Tim McGraw has sold 40 million units across his career.
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The best-selling musicians of all time include Taylor Swift, Tim McGraw, and Whitney Houston.
RIAA ranked the best-selling musicians of all time based on total album units sold in the US.
Swift, Drake, and Eminem are among the newest artists to make the cut.
You might feel like Taylor Swift is the biggest musician of all time thanks to the number of albums she’s recorded, the tickets she’s sold, and the headlines she’s generated. But in actuality, she hasn’t cracked the top 25.
Business Insider turned to the Recording Industry Association of America’s (RIAA) list to find out who tops the list of best-selling musicians of all time. The list is based on total certified album units sold in the US and includes streaming figures.
Artists from multiple different genres — pop, country, instrumental jazz, rap, metal — have earned their spots on this list.
Keep scrolling to see the 50 best-selling music artists of all time in the US by album sales.
This post has been updated with the most recent data from RIAA. John Lynch, Travis Clark, and Will Gendron contributed to a previous version of this post.
50. Def Leppard — 35.5 million units
Timothée Chalamet is going to play Dylan in the upcoming biopic “A Complete Unknown.”
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48. Tupac Shakur — 36.5 million
The Backstreet Boys’ 2019 album “DNA” was their third No. 1 album.
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46. Rod Stewart — 38 million units
Foreigner’s best-known song is “I Want to Know What Love Is.”
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44. Simon & Garfunkel — 38.5 million units
Some of Spears’ No. 1 albums include “…Baby One More Time,” “Oops! I Did It Again,” “Britney,” “Circus,” and “Femme Fatale.”
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42. Chicago — 40 million units
Almost all of McGraw’s albums have topped the country charts.
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40. Eric Clapton — 40 million units
McEntire released her 32nd album, “Not That Fancy,” in 2023.
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38. Bon Jovi — 41 million units
Rami Malek won an Oscar for portraying Queen front man Freddie Mercury in the film “Bohemian Rhapsody.”
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36. Santana — 43.5 million units
Guns N’ Roses’ debut album, 1987’s “Appetite for Destruction,” peaked at No. 1.
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34. Bob Seger & the Silver Bullet Band — 44.5 million units
Jackson’s hit songs include “Don’t Rock the Jukebox,” “Chattahoochee,” and “It’s Five O’Clock Somewhere,” which he performed with Jimmy Buffett.
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32. Kenny Rogers — 47.5 million units
Drake is one of the best-selling artists of the 21st century.
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30. Shania Twain — 48 million units
Kenny G’s album “Breathless” is the best-selling instrumental album of all time.
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28. Alabama — 49 million units
Diamond’s “Sweet Caroline” is one of the most recognizable songs in music history.
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26. Taylor Swift — 51 million units
U2’s most successful albums include “The Joshua Tree,” “Rattle and Hum,” and “Achtung Baby.”
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24. Journey — 52.5 million units
Dion has released 27 albums, 10 of which have reached the top 10.
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22. Fleetwood Mac — 55.5 million units
Van Halen was hugely successful but only had one No. 1 song, “Jump,” in 1983.
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20. Whitney Houston — 61 million units
Eminem is the best-selling rapper of all time.
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18. Metallica — 63 million units
Madonna is known as the Queen of Pop.
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16. The Rolling Stones — 66.5 million units
Streisand is one of the few artists to win an EGOT.
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14. George Strait — 69.5 million units
Aerosmith retired from touring in 2024, 51 years after their debut album was released.
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12. Bruce Springsteen — 71 million units
Pink Floyd’s biggest hits include “Another Brick in the Wall, Part 2,” “Money,” and “Keep Talking.”
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10. Mariah Carey — 75 million units
John completed his EGOT in 2024 when he won an Emmy.
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8. AC/DC — 83 million units
Joel released “Turn the Lights Back On” in 2024, his first new song in 17 years.
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6. Michael Jackson — 89 million units
Led Zeppelin hasn’t released a new album since 1982’s “Coda.”
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4. Eagles — 120 million units
Presley is an iconic symbol of American pop culture.
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2. Garth Brooks — 162 million units
It’s unlikely that the Beatles will ever be surpassed in the era of streaming.
