UK Vinyl Sales Highest For Over 30 Years
UK sales of vinyl LPs have hit their highest level since 1990 as the revival of the physical music market continues. Sales rose by 11.7% to 5.9 million units, increasing for the 16th year in a row, according to the British Phonographic Industry (BPI) trade group.
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Last week was a particularly strong week for the format, with more than 250,000 vinyl records were sold, the most since the turn of the century.
Taylor Swift’s 1989 (Taylor’s Version) was the best-selling LP of 2023, followed by The Rolling Stones’ latest album Hackney Diamonds. Blur also made a strong showing, with their comeback album The Ballad Of Darren the sixth biggest selling vinyl album of the year. Classic albums and reissues were also among the top performers, including Fleetwood Mac’s Rumours and Pink Floyd‘s The Dark Side of the Moon (Live At Wembley 1974).
Cassette sales also did well, topping 100,000 for a fourth consecutive year. Overall, the market for physical formats – vinyl, CDs and cassettes – will decline by just 1% this year. This is the closest it has come to stabilising since 2004, the last year to show overall growth.
“Led by vinyl, the resurgence of physical product underlines the resilience of the UK music market at a time when streaming consumption continues to hit record levels,” said Jo Twist, the chief executive of the BPI. “Whilst LP sales have now been on an upward path for the past 16 years, it is encouraging to see stabilisation in demand for CD, as well as new generations of music fans falling in love with the cassette. It is giving people more choice than ever in how they enjoy their favourite music.”
Top 10 best-selling vinyl albums 2023
1. Taylor Swift – 1989 (Taylor’s Version)
2. The Rolling Stones – Hackney Diamonds
3. Lana Del Rey – Did You Know There’s a Tunnel Under Ocean Blvd
4. Taylor Swift – Speak Now (Taylor’s Version)
5. Fleetwood Mac – Rumours
6. Blur – The Ballad of Darren
7. Pink Floyd – The Dark Side of the Moon
8. Taylor Swift – Midnights
9. Olivia Rodrigo – Guts
10. Lewis Capaldi – Broken by Desire to be Heaven Sent