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

Best-sellers (overall)

1. Metallica / Metallica ~ 16,830,000
2. Come On Over / Shania Twain ~ 15,730,000
3. Jagged Little Pill / Alanis Morissette ~ 15,200,000
4. 1 / The Beatles ~ 13,000,000
5. Legend / Bob Marley and the Wailers ~ 12,300,000
6. Millennium / Backstreet Boys ~ 12,300,000
7. ' / Soundtrack ~ 12,140,000
8. 21 / Adele ~ 12,009,000
9. Supernatural / Santana ~ 11,850,000
10. Human Clay / Creed ~ 11,690,000
11. No Strings Attached / NSYNC ~ 11,160,000
12. Come Away with Me / Norah Jones ~ 11,100,000
13. The Marshall Mathers LP / Eminem ~ 11,000,000
14. Falling into You / Celine Dion ~ 10,900,000
15. ...Baby One More Time / Britney Spears ~ 10,700,000
16. The Eminem Show / Eminem ~ 10,600,000
17. Hybrid Theory / Linkin Park ~ 10,500,000
18. Confessions / Usher ~ 10,300,000
19. Cracked Rear View / Hootie & the Blowfish ~ 10,270,000
20. ' / Soundtrack ~ 10,170,000
21. Backstreet Boys / Backstreet Boys ~ 10,120,000
22. Ten / Pearl Jam ~ 10,000,000

    Decade best-sellers

1991–1999

1. Jagged Little Pill / Alanis Morissette ~ 13,542,393
2. Come On Over / Shania Twain ~ 12,110,660
3. Metallica / Metallica ~ 11,715,533
4. The Bodyguard / Soundtrack ~ 11,605,690
5. Falling into You / Celine Dion ~ 10,224,282
6. Cracked Rear View / Hootie & the Blowfish ~ 9,817,666
7. Titanic / Soundtrack ~ 9,806,175
8. Millennium / Backstreet Boys ~ 9,445,732
9. Ropin' the Wind / Garth Brooks ~ 9,370,863
10. Backstreet Boys / Backstreet Boys ~ 9,258,265

2000–2009

1. 1 / The Beatles ~ 11,564,000
2. No Strings Attached / NSYNC ~ 11,113,000
3. Come Away With Me / Norah Jones ~ 10,579,000
4. The Marshall Mathers LP / Eminem ~ 10,216,000
5. The Eminem Show / Eminem ~ 9,818,000
6. Confessions / Usher ~ 9,730,000
7. Hybrid Theory / Linkin Park ~ 9,697,000
8. Human Clay / Creed ~ 9,495,000
9. Oops!... I Did It Again / Britney Spears ~ 9,184,000
10. Country Grammar / Nelly ~ 8,464,000

2010–2019

1. 21 / Adele ~ 12,009,000
2. 25 / Adele ~ 9,517,000
3. 1989 / Taylor Swift ~ 6,215,000
4. Recovery / Eminem ~ 4,867,000
5. Speak Now / Taylor Swift ~ 4,694,000
6. Red / Taylor Swift ~ 4,465,000
7. Christmas / Michael Buble ~ 4,379,000
8. Frozen / Various ~ 4,314,000
9. Need You Now / Lady Antebellum ~ 4,221,000
10. The 20/20 Experience / Justin Timberlake ~ 3,743,000

Annual best-sellers

1991

1. Ropin' The Wind / Garth Brooks ~ 4,000,000
2. Mariah Carey / Mariah Carey ~ 3,380,000
3. No Fences / Garth Brooks ~ 3,370,000
4. Unforgettable / Natalie Cole ~ 3,260,000
5. Time, Love and Tenderness / Michael Bolton ~ 3,170,000
6. Metallica / Metallica ~ 3,200,000
7. Gonna Make You Sweat / C+C Music Factory ~ 3,150,000
8. Use Your Illusion II / Guns N' Roses ~ 2,810,000
9. Out of Time / R.E.M. ~ 2,780,000
10. To the Extreme / Vanilla Ice ~ 2,450,000

