For some time, the top selling album of all time in the United States has been the Eagles’ “Their Greatest Hits 1971 – 1975”, with 38 million copies sold as of August 2024. While this may surprise some, it is not so surprising when you look at the number of chart-topping songs that make up the compilation and the fact that the country and rock genre remain the core genre for much of the U.S. However, compilations removed, Michael Jackson's “Thriller” is the biggest selling single album all time at 34 million copies sold, followed by none other than the Eagles’ “Hotel California” at 26 million copies sold. When we look at sales worldwide, the race is not even close, with Michael Jackson's “Thriller” selling nearly 70 million reported copies (51 million certified).
Some may surprise some by a few albums on the list, such as Hootie and theBlowfish's "Cracked Rear View". This album represents a mix of musical styles that made up the United States' core genre at the time and came at a time when the primary music listeners were beginning to fatigue with the popular grunge style of time. Cracked Rearview includes thoughtfully written songs, such as "Hold My Hand", "Time", and "Let Her Cry". The song "Only Wanna Be With You", while seeming somewhat silly lyrically, contained catchy guitar riffs and lyrics that had a unique stickiness (aka: earworms).
Artist: Album Title | Units Sold Millions |
38 | |
34 | |
Eagles: Hotel California | 26 |
25 | |
24 | |
24 | |
23 | |
23 | |
23 | |
22 | |
21 | |
20 | |
18 | |
18 | |
18 | |
18 | |
17 | |
17 | |
17 | |
17 | |
17 | |
16 | |
16 | |
16 |
As reported by the Recording Industry Association of America.
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