Nirvana‘s genre-defining 1991 landmark album “Nevermind” appears to have racked up an impressive feat. Chartmasters report that “Nevermind” recently overtook AC/DC‘s 1980 hard rock classic “Back In Black” to become the sixth best-selling album of all time. Combining data from physical and digital sales, as well as streaming data, Chartmasters put “Nevermind” at a total of 66,838,000 equivalent album sales units. “Back In Black” currently sits at 66,834,000 EAS per Chartmasters.
The RIAA, who oversee the certification of diamond, platinum and gold sales certifications in the United States, have “Back In Black” sitting at 27x platinum, while “Nevermind” stands at 13x platinum. The 13x certification of “Nevermind” was handed down in December of 2024, while the 24x platinum status for “Back In Black” was awarded in August of 2024.