1992

1. Some Gave All / Billy Ray Cyrus ~ 4,700,000
2. Ropin' The Wind / Garth Brooks ~ 4,000,000
3. Ten / Pearl Jam ~ 3,400,000
4. The Bodyguard / Soundtrack ~ 3,300,000
5. Totally Krossed Out / Kris Kross ~ 3,200,000
6. No Fences / Garth Brooks ~ 3,100,000
7. The Chase / Garth Brooks ~ 3,100,000
8. Nevermind / Nirvana ~ 2,700,000
9. Adrenalize / Def Leppard ~ 2,700,000
10. Metallica / Metallica ~ 2,600,000

1993

1. The Bodyguard / Soundtrack ~ 5,460,000
2. Janet / Janet Jackson ~ 4,300,000
3. Vs. / Pearl Jam ~ 3,800,000
4. Breathless / Kenny G ~ 3,800,000
5. Music Box / Mariah Carey ~ 3,300,000
6. The Chronic / Dr. Dre ~ 2,900,000
7. Unplugged / Eric Clapton ~ 2,900,000
8. In Pieces / Garth Brooks ~ 2,800,000
9. Core / Stone Temple Pilots ~ 2,700,000
10. / Meat Loaf ~ 2,600,000

1994

1. The Lion King / Soundtrack ~ 4,900,000
2. The Sign / Ace of Base ~ 4,900,000
3. II / Boyz II Men ~ 4,300,000
4. August & Everything After / Counting Crows ~ 3,800,000
5. Dookie / Green Day ~ 3,400,000
6. Not a Moment Too Soon / Tim McGraw ~ 3,200,000
7. Purple / Stone Temple Pilots ~ 3,100,000
8. / Kenny G ~ 3,000,000
9. Smash / The Offspring ~ 2,900,000
10. Music Box / Mariah Carey ~ 2,700,000

1995

1. Cracked Rear View / Hootie & the Blowfish ~ 7,000,000
2. CrazySexyCool / TLC ~ 4,800,000
3. Jagged Little Pill / Alanis Morissette ~ 4,200,000
4. Daydream / Mariah Carey ~ 3,900,000
5. The Hits / Garth Brooks ~ 3,800,000
6. Throwing Copper / Live ~ 3,500,000
7. II / Boyz II Men ~ 3,400,000
8. Anthology 1 / The Beatles ~ 2,900,000
9. Hell Freezes Over / Eagles ~ 2,800,000
10. The Woman in Me / Shania Twain ~ 2,800,000

1996

1. Jagged Little Pill / Alanis Morissette ~ 7,400,000
2. Falling into You / Celine Dion ~ 6,000,000
3. The Score / Fugees ~ 4,500,000
4. Tragic Kingdom / No Doubt ~ 4,400,000
5. Daydream / Mariah Carey ~ 3,000,000
6. All Eyez on Me / 2Pac ~ 3,000,000
7. Load / Metallica ~ 3,000,000
8. Secrets / Toni Braxton ~ 2,900,000
9. The Woman in Me / Shania Twain ~ 2,800,000
10. Morning Glory? / Oasis ~ 2,600,000

1997

1. Spice / Spice Girls ~ 5,300,000
2. Pieces of You / Jewel ~ 4,300,000
3. No Way Out / Puff Daddy and the Family ~ 3,400,000
4. Sevens / Garth Brooks ~ 3,300,000
5. Middle of Nowhere / Hanson ~ 3,200,000
6. Life After Death / The Notorious B.I.G. ~ 3,100,000
7. Bringing Down the Horse / The Wallflowers ~ 3,100,000
8. Falling into You / Celine Dion ~ 3,000,000
9. Space Jam / soundtrack ~ 2,900,000
10. / LeAnn Rimes ~ 2,900,000

1998

1. ' / Soundtrack ~ 9,338,061
2. Let's Talk About Love / Celine Dion ~ 5,859,421
3. Backstreet Boys / Backstreet Boys ~ 5,709,369
4. Come On Over / Shania Twain ~ 4,872,841
5. *NSYNC / NSYNC ~ 4,385,148
6. ' / Soundtrack ~ 4,120,508
7. Double Live / Garth Brooks ~ 3,892,288
8. Big Willie Style / Will Smith ~ 3,687,568
9. Savage Garden / Savage Garden ~ 3,247,406
10. Armageddon / Soundtrack ~ 3,222,603

