List of best-selling female music artists

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Madonna is recognized by Guinness World Records as the "Best-selling female recording artist of all time".

The following is a list of the world's best-selling female music artists of all time. The criteria for inclusion are women whose claimed record sales have at least reached 75 million or more of their musical productions. Artists are listed in order of the number of records sold alongside available cross-referenced music recording certifications; the highest being for claims of at least 335 million records, and the lowest for claims of 75 million records.

Since there is no official entity that certifies sales in their totality;[1] the artists' sales figure must have been published by a reliable source (news organizations and highly regarded music industry-related organization) such as Billboard, Rolling Stone, MTV, and VH1.

Madonna is believed to have sold the most records among any female music artists in history, with 335 million records sold worldwide,[2][3] recognized by the Guinness World Records and other major media outlets while the best-selling Latin artist of all time is Shakira with more than 80 million records sold.[4]

Female artists by reputed sales[edit]

300 million or more records sold[edit]

Artist Country of origin Period of activity Genre(s) Estimated sales
Madonna  United States 1982–present Pop / dance / electronic 335 million[2][3]

200 million to 299 million records[edit]

Artist Country of origin Period of activity Genre(s) Estimated sales
Rihanna  Barbados 2005–present Pop / R&B / Dance[5] 250 million[6]
Mariah Carey  United States 1990–present R&B / Pop[7] 220 million[8]
Taylor Swift  United States 2006–present Pop / Country / Folk[9] 200 million[10]
Beyoncé  United States 1997–present R&B / pop / dance 200 million[11][12]
Whitney Houston  United States 1984–2012 R&B / Pop / Soul[13] 200 million[14]
Céline Dion  Canada 1981–present Pop rock[15] 200 million[16]

100 million to 199 million records[edit]

Artist Country of origin Period of activity Genre(s) Estimated sales
Barbra Streisand  United States 1962–present Pop / adult contemporary 150 million[17]
Britney Spears  United States 1998–present Pop / dance / electronic 149 million[18]
Katy Perry  United States 2001–present Pop 143 million[19]
Shirley Bassey  United Kingdom 1953–present Pop 140 million[20]
P!nk  United States 2000–present Pop / pop rock / R&B 135 million[21]
Lady Gaga  United States 2008–present Pop / dance / electronic / jazz / pop rock 124 million[22]
Adele  United Kingdom 2008–present Pop / soul 120 million[23]
Christina Aguilera  United States 1999–present R&B / pop / rock 100 million[24]
Cher  United States 1965–present Pop / rock / dance / folk 100 million[25]
Janet Jackson  United States 1982–present R&B / pop 100 million[26]
Nicki Minaj  Trinidad and Tobago 2004–present Hip-hop / pop 100 million[27]
Olivia Newton-John  Australia 1966–2022 Pop 100 million[28]
Dolly Parton  United States 1959–present Country 100 million[29]
Linda Ronstadt  United States 1967–present Rock / folk / country 100 million[30]
Diana Ross  United States 1970–present R&B / Pop 100 million[31]
Donna Summer  United States 1968–2012 Disco / R&B / Pop 100 million[32]
Tina Turner  United States 1964–2020 Rock / Pop 100 million[33]
Shania Twain  Canada 1993–present Country Pop 100 million[34]
Dionne Warwick  United States 1962–present R&B / Soul 100 million[35]

75 million to 99 million records[edit]

Artist Country of origin Period of activity Genre(s) Estimated sales
Alicia Keys  United States 2001–present Hip-hop / R&B / pop 90 million[36]
Avril Lavigne  Canada 2002–present Pop punk / Pop rock 90 million[37]
Reba McEntire  United States 1976–present Country/Gospel 90 million[38]
Ariana Grande  United States 2011–present Pop/R&B 85 million[39]
Enya  Ireland 1987–present New-age / Celtic 80 million[40]
Ayumi Hamasaki  Japan 1998–present J-pop / pop / dance 80 million[41]
Kylie Minogue  Australia 1987–present Disco-pop 80 million[42]
Shakira  Colombia 1991–present Latin pop 80 million[43]
Miley Cyrus  United States 2007–present Pop 75 million[44]
Gloria Estefan  Cuba 1977–present Latin Pop / pop rock 75 million[45]
Aretha Franklin  United States 1956–2018 Soul/R&B 75 million[46]
Carole King  United States 1958–present Pop/soft-rock 75 million[47]
Jennifer Lopez  United States 1999–present Dance Pop 75 million[48]
Alanis Morissette  Canada 1991–present Alternative rock 75 million[49]

See also[edit]

References[edit]

