In a world full of albums, only 26 have ever sold a million or more U.S. copies in a single week — and only one has ever done so more than once, much less three times total.
At least, that’s what can be gathered since Luminate began electronically counting music sales in 1991, back when the data tracking company was known as SoundScan. Luminate’s sales, streaming and airplay measurements are what power Billboard‘s weekly charts to this day, including the foremost album ranking in the country, the Billboard 200.
But which artists are part of the elite few who’ve accomplished this elusive feat? Spoiler alert: Taylor Swift, the record-setting album sales queen herself, is featured quite heavily on this list, as are a handful of famous boy bands (and yes, that does include a certain British quartet whose record for most No. 1 albums of all time is still unbeaten more than 50 years after breaking up). Plus, look out for Whitney Houston’s contribution (hint: it’s the bestselling movie soundtrack of all time) as well the sole strictly country artist to ever push a mil in a week (another hint: he’s got friends in low places).
Only one person, however, has plowed past one million copies more than once with the same project — Adele, whose 25, album of the year winner at the 2017 Grammys, will only ever be matched if another record someday sells more than a million weekly copies not just twice, but three separate times (you may not want to hold your breath on that).
With that in mind, keep reading to see all 26 times an artist has sold 1 million or more album copies in a week below (listed in ascending order based on weekly sales).
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Lil Wayne, ‘Tha Carter III’
Chart Date: 6/28/2008
Copies Sold: 1,006,000 -
Norah Jones, ‘Feels Like Home’
Chart Date: 2/28/2004
Copies Sold: 1,022,000 -
Taylor Swift, ‘Speak Now’
Chart Date: 11/13/2010
Copies Sold: 1,047,000 -
Limp Bizkit, ‘Chocolate Starfish And The Hot Dog Flavored Water’
Chart Date: 11/4/2000
Copies Sold: 1,055,000 -
Whitney Houston, ‘The Bodyguard’
Chart Date: 1/9/1993
Copies Sold: 1,061,000 -
Garth Brooks, ‘Double Live’
Chart Date: 12/5/1998
Copies Sold: 1,085,000 -
Usher, ‘Confessions’
Chart Date: 4/10/2004
Copies Sold: 1,096,000 -
Lady Gaga, ‘Born This Way’
Chart Date: 6/11/2011
Copies Sold: 1,108,000 -
Adele, ’25’ (Second Time Over a Million)
Chart Date: 12/19/2015
Billboard 200 Rank That Week: No. 1
Copies Sold: 1,112,000 -
Backstreet Boys, ‘Millennium’
Chart Date: 6/5/1999
Copies Sold: 1,134,000 -
Taylor Swift, ‘Midnights’
Chart Date: 11/5/2022
Copies Sold: 1,140,000 -
50 Cent, ‘The Massacre’
Chart Date: 3/19/2005
Copies Sold: 1,141,000 -
Adele, ’25’ (Third Time Over a Million)
Chart Date: 1/9/2016
Billboard 200 Rank That Week: No. 1
Copies Sold: 1,158,000 -
Taylor Swift, ‘Red’
Chart Date: 11/10/2012
Copies Sold: 1,208,000 -
Taylor Swift, ‘Reputation’
Chart Date: 12/2/2017
Copies Sold: 1,216,000 -
The Beatles, ‘1’
Chart Date: 1/6/2001
Copies Sold: 1,259,000 -
Taylor Swift, ‘1989’
Chart Date: 11/15/2014
Copies Sold: 1,287,000 -
Britney Spears, ‘Oops!…I Did It Again’
Chart Date: 6/3/2000
Copies Sold: 1,319,000 -
Eminem, ‘The Eminem Show’
Chart Date: 6/15/2002
Copies Sold: 1,322,000 -
Taylor Swift, ‘1989 (Taylor’s Version)’
Chart Date: 11/11/2023
Copies Sold: 1,359,000 -
Backstreet Boys, ‘Black & Blue’
Chart Date: 12/9/2000
Copies Sold: 1,591,000 -
Eminem, ‘The Marshall Mathers LP’
Chart Date: 6/10/2000
Copies Sold: 1,760,000 -
*NSYNC, ‘Celebrity’
Chart Date: 8/11/2001
Copies Sold: 1,878,000 -
*NSYNC, ‘No Strings Attached’
Chart Date: 4/8/2000
Copies Sold: 2,416,000 -
Taylor Swift, ‘The Tortured Poets Department’
Chart Date: 5/4/2024
Copies Sold: 2,610,000 -
Adele, ’25’ (First Week)
Chart Date: 12/12/2015
Copies Sold: 3,378,000
