List of best-selling albums in Australia
This is a list of best-selling albums in Australia that have been certified by the Australian Recording Industry Association (ARIA). Since the 1970s, ARIA certified an album platinum for a shipment of 50,000 copies across Australia. In 1983, the number of copies required for a platinum album was raised to 70,000 copies.[1] All albums in this list released after 1982 must have won at least ten ARIA Platinum Awards (700,000 copies) or fourteen awards (700,000 copies) if released before 1983. This list is primarily based on the ARIA database, so it does not include some of the albums which were best-sellers before ARIA began tracking records.
According to ARIA certifications, Bat Out of Hell by Meat Loaf is the best-selling album of all time in Australia, with twenty-five times platinum; Whispering Jack by John Farnham is the second-best-selling album and best-selling album for any local artist, with twenty-four times platinum; and Shania Twain's Come On Over holds record for the best-selling album by a female solo artist, with twenty-five times platinum. Gold: Greatest Hits by ABBA is the best-selling compilation album ever, while Madonna's The Immaculate Collection is the best-selling compilation album in solo artist category. All of these records (except for the second-best-selling album of all time) are held by foreign artists. The highest-selling album by an Australian female solo artist is Delta Goodrem's debut Innocent Eyes, with fifteen times platinum.
Gold and Platinum certification awards (Timeline)
Albums
Certification | Until 1983[2] | Since 1983[1][3] | Since 2015[4] |
---|---|---|---|
Gold | 20,000 | 35,000 | no change |
Platinum | 50,000 | 70,000 | no change |
Diamond | – | – | 500,000 |
Best-selling albums in Australia
Listing is sorted by certified sales and by release year.
No. | Year | Album | Artist | Nationality | Award | Sales | Source |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | 1977 | Bat Out of Hell | Meat Loaf | US | 26× Platinum | 1,820,000 | [5] |
2 | 1997 | Come On Over | Shania Twain | Canada | 25× Platinum | 1,750,000 | [5] |
3 | 1986 | Whispering Jack | John Farnham | Australia | 24× Platinum | 1,680,000 | [6] |
4 | 1992 2014 | Gold: Greatest Hits Gold: Greatest Hits (40th Anniversary Edition) | ABBA | Sweden | 17× Platinum 1× Platinum | 1,260,000 | [7][8] [7] |
2002 | The Eminem Show | Eminem | US | 18× Platinum | [9] | ||
6 | 1982 | Thriller | Michael Jackson | US | 17× Platinum | 1,190,000 | [10] |
1985 | Brothers in Arms | Dire Straits | UK | [11] | |||
2011 | 21 | Adele | UK | [8] | |||
9 | 1975 | The Best of ABBA | ABBA | Sweden | 22× Platinum | 1,100,000 | [12] |
10 | 1981 | Greatest Hits | Queen | UK | 15× Platinum | 1,050,000 | [7] |
2003 | Innocent Eyes | Delta Goodrem | Australia | [13] | |||
12 | 1995 | Jagged Little Pill | Alanis Morissette | Canada | 14× Platinum | 1,035,000 | [14][15] |
13 | 2011 | Christmas | Michael Bublé | Canada | 2× Diamond | 1,000,000 | [16] |
15 | 1973 | The Dark Side of the Moon | Pink Floyd | UK | 14× Platinum | 980,000 | [13] |
1978 | Grease: The Original Soundtrack from the Motion Picture | Olivia Newton-John, John Travolta & Various Artists | Various | [14][17] | |||
1984 | Born in the U.S.A. | Bruce Springsteen | US | [18] | |||