1999

1. Millennium / Backstreet Boys ~ 9,445,732
2. ...Baby One More Time / Britney Spears ~ 8,358,619
3. Ricky Martin / Ricky Martin ~ 5,981,155
4. Come On Over / Shania Twain ~ 5,618,134
5. Significant Other / Limp Bizkit ~ 4,952,890
6. Supernatural / Santana ~ 4,732,589
7. Devil Without a Cause / Kid Rock ~ 4,259,736
8. FanMail / TLC ~ 4,186,685
9. Christina Aguilera / Christina Aguilera ~ 3,662,905
10. Wide Open Spaces / Dixie Chicks ~ 3,463,642

2000

1. No Strings Attached / NSYNC ~ 9,936,104
2. The Marshall Mathers LP / Eminem ~ 7,921,107
3. Oops!... I Did It Again / Britney Spears ~ 7,893,544
4. Human Clay / Creed ~ 6,587,834
5. Supernatural / Santana ~ 5,857,824
6. 1 / The Beatles ~ 5,068,300
7. Country Grammar / Nelly ~ 5,067,529
8. Black & Blue / Backstreet Boys ~ 4,289,865
9. 2001 / Dr. Dre ~ 3,992,311
10. ''The Writing's on the Wall / Destiny's Child ~ 3,802,165

2001

1. Hybrid Theory / Linkin Park ~ 4,812,852
2. Hot Shot / Shaggy ~ 4,507,468
3. Celebrity / NSYNC ~ 4,421,231
4. A Day Without Rain / Enya ~ 4,410,053
5. Break the Cycle / Staind ~ 4,242,507
6. Songs in A Minor / Alicia Keys ~ 4,102,482
7. Survivor / Destiny's Child ~ 3,718,446
8. Weathered / Creed ~ 3,581,344
9. O Brother, Where Art Thou? / Soundtrack ~ 3,460,852
10. Now That's What I Call Music! 6 / various artists ~ 3,133,462

2002

1. The Eminem Show / Eminem ~ 7,607,925
2. Nellyville / Nelly ~ 4,916,073
3. Let Go / Avril Lavigne ~ 4,121,396
4. Home / Dixie Chicks ~ 3,690,413
5. 8 Mile / various artists ~ 3,498,497
6. Missundaztood / Pink ~ 3,144,947
7. Ashanti / Ashanti ~ 3,099,216
8. Drive / Alan Jackson ~ 3,054,736
9. Up! / Shania Twain ~ 2,909,499
10. O Brother, Where Art Thou? / Soundtrack ~ 2,736,049

2003

1. Get Rich or Die Tryin' / 50 Cent ~ 6,535,809
2. Come Away with Me / Norah Jones ~ 5,137,468
3. Meteora / Linkin Park ~ 3,478,361
4. Fallen / Evanescence ~ 3,364,738
5. Speakerboxxx/The Love Below / Outkast ~ 3,089,849
6. Chocolate Factory / R. Kelly ~ 2,939,536
7. Dangerously in Love / Beyoncé ~ 2,527,485
8. Metamorphosis / Hilary Duff ~ 2,405,544
9. Shock'n Y'all / Toby Keith ~ 2,324,437
10. A Rush of Blood to the Head / Coldplay ~ 2,183,997

2004

1. Confessions / Usher ~ 7,978,594
2. Feels like Home / Norah Jones ~ 3,842,920
3. Encore / Eminem ~ 3,517,097
4. When the Sun Goes Down / Kenny Chesney ~ 3,072,224
5. Here for the Party / Gretchen Wilson ~ 2,931,097
6. Live Like You Were Dying / Tim McGraw ~ 2,786,840
7. Songs About Jane / Maroon 5 ~ 2,708,415
8. Fallen / Evanescence ~ 2,614,226
9. Autobiography / Ashlee Simpson ~ 2,576,945
10. Now That's What I Call Music! 16 / various artists ~ 2,560,316

