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The best-selling K-pop albums showcase the popularity of the artist and the music that they make. K-pop albums are an essential part of the South Korean music industry. It doesn’t just contain a CD like most albums do but include a variety of goodies and photocards of the artist, making it a collectible item for the fans.
Two charts calculate album sales: Hanteo and Gaon. Gaon calculates album sales based on shipment estimates rather than real-time sales, and these numbers are used for the calculations of South Korean year-end award shows.
Gaon's top 10 list of best-selling K-pop albums
10) Attacca
According to Gaon charts, SEVENTEEN’s 2021 EP Attacca has over 2.1 million sales. Attacca is not only one of the best-selling K-pop albums on Gaon but is also the group’s fifth million-selling album in a row and is also their highest-selling album.
9) Hot Sauce
According to Gaon, NCT Dream’s album Hot Sauce, released in 2021, is ninth on the list of best-selling K-pop albums. This was their first studio album and has had over 2.1 million sales overall. The album sold over 1.71 million pre-orders, setting a new pre-order record for SM Entertainment.
8) Sticker
Sticker, released in 2021, is the fourth studio album by NCT 127, a sub-unit of the group NCT. The album has had over 2.4 million sales, making it eighth on the list of best-selling K-pop albums in history. Sticker is also the group’s best-performing album saleswise.
7) Love Yourself: Her
BTS’ fifth EP was released in 2017, titled Love Yourself: Her and is seventh on Gaon’s list of best-selling K-pop albums and has over 2.8 million sales. Seven is a very sentimental number for both BTS and ARMYs; it is very serendipitous that their global-breakthrough album is ranked number seven.
6) Love Yourself: Tear
The second album from BTS’ Love Yourself trilogy, Love Yourself: Tear, has sold over 2.9 albums. Released in 2018, the studio album is sixth on Gaon’s best-selling K-pop albums list.
It was the first album to receive a certified million-seller certificate from the Korean Music Content Association. Gaon Music Chart launched the certification.
5) Butter
Butter is BTS’ CD single, containing their two global-hit English singles, Butter and Permission to Dance. The CD was released in 2021 and, despite not being an entire album, has sold over 3 million copies, showcasing the group's popularity and selling power.
4) Love Yourself: Answer
BTS’ repackage album Love Yourself: Answer is the third and final album from their Love Yourself series. Released in 2018, the album has sold over 3.2 million copies.
The album also broke the record for the most monthly sales in the history of Gaon Charts. The predecessor album previously held the record Love Yourself: Tear.
3) BE
Released in 2020, BTS’ album BE has sold over 3.7 million copies, making it third on the list of best-selling K-pop albums. The album was created based on BTS’ experience during the pandemic, and it was promoted as a BTS-curated album where all the members took part in each and everything involved in making the album.
It sold over 2.2 million copies, according to Gaon Charts, in the first week itself.
2) Map of the Soul: Persona
Second on Gaon’s list of best-selling K-pop albums is BTS’ sixth EP, Map of the Soul: Persona. In 2019 the album had sold over 4.3 million copies and was the highest-selling album in South Korea, surpassing Kim Gun-Mo’s 1995 album Wrongful Encounter.
It debuted at number one on the Gaon Charts, and all the songs on the album debuted on the Gaon Digital Chart immediately after its release.
1) Map of the Soul: 7
Topping the list of best-selling K-pop albums is BTS’ 2020 full studio album Map of the Soul: 7. It has sold over 4.8 million copies, making it South Korea’s best-selling album in history, surpassing its predecessor, Map of the Soul: Persona, which held the record.
It is the first Korean album to sell over 4 million copies in Gaon history, giving it a Quadruple Million certification.
BTS holds the top 7 positions on Gaon’s list of best-selling K-pop albums. With the release of their anthology album, Proof, it is predicted that they will acquire the top 8 positions on the list.