1993 | So Far So Good | Bryan Adams | Canada | [5] | |||
19 | 1994 | Cross Road | Bon Jovi | US | 13× Platinum | 910,000 | [5] |
1996 | Falling into You | Celine Dion | Canada | [13] | |||
1996 | Recurring Dream − The Very Best of Crowded House | Crowded House | New Zealand / Australia | [19] | |||
1977 | Rumours | Fleetwood Mac | UK / US | [13] | |||
1991 | Metallica | Metallica | US | [18] | |||
2008 | Funhouse | Pink | US | [10] | |||
25 | 1976 | Arrival | ABBA | Sweden | 18× Platinum | 900,000 | [12] |
26 | 1980 | Back in Black | AC/DC | Australia | 12× Platinum | 840,000 | [20] |
1990 | The Immaculate Collection | Madonna | US | [21] | |||
1993 | Music Box | Mariah Carey | US | [13] | |||
1997 | Savage Garden | Savage Garden | Australia | [22] | |||
2003 | The Complete Greatest Hits | Eagles | US | [19][6] | |||
2004 | The Sound Of White | Missy Higgins | Australia | [9] | |||
2005 | Curtain Call: The Hits | Eminem | US | [23][24] | |||
2006 | I'm Not Dead | Pink | US | [10] | |||
33 | 1979 | The Wall | Pink Floyd | UK | 11× Platinum | 770,000 | [13] |
1987 | Dirty Dancing | Various Artists | US | [13] | |||
1994 | Forrest Gump | Various Artists | US | [13] | |||
2002 | Come Away with Me | Norah Jones | US | [25] | |||
2008 | Only by the Night | Kings of Leon | US | [5] | |||
2010 | Greatest Hits...So Far!!! | Pink | US | [10] | |||
2014 | 1989 | Taylor Swift | US | [10] | |||
2017 | ÷ | Ed Sheeran | UK | [5] | |||
39 | 1972 | Hot August Night | Neil Diamond | US | 14× Platinum | 700,000 | [26][27] |
1975 | ABBA | ABBA | Sweden | [12] | |||
1990 | Led Zeppelin Remasters | Led Zeppelin | UK | 10× Platinum | [28] | ||
1991 | Dangerous | Michael Jackson | US | [13] | |||
1991 | Soul Deep | Jimmy Barnes | Australia | [23] | |||
1994 | Don't Ask | Tina Arena | Australia | [13][29] | |||
1994 | Throwing Copper | Live | US | [8] | |||
1995 | Greatest Hits | Bruce Springsteen | US | [5] | |||
1996 | Yourself or Someone Like You | Matchbox Twenty | US | [30] | |||
2000 | 1 | The Beatles | UK | [11] | |||
2009 | I Dreamed a Dream | Susan Boyle | UK | [13] | |||
2015 | 25 | Adele | UK | [31] | |||
2014 | × | Ed Sheeran | UK | [18] |
See also
- Australian Recording Industry Association
- Music of Australia
- List of best-selling singles in Australia
- List of best-selling albums by country
References
- ^ a b "ARIA Accreditations". Australian Recording Industry Association. Retrieved 6 February 2010.
- ^ Glenn A Baker (12 June 1982). "Riding an International Wave". Billboard. Nielsen Business Media, Inc. p. 54, Australia New Zealand insert p. 2 (A/NZ2). ISSN 0006-2510.
- ^ Glenn A Baker (15 November 1986). "Pacing the Majors: Labels Try to Balance Pluses and Minuses in Year of Transition". Billboard. Nielsen Business Media, Inc. p. 60, Australia insert p. 6. Retrieved 11 February 2024.
- ^ Ryan, Gavin (28 November 2015). "ARIA Albums: Adele '25' Debuts at No 1 in Australia". noise1.com. Retrieved 20 January 2017.
- ^ a b c d e f g "ARIA Charts – Accreditations – 2022 Albums" (PDF). Australian Recording Industry Association. Retrieved 5 December 2022.
- ^ a b "ARIA Charts – Accreditations – 2006 Albums" (PDF). Australian Recording Industry Association. Retrieved 22 October 2021.
- ^ a b c "ARIA Charts – Accreditations – 2014 Albums" (PDF). Australian Recording Industry Association. Retrieved 23 December 2019.