  1. ^ "ABOUT". 2012-01-04. Archived from the original on 2012-01-04. Retrieved 2021-09-27.
  2. ^ a b "Best-selling female recording artist". Guinness World Records. Retrieved 2022-02-19.
  3. ^ a b "Madonna at 60: The Queen of Pop in seven charts". BBC News. 2018-08-15. Retrieved 2021-09-27.
  4. ^ Lopez, Julyssa (2021-12-21). "'500 Greatest Albums' Podcast: How Shakira Reshaped Latin Pop". Rolling Stone. Retrieved 2022-06-10.
  5. ^ "Rihanna Biography, Songs, & Albums". AllMusic. Retrieved 2022-02-19.
  6. ^ "Rihanna appointed as ambassador by Barbados". BBC News. 2018-09-22. Retrieved 2021-09-27.
  7. ^ "Mariah Carey Biography, Songs, & Albums". AllMusic. Retrieved 2022-02-19.
  8. ^ Sullivan, Coleen (2017-11-01). "Mariah Carey gets hand and footprints cemented in Hollywood history". ABC7 Los Angeles. Retrieved 2022-02-19.
  9. ^ "Taylor Swift Albums and Discography". AllMusic. Retrieved 2022-02-19.
  10. ^ "In re-recording her back catalogue, Taylor Swift is feeling the fear – and doing it anyway". independent. Retrieved 2021-09-27.
  11. ^ "Beyoncé's Style Evolution: See Photos". Billboard. June 24, 2022. Retrieved September 11, 2022.
  12. ^ "Protester Follows Beyoncé On Tour, Claims She's Possessed By Demons". CBS. August 29, 2013. Retrieved September 11, 2022.
  13. ^ "Whitney Houston Biography, Songs, & Albums". AllMusic. Retrieved 2022-02-20.
  14. ^ "It's not right but it's okay: New 'Whitney Houston tour' announced". Sky News. Retrieved 2021-09-27.
  15. ^ "Céline Dion Biography, Songs, & Albums". AllMusic. Retrieved 2022-02-19.
  16. ^ Southern, Keiran (May 21, 2019). "Celine Dion and James Corden recreate famous Titanic scene for Carpool Karaoke". Irish Independent. Retrieved May 21, 2019.
  17. ^ "Eden Park CEO hints Barbra Streisand may be next after Six60 to play at Auckland stadium". NZ Herald. Retrieved 2021-09-27.
  18. ^ Aniftos, Rania (2017-04-05). "Britney Spears to Receive First-Ever Icon Award at 2017 Radio Disney Music Awards". Billboard. Retrieved 2022-02-19.
  19. ^ Journal Staff. "Katy Perry coming to Mohegan Sun in September". providencejournal.com. Retrieved 2021-09-27.
  20. ^ Dailyrecord.co.uk (2020-08-06). "Shirley Bassey signs new record deal for her 'final album' dedicated to fans". Daily Record. Retrieved 2022-10-25.
  21. ^ Billboard Staff (2019-09-18). "P!nk to Receive the Legend of Live Award at the 2019 Billboard Live Music Summit". Billboard. Retrieved 2022-02-20.
  22. ^ Kelton, Sam (2014-02-20). "Lady Gaga, Robbie Williams snub SA". The Advertiser. Retrieved 2021-09-27.
  23. ^ "One of the world's best tribute acts talks about 'being Adele' ahead of her Weymouth show". Dorset Echo. Retrieved 2021-09-27.
  24. ^ Will Lavin (9 March 2020). "Eminem vs. Everyone: A Comprehensive List of Slim Shady's Lyrical Feuds". NME. Retrieved 3 July 2022.
  25. ^ Jones, Chris. "Believe: 'The Cher Show' to premiere in Chicago". chicagotribune.com. Retrieved 2021-09-27.
  26. ^ Levine, Nick. "Why Janet Jackson is pop's most underrated legend". www.bbc.com. Retrieved 2021-09-27.
  27. ^ "Rapper Nicki Minaj's father killed in hit-and-run". NZ Herald. Retrieved 2021-09-27.
  28. ^ "Olivia Newton-John displays movie memorabilia in Newbridge". RTE. 2019-07-23.
  29. ^ Menconi, David (2019-08-31). "20 Insanely Great Dolly Parton Songs Only Hardcore Fans Know". Rolling Stone. Retrieved 2022-02-20.
  30. ^ "Linda Ronstadt receives White House honour". BBC News. 2014-07-29. Retrieved 2021-09-27.
  31. ^ "The Evolution of Diana Ross". BET. Retrieved 2022-02-20.
  32. ^ "14 of the best sunshine-filled songs that scream Summer". independent. Retrieved 2021-09-27.
  33. ^ "Tina Turner marries her partner in Switzerland". BBC News. 18 July 2013. Archived from the original on 2017-10-24. Retrieved 2021-09-27.
  34. ^ "Shania Twain to fans at the Q: 'Honey, I'm Home' (concert review)". AP NEWS. 2021-08-15. Retrieved 2021-09-27.
  35. ^ "Dionne Warwick - Kennedy Center". kennedy-center.org. Retrieved 2022-02-20.
  36. ^ "'Big Sky' uses twin ploy; Alicia Keys has her life exposed". KGET 17. 2021-09-29. Retrieved 2022-02-19.
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  40. ^ English, Eoin (2016-11-23). "Hark! The herald Enya sings in historic Cork chapel". Irish Examiner. Retrieved 2022-02-20.
  41. ^ "【オリコン】浜崎あゆみ、ソロ初の総売上5000万枚超え「ファンのみんなの記録」". ORICON NEWS. Retrieved 2021-09-27.
  42. ^ February 01, Ernest Macias; EST, 2018 at 03:20 PM. "The Catch-Up: Your guide to Kylie Minogue's disco-pop music career". EW.com. Retrieved 2022-02-20.
  43. ^ "QUIZ: Are you more Jennifer Lopez or Shakira?". FOX TV Digital Team. 2020-01-31. Retrieved 2021-09-27.
  44. ^ "Seven child music stars who made it big". BBC Bring The Noise. Retrieved 2022-02-20.
  45. ^ Horn, Xian. "Gloria Estefan: Music's Most Down-To-Earth 'Diva'". Forbes. Retrieved 2022-04-06.
  46. ^ "Aretha Franklin, 'Queen of Soul,' gravely ill: report". DW.COM. 2018-08-13. Retrieved 2021-09-27.
  47. ^ Alexander, Kevin (2022-02-09). "Carole King". The Riff. Retrieved 2022-02-20.
  48. ^ "Global Icon Jennifer Lopez to Perform at the BBMAs". Billboard Music Awards. 2018-05-09. Retrieved 2022-02-20.
  49. ^ Steinberg, Jessica. "Alanis Morissette returns to Israeli stage this summer". www.timesofisrael.com. Retrieved 2022-02-20.
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