This statistic presents unit sales data of the bestselling albums in music history as of December 2018. Ranked first is Michael Jackson's album "Thriller", which was released in 1982 and as of December 2018 sold 47.3 million copies. Second in the ranking was the group Eagles, with 41.2 million units of the 'Their Greatest Hits (1971-1975) sold.
Top-selling albums in music history as of December 2018
(in million units)
Characteristic
Sales in million units
Michael Jackson - Thriller
47.3
Eagles - Their Greatest Hits (1971-1975)
41.2
Whitney Houston/Various Artists - The Bodyguard
28.4
Fleetwood Mac - Rumours
27.9
AC/DC - Back in Black
26.1
Pink Floyd - The Dark Side of the Moon
24.2
Bee Gees/Various artists - Saturday Night Fever
21.6
Meat Loaf - Bat Out of Hell
21.5
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Wikipedia. (December 5, 2018). Top-selling albums in music history as of December 2018 (in million units) [Graph]. In Statista. Retrieved April 02, 2025, from https://www.statista.com/statistics/263487/top-selling-music-albums-in-music-history/
Wikipedia. "Top-selling albums in music history as of December 2018 (in million units)." Chart. December 5, 2018. Statista. Accessed April 02, 2025. https://www.statista.com/statistics/263487/top-selling-music-albums-in-music-history/
Wikipedia. (2018). Top-selling albums in music history as of December 2018 (in million units). Statista. Statista Inc.. Accessed: April 02, 2025. https://www.statista.com/statistics/263487/top-selling-music-albums-in-music-history/
Wikipedia. "Top-selling Albums in Music History as of December 2018 (in Million Units)." Statista, Statista Inc., 5 Dec 2018, https://www.statista.com/statistics/263487/top-selling-music-albums-in-music-history/
Wikipedia, Top-selling albums in music history as of December 2018 (in million units) Statista, https://www.statista.com/statistics/263487/top-selling-music-albums-in-music-history/ (last visited April 02, 2025)
Top-selling albums in music history as of December 2018 (in million units) [Graph], Wikipedia, December 5, 2018. [Online]. Available: https://www.statista.com/statistics/263487/top-selling-music-albums-in-music-history/
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