U.S. Vinyl Sales Soared After September's Record Store Day

In the week after Record Store Day, vinyl sales rose 97 percent.

On September 26, the second of three Record Store Day 2020 maintained record highs for the vinyl industry. According to Nielsen Music and MRC Data, vinyl album sales at independent record stores rose 97 percent in the week after September 26. The entire vinyl industry's sales grew 44 percent.

62 percent of total vinyl sales were sold at independent record stores. There were 1.52 million physical album sales (compact disc, vinyl, etc) as a whole in the same time period. In 2020 so far, vinyl album sales represent 36 percent of all physical albums sold. Compact disc sales make up 63 percent of sales, the remaining portion is made up of cassette tapes and other niche formats.

The second Record Store Day drop included new releases from Paul McCartney, Fleetwood Mac, and Roger Waters. Alternate takes of Fleetwood Mac's Rumours album, McCartney's McCartney, and Waters' The Wall: Live in Berlin (on clear vinyl) were released this time around.

At this pace, vinyl album sales could hit new yearly highs in volume and share of the physical album market. Last year marked the 14th consecutive year that vinyl sales grew to a new yearly high. Vinyl sales represented 25.6 percent of physical album sales in 2019.

The next Record Store Day arrives October 24. Notable releases for the next drop include Chief Keef's Back From the Dead 2, Miles Davis' Double Image: Rare Miles From the Complete Bitches Brew Sessions, and The 1974 Version of Freddie Gibbs and Madlib's Piñata. Stay tuned for further updates.