Vinyl Sales Leaders

For the 13th consecutive year, vinyl record sales grew in the U.S. in 2018. Still, the vinyl market accounts for just under 12 percent of total music purchases, even though that’s almost double the previous year’s percentage.

Citing Nielsen Music figures, Billboard reports that CD sales, while still nearly five times that of vinyl, fell by over 20 percent.in 2018 to 70 million, about half of all album sales.

Among the best-selling acts on vinyl last year, The Beatles led by a wide margin. The Top 10 features nearly all classic rock acts, with Panic! At the Disco the only act whose career began this century.

  1. The Beatles – 321,000
  2. Pink Floyd – 177,000
  3. David Bowie – 150,000
  4. Panic! at the Disco – 148,000
  5. Fleetwood Mac – 139,000
  6. Led Zeppelin – 138,000
  7. Michael Jackson – 131,000
  8. Jimi Hendrix – 119,000
  9. Metallica – 116,000
  10. Queen – 113,000

Individual vinyl album sales were led by a soundtrack album, Guardians of the Galaxy: Awesome Mix Vol. 1, which just edged out Michael Jackson‘s Thriller. Vintage albums by Top 10 overall vinyl sellers Fleetwood Mac, The Beatles, Pink Floyd and Queen, as well as a brand new one by Panic! At the Disco, also made the Top 10.

  1. Soundtrack – Guardians of the Galaxy: Awesome Mix Vol. 1 –  84,000
  2. Michael Jackson – Thriller – 84,000
  3. Fleetwood Mac – Rumours – 77,000
  4. The Beatles – Abbey Road – 76,000
  5. Prince and The Revolution – Purple Rain (Soundtrack) – 71,000
  6. Pink Floyd – The Dark Side of the Moon – 67,000
  7. Bob Marley and The Wailers – Legend: The Best Of… – 61,000
  8. Queen – Greatest Hits – 60,000
  9. Amy Winehouse – Back to Black – 59,000
  10. Panic! at the Disco – Pray for the Wicked – 59,000

Also announced were the Top 10 selling vinyl singles. The Beatles’ “Yellow Submarine,” backed with “Eleanor Rigby,” released to mark the 50th anniversary of their Yellow Submarine movie, led the list.

  1. The Beatles – “Yellow Submarine” – 10,000
  2. Prince – “Nothing Compares 2 U” – 9,000
  3. Led Zeppelin – “Rock and Roll”/”Friends” – 8,000
  4. Sleep – “Leagues Beneath” – 5,000
  5. Chris Cornell – “When Bad Does Good” – 4,000
  6. David Bowie – “Let’s Dance” (Full Length Demo) – 4,000
  7. Paul McCartney – “I Don’t Know”/”Come On To Me” – 4,000
  8. U2 – “Hold Me, Thrill Me, Kiss Me, Kill Me” – 3,000
  9. The Jimi Hendrix Experience – “Burning of the Midnight Lamp” – 3,000
  10. John Williams – “The Rebellion Is Reborn” – 3,000

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