2005

1. The Emancipation of Mimi / Mariah Carey ~ 4,968,606
2. The Massacre / 50 Cent ~ 4,852,744
3. Breakaway / Kelly Clarkson ~ 3,496,192
4. American Idiot / Green Day ~ 3,360,394
5. Monkey Business / The Black Eyed Peas ~ 3,037,251
6. X&Y / Coldplay ~ 2,615,280
7. Feels Like Today / Rascal Flatts ~ 2,511,209
8. Love. Angel. Music. Baby. / Gwen Stefani ~ 2,505,390
9. Late Registration / Kanye West ~ 2,413,580
10. The Documentary / The Game ~ 2,275,646

2006

1. High School Musical / Soundtrack ~ 3,719,071
2. Me and My Gang / Rascal Flatts ~ 3,479,994
3. Some Hearts / Carrie Underwood ~ 3,016,031
4. All the Right Reasons / Nickelback ~ 2,688,138
5. FutureSex/LoveSounds / Justin Timberlake ~ 2,377,127
6. Back to Bedlam / James Blunt ~ 2,137,196
7. B'Day / Beyoncé ~ 2,010,311
8. Hannah Montana / Soundtrack ~ 1,987,681
9. Taking the Long Way / Dixie Chicks ~ 1,856,284
10. Extreme Behavior / Hinder ~ 1,817,350

2007

1. Noël / Josh Groban ~ 3,698,934
2. High School Musical 2 / Soundtrack ~ 2,956,799
3. Long Road Out of Eden / Eagles ~ 2,608,338
4. As I Am / Alicia Keys ~ 2,543,224
5. Daughtry / Daughtry ~ 2,497,457
6. Hannah Montana 2/Meet Miley Cyrus / Soundtrack/Miley Cyrus ~ 2,487,346
7. Minutes to Midnight / Linkin Park ~ 2,098,941
8. The Dutchess / Fergie ~ 2,063,572
9. Taylor Swift /Taylor Swift ~ 1,950,641
10. Graduation / Kanye West ~ 1,891,918

2008

1. Tha Carter III / Lil Wayne ~ 2,874,420
2. Viva La Vida or Death and All His Friends / Coldplay ~ 2,143,928
3. Fearless / Taylor Swift ~ 2,112,179
4. Rock N Roll Jesus / Kid Rock ~ 2,017,905
5. Black Ice / AC/DC ~ 1,915,172
6. Taylor Swift / Taylor Swift ~ 1,597,316
7. Death Magnetic / Metallica ~ 1,565,078
8. Paper Trail / T.I. ~ 1,522,103
9. Sleep Through The Static / Jack Johnson ~ 1,492,466
10. I Am... Sasha Fierce / Beyoncé ~ 1,458,853

2009

1. Fearless / Taylor Swift ~ 3,216,988
2. I Dreamed a Dream / Susan Boyle ~ 3,103,828
3. Number Ones / Michael Jackson ~ 2,355,449
4. The Fame / Lady Gaga ~ 2,237,750
5. My Christmas / Andrea Bocelli ~ 2,207,202
6. / Soundtrack ~ 1,823,435
7. The E.N.D. / The Black Eyed Peas ~ 1,786,825
8. Relapse / Eminem ~ 1,735,358
9. The Blueprint 3 / Jay-Z ~ 1,514,758
10. Only by the Night / Kings of Leon ~ 1,397,693

2010

1. Recovery / Eminem ~ 3,414,927
2. Need You Now / Lady Antebellum ~ 3,089,303
3. Speak Now / Taylor Swift ~ 2,960,331
4. My World 2.0 / Justin Bieber ~ 2,318,745
5. The Gift / Susan Boyle ~ 1,851,753
6. The Fame / Lady Gaga ~ 1,590,839
7. Soldier of Love / Sade ~ 1,299,761
8. Thank Me Later / Drake ~ 1,268,780
9. Raymond v. Raymond / Usher ~ 1,182,632
10. Animal / Kesha ~ 1,143,285

