Taylor Swift’s ‘1989 (Taylor’s Version)’ Breaks Modern-Era Single-Week Vinyl Sales Record

According to initial reports to data tracking firm Luminate, Taylor Swift’s 1989 (Taylor’s Version) sold over 1.1 million copies in the U.S. in its first six days of release (Oct. 27-Nov. 1). Of that sum, vinyl sales account for 580,000 – marking the largest sales week for a vinyl album since Luminate began tracking sales in 1991. Swift breaks her own modern-era vinyl sales record, set by the debut of Midnights, which sold 575,000 copies in its opening week (ending Oct. 27, 2022).

Luminate’s tracking week ends on Thursday, Nov. 2. The album’s final first-week sales number is expected to be announced on Sunday, Nov. 5, along with its assumed large debut on the multi-metric Billboard 200 albums chart (dated Nov. 11). If 1989 (Taylor’s Version) debuts atop the Billboard 200, it will mark Swift’s 13th No. 1 album, extending her record for the most among women.

The 21 songs on the streaming edition of 1989 (Taylor’s Version) collectively generated over 337 million on-demand official streams in its first six days of release. As reported on Nov. 1, the album has the biggest streaming week for any of Swift’s four re-recorded albums to date, by total streams.

In terms of total equivalent album units earned – the metric used to rank the weekly Billboard 200 chart – the album has tallied 1.35 million units (of which 1.1 million are in traditional album sales). The last album to post a bigger week, by units earned, was Midnights, which bowed with 1.578 million.

The Billboard 200 chart ranks the most popular albums of the week in the U.S. based on multi-metric consumption as measured in equivalent album units, compiled by Luminate. Units comprise album sales, track equivalent albums (TEA) and streaming equivalent albums (SEA). Each units equals one album sale, or 10 individual tracks sold from an album, or 3,750 ad-supported or 1,250 paid/subscription on-demand official audio and video streams generated by songs from an album. For all chart news, follow @billboard and @billboardcharts on both Twitter and Instagram.

PREVIOUSLY (NOV. 1): According to initial reports to Luminate, Taylor Swift’s 1989 (Taylor’s Version) has sold over 1 million copies in the U.S. through its first five days of release (Oct. 27-31). Further, it has already become the year’s top-selling album, surpassing Swift’s own 2022 release Midnights, which has sold 778,000 in 2023 through Oct. 26. Swift now has the top three selling albums of the year, as Speak Now (Taylor’s Version) is the No. 3-seller, with 742,000 sold since its release in July.

1989 (Taylor’s Version) also already owns 2023’s biggest sales week, beating out the opening frame of Swift’s Speak Now (Taylor’s Version), which launched with 507,000 sold in the week ending July 13. 1989 (Taylor’s Version) has the biggest sales week for any album since the debut frame of Swift’s Midnights, with 1.14 million sold in the week ending Oct. 27, 2022.

With 1989 (Taylor’s Version) having surpassed the million sales mark, it’s the sixth time an album from Swift has sold at least a million in a single week, following the debut weeks of Midnights, reputation, the original 1989, Red and Speak Now. She is the only act with six different albums to each sell at least 1 million copies in a single week since Luminate began electronically tracking sales in 1991.

In total, there have been 25 instances – by 23 different albums – in which an album sold at least 1 million copies in a week in the Luminate era. One of those albums, Adele’s 25, sold more than 1 million in three separate weeks.

The sales of 1989 (Taylor’s Version) are enhanced by its availability in 15 collectible physical formats: five color vinyl variants, eight CD editions and two cassette editions. Of the five vinyl variants, Target carries a color variant that includes one bonus track (“Sweeter Than Fiction”). The album is also available to buy in two digital download editions: a standard 21-song version and a deluxe 22-song version (which adds a re-recorded version of the album’s “Bad Blood,” featuring Kendrick Lamar).

Streaming Story: The 21 songs on the streaming edition of 1989 (Taylor’s Version) collectively generated over 307 million on-demand official streams in its first five days of release. That marks the biggest streaming week, by total streams, for any of Swift’s four re-recorded albums. Her previous biggest streaming sum for a re-recorded project was the opening week of Red (Taylor’s Version), which saw its collected 30 songs generate 303.23 million streams. (Swift’s biggest streaming week overall for any album is the debut frame of Midnights, with 549.26 million clicks.)

PREVIOUSLY (OCT. 30): According to initial reports to Luminate, Taylor Swift’s 1989 (Taylor’s Version) has earned more than 550,000 equivalent album units in the U.S. through its first three days of release (Oct. 27-29), of which more than 370,000 are in traditional album sales. Further, the album’s collected songs have generated more than 220 million on-demand official streams (audio and video combined).

After only three days on sale, 1989 (Taylor’s Version) has the second-largest sales week of 2023, trailing only the debut frame of Swift’s own Speak Now (Taylor’s Version), which sold 507,000 in its opening week.

In terms of total equivalent album units earned, 1989 (Taylor’s Version) already has the second largest week of the year, once again second only to Speak Now (Taylor’s Version), which bowed with 716,000 units.

PREVIOUSLY (Oct. 28): Taylor Swift’s fourth re-recorded album, 1989 (Taylor’s Version), sold over 250,000 copies in the U.S. on its first day of release, Oct. 27, according to initial reports to data tracking firm Luminate. After just one day, the album has the third-largest sales week of 2023; the only bigger weeks were registered by Swift’s own Speak Now (Taylor’s Version), with 507,000 in its opening week, and Travis Scott’s Utopia, with 252,000 in its first week.

The sales of 1989 (Taylor’s Version) will increase in the coming days, with the current tracking week ending on Thursday, Nov. 2. The album’s final first-week sales number is expected to be announced on Sunday, Nov. 5, along with its assumed large debut on the multi-metric Billboard 200 albums chart (dated Nov. 11). If 1989 (Taylor’s Version) debuts atop the Billboard 200, it will mark Swift’s 13th No. 1 album, extending her record for the most among women.

All 12 of Swift’s full-length studio albums and re-recorded projects from 2008’s Fearless, her second studio album, through 2023’s Speak Now (Taylor’s Version) have debuted at No. 1.

In addition, the songs on 1989 (Taylor’s Version) collectively generated over 110 million on-demand official audio streams on the set’s release day in the U.S., according to initial reports to Luminate.

The original 1989 album debuted atop the Billboard 200 chart dated Nov. 15, 2014, and spent 11 nonconsecutive weeks at No. 1. It is tied with Swift’s first No. 1, Fearless, for her most weeks at No. 1 with a single album. The 1989 album boasts three songs that hit No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 — the most No. 1s generated from any Swift album. She sent the tracks “Shake It Off,” “Blank Space” and “Bad Blood,” featuring Kendrick Lamar, to No. 1 in 2014-15.

1989 (Taylor’s Version) includes re-recordings of the original 1989 album’s standard 13 songs plus the three tracks on its deluxe edition. The new 1989 (Taylor’s Version) boasts five additional previously unreleased “From the Vault” songs, bringing the total number of songs on the standard version of 1989 (Taylor’s Version) to 21.

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