mariah Carey 4,968,606 2006 High School Musical Various Artists 3,719,071 2007 Noël Josh Groban 3,698,934 2008 Tha Carter III Lil Wayne 2,874,420 2009 Fearless Taylor Swift 3,216,988Nielsen Music 2009 Year-End Music Industry Report, Businesswire.com, Jan 7, 2010 article. 2010 Recovery Eminem 3,414,927 2011 21 Adele 5,823,628 2012 21 Adele 4,414,000 2013 The 20/20 Experience Justin Timberlake 2,427,000 2014 1989 Taylor Swift 3,661,000 2015 25 Adele 8,008,000 7,441,000 2016 Views Drake 4,140,000 25 Adele 1,731,000 2017 ÷ Ed Sheeran 2,764,000 Reputation Taylor Swift 1,903,000 2018 Scorpion Drake 3,905,000 Drake's 'Scorpion' Is Nielsen Music's Top Album Of 2018 in U.S., 'God's Plan' Most-Streamed Song. Billboard. 8 January 2019. The Greatest Showman Various Artists 1,491,000 2019 Hollywood's Bleeding Post Malone 3,001,000 Lover Taylor Swift 1,085,000 2020 My Turn Lil Baby 2,632,000 Folklore Taylor Swift 1,276,000 2021 Dangerous: The Double Album Morgan Wallen 3,226,000 30 Adele 1,464,000 2022 Un Verano Sin Ti Bad Bunny 3,400,000 Midnights Taylor Swift 1,818,000 2023 One Thing at a Time Morgan Wallen5,362,000 1989 (Taylor's Version) Taylor Swift 1,975,000 2024 The Tortured Poets Department6,955,000 3,491,000 2025 The Life of a Showgirl5,607,000 3,985,000

Single week best-sellers

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 Life of a Showgirl by Taylor Swift in 2025. The following is a list of all of the albums that sold at least one million copies in a single week:

+KeyIndicates album-equivalent units Week ending Title Artist Total units Pure sales Week # ReferenceOctober 9, 2025The Life of a ShowgirlTaylor Swift4,002,0003,479,5001st November 26, 2015 25 Adele 3,474,000 3,378,000 1st April 25, 2024 The Tortured Poets Department Taylor Swift 2,610,000 1,914,000 1st March 26, 2000 No Strings Attached *NSYNC 2,416,000 1st July 29, 2001 Celebrity 1,880,000 1st May 28, 2000 The Marshall Mathers LP Eminem 1,760,000 1st November 9, 20231989 (Taylor's Version)Taylor Swift 1,653,0001,359,0001st November 26, 2000 Black & Blue Backstreet Boys 1,591,000 1st October 27, 2022 Midnights Taylor Swift 1,578,0001,140,0001st June 2, 2002 The Eminem Show Eminem 1,322,000 2nd May 21, 2000 Oops!... I Did It Again Britney Spears 1,319,000 1st November 2, 2014 1989 Taylor Swift 1,287,000 1st December 24, 2000 1 The Beatles 1,259,000 6th November 16, 2017 Reputation Taylor Swift 1,238,000 1,216,000 1st October 28, 2012Red Taylor Swift 1,208,000 1st December 24, 2015 25 Adele 1,190,000 1,160,000 5th December 3, 2015 1,160,000 1,110,000 2nd March 6, 2005 The Massacre 50 Cent 1,141,000 1st May 23, 1999 Millennium Backstreet Boys 1,134,000 1st May 29, 2011 Born This Way Lady Gaga 1,108,000 1st March 28, 2004 Confessions Usher 1,096,000 1st November 22, 1998 Double Live Garth Brooks 1,095,000 1st December 28, 1992 The Bodyguard Soundtrack/Whitney Houston 1,061,000 6th October 22, 2000 Chocolate Starfish and the Hot Dog Flavored Water Limp Bizkit 1,055,000 1st October 31, 2010 Speak Now Taylor Swift 1,047,000 1st May 22, 2016 Views Drake 1,040,000 852,000 1st February 17, 2004 Feels Like Home Norah Jones 1,022,000 1st June 21, 2008 Tha Carter III Lil Wayne 1,006,000 1st

See also

Album era List of best-selling albums in the United States List of best-selling albums by year in the United States

References Footnotes

Notes