2022 will have been the seventeenth consecutive year of growth for sales of 33 rpm vinyl records in the United States. More specifically, 43.5 million vinyls were sold in 2022, more than 48 times more than in 2006, the year that marked the return of this format.
.5% of album consumption is vinyl
As a reminder, vinyl began its career in the mid-1940s and its basic technology even dates back to the late 1800s! According to figures from the Luminate Institute (via Statista), LPs account for 43% of album sales in the United States in 2022. However, taking into account the figures for streaming singles and direct purchases, this proportion drops to 5% album consumption equivalence.
Records even without a turntable
Although the impact of vinyl is still negligible on the music market, its growth still commands respect given its age. To return to the meager progress observed in 2022, the Luminate report points to too low a production capacity. Another interesting piece of information, only 50% of record buyers own a turntable, showing the purely collector aspect of the format.