2011

1. 21 / Adele ~ 5,823,628
2. Christmas / Michael Bublé ~ 2,452,140
3. Born This Way / Lady Gaga ~ 2,100,885
4. Tha Carter IV / Lil' Wayne ~ 1,916,909
5. My Kinda Party / Jason Aldean ~ 1,575,681
6. Sigh No More / Mumford & Sons ~ 1,419,952
7. Take Care / Drake ~ 1,246,774
8. Under the Mistletoe / Justin Bieber ~ 1,245,074
9. Watch the Throne / Jay-Z and Kanye West ~ 1,231,676
10. Own the Night / Lady Antebellum ~ 1,203,640

2012

1. 21 / Adele ~ 4,414,000
2. Red / Taylor Swift ~ 3,107,000
3. Up All Night / One Direction ~ 1,616,000
4. Babel / Mumford & Sons ~ 1,463,000
5. Take Me Home / One Direction ~ 1,340,000
6. Believe / Justin Bieber ~ 1,324,000
7. Blown Away / Carrie Underwood ~ 1,203,000
8. Tailgates & Tanlines / Luke Bryan ~ 1,105,000
9. Tuskegee / Lionel Richie ~ 1,071,000
10. Night Train / Jason Aldean ~ 1,024,000

2013

1. The 20/20 Experience / Justin Timberlake ~ 2,427,000
2. The Marshall Mathers LP 2 / Eminem ~ 1,727,000
3. Crash My Party / Luke Bryan ~ 1,521,000
4. Night Visions / Imagine Dragons ~ 1,402,000
5. Unorthodox Jukebox / Bruno Mars ~ 1,399,000
6. Here's to the Good Times / Florida Georgia Line ~ 1,350,000
7. Nothing Was the Same / Drake ~ 1,344,000
8. Beyoncé / Beyoncé ~ 1,301,000
9. Based on a True Story / Blake Shelton ~ 1,109,000
10. Magna Carta Holy Grail / Jay-Z ~ 1,099,000

2014

1. 1989 / Taylor Swift ~ 3,661,000
2. Frozen: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack / Various ~ 3,530,000
3. In the Lonely Hour / Sam Smith ~ 1,210,000
4. That's Christmas to Me / Pentatonix ~ 1,140,000
5. Guardians of the Galaxy: Awesome Mix Vol. 1 / Various ~ 898,000
6. Beyoncé / Beyoncé ~ 878,000
7. Partners / Barbra Streisand ~ 856,000
8. Pure Heroine / Lorde ~ 841,000
9. Four / One Direction ~ 814,000
10. The Outsiders / Eric Church ~ 811,000

2015

2016

2017

2018

2019

Single week best-sellers

• Albums to have sold at least one million copies in a single week:

1. 25 / Adele ~ 3,480,000 '
2. No Strings Attached / NSYNC ~ 2,416,000 '
3. Celebrity / NSYNC ~ 1,880,000 '
4. The Marshall Mathers LP / Eminem ~ 1,760,000 '
5. Black & Blue / Backstreet Boys ~ 1,591,000 '
6. The Eminem Show / Eminem ~ 1,322,000 '
7. Oops!... I Did It Again / Britney Spears ~ 1,319,000 '
8. 1989 / Taylor Swift ~ 1,287,000 '
9. 1 / The Beatles ~ 1,259,000 '
10. reputation / Taylor Swift ~ 1,238,000
11. Red / Taylor Swift ~ 1,208,000 '
12. 25 / Adele ~ 1,190,000 '
13. 25 / Adele ~ 1,160,000 '
14. The Massacre / 50 Cent ~ 1,141,000 '
15. Millennium / Backstreet Boys ~ 1,134,000 '
16. Born This Way / Lady Gaga ~ 1,108,000 '
17. Confessions / Usher ~ 1,096,000 '
18. Double Live / Garth Brooks ~ 1,085,000 '
19. ' / Soundtrack ~ 1,061,000 '
20. Chocolate Starfish and the Hot Dog Flavored Water / Limp Bizkit ~ 1,055,000 '
21. Speak Now / Taylor Swift ~ 1,047,000 '
22. Views / Drake ~ 1,040,000 '
23. Feels like Home / Norah Jones ~ 1,022,000 '
24. Tha Carter III / Lil Wayne ~ 1,006,000 '