- ^ a b c "ARIA Charts – Accreditations – 2019 Albums" (PDF). Australian Recording Industry Association. Retrieved 23 October 2021.
- ^ a b "ARIA Charts – Accreditations – 2024 Albums" (PDF). Australian Recording Industry Association. Retrieved 28 June 2024.
- ^ a b c d e "ARIA Charts – Accreditations – 2023 Albums" (PDF). Australian Recording Industry Association. Retrieved 3 May 2023.
- ^ a b "ARIA Charts – Accreditations – 2009 Albums" (PDF). Australian Recording Industry Association. Retrieved 23 October 2021.
- ^ a b c Glen Baker (8 November 1979). "Billboard Magazine Volume 91, No. 36". Billboard. Nielsen Business Media, Inc. ISSN 0006-2510. Retrieved 11 December 2010.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k <"ARIA Charts – Accreditations – 2011 Albums" (PDF). Australian Recording Industry Association. Retrieved 23 October 2021.
- ^ a b "ARIA Charts – Accreditations – 1998 Albums" (PDF). Australian Recording Industry Association. Retrieved 23 October 2021.
- ^ "ARIA Charts media release 7 November 2015" (PDF). ARIA. Retrieved 20 January 2017.
- ^ "ARIA End of Year Album Chart 2016". Australian Recording Industry Association. Retrieved 20 January 2017.
- ^ "ARIA Catalogue Albums Chart – 03/12/2012". Australian Recording Industry Association. 12 March 2012. Archived from the original on 4 December 2012. Retrieved 12 March 2012.
- ^ a b c "ARIA Charts – Accreditations – 2021" (PDF). Australian Recording Industry Association. Retrieved 6 February 2022.
- ^ a b "ARIA Charts – Accreditations – 2010 Albums" (PDF). Australian Recording Industry Association. Retrieved 23 October 2021.
- ^ "ARIA Charts – Accreditations – 2013 Albums" (PDF). Australian Recording Industry Association. Retrieved 23 October 2021.
- ^ "ARIA Catalogue Albums Chart". Australian Recording Industry Association. Archived from the original on 6 October 2012. Retrieved 6 October 2012.
- ^ "ARIA Charts – Accreditations – 2001 Albums" (PDF). Australian Recording Industry Association. Retrieved 23 October 2021.
- ^ a b "ARIA Charts – Accreditations – 2020 Albums" (PDF). Australian Recording Industry Association. Retrieved 23 October 2021.
- ^ "Eminem – "Curtain Call" Certified 12xPlatinum in Australia | Eminem.Pro - the biggest and most trusted source of Eminem". 6 September 2020.
- ^ "ARIA Charts – Accreditations – 2012 Albums" (PDF). Australian Recording Industry Association. Retrieved 23 October 2021.
- ^ Position 21, 138th week: Hot August Night - Neil Diamond, 14 x Platinum "ARIA Albums Chart". 24 November 1991.
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(help) - ^ Position 41, 145th week: Hot August Night - Neil Diamond, 14 x Platinum "ARIA Album Chart". 12 January 1992.
- ^ "ARIA Charts – Accreditations – 2007 Albums" (PDF). Australian Recording Industry Association. Retrieved 23 October 2021.
- ^ "The all-time more than 500,000 sellers, according to ARIA accreditations". The Sydney Morning Herald. Fairfax Media. 12 July 2007. Retrieved 10 August 2009.
- ^ "ARIA Australian Top 20 Catalogue Albums | Australia's Official Top 20 Catalogue Records - ARIA Charts". www.ariacharts.com.au. Archived from the original on 12 September 2012.
- ^ "ARIA Charts – Accreditations – 2017 Albums" (PDF). Australian Recording Industry Association. Retrieved 23 October 2021.
External links
- ARIA Home Page
- v
- t
- e
- Albums
- Singles
- Chart achievements and milestones
- Go-Set Top 40 (1966–74)
- Kent Music Report (1974–98; 1940–2007 retrospect)
- The Rock Across Australia
- Triple J Hottest 100