What’s the Best Selling Album of 2021?

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Photo Credit: Adrian Korte

Curious to know what’s the best-selling album of 2021? Plenty of music titans dropped albums this year – here’s a peek at the numbers.

Adele’s 30 smashed opening week album sales with 839,000 album-equivalent units, according to Billboard. That debut beat Drake’s Certified Lover Boy, which hit 613,000 album units in September. Taylor Swift’s re-release of Red (Taylor’s Version) is now relegated to third place with 605,000 album units in 2021. 30 also racked up a massive 692,000 actual album sales – edging out Taylor Swift as the queen of merch.

Interestingly enough, Adele’s album sales were primarily CD, leaving Taylor Swift as the queen of vinyl. 30 sold 378,000 CDs and 108,000 vinyl copies, with digital album sales coming in at 205,000 copies sold.

Those opening week album sales are impressive, but what’s the best-selling album of 2021?

According to Hits Daily Double, Morgan Wallen’s Dangerous: The Double Album is predicted to finish 2021 as the year’s best-selling album, with a projected sales of 3.2 million. Dangerous: The Double Album currently sits at 2.8 million total sales. Adele’s 30 is poised for plenty of Black Friday deals and Christmas stocking stuffers, though.

Best-Selling Album of 2021 – As of November

1. 1. Morgan Wallen | Dangerous: The Double Album – 2,820,000 sales
   2. Olivia Rodrigo | Sour – 2,448,000 sales
   3. Drake | Certified Lover Boy – 1,516,000 sales
   4. Pop Smoke | Shoot for the Stars Aim for the Moon – 1,349,000 sales
   5. Justin Bieber | Justice – 1,306,000 sales
   6. The Kid Laroi | F*ck Love – 1,288,000 sales
   7. Dua Lipa | Future Nostalgia – 1,246,000 sales
   8. Doja Cat | Planet Her – 1,179,000 sales
   9. The Weeknd | After Hours – 1,175,000 sales
   10. Luke Combs | What You See Is What You Get – 1,135,000 sales

Morgan Wallen and Olivia Rodrigo are predicted to edge out titans like Drake, Taylor Swift, Justin Bieber, and Billie Eilish. Curious about the best-selling album of 2021 past the top ten? Check out the predictions here. Wallen’s controversy and removal from radio station airplay earlier this year certainly helped drive his album to record sales for the year.

He also enjoyed massive support from fans who bought billboards to advertise his presence during awards shows where Wallen was banned from attending.