CD sales are up thanks to superfans, Gen Z and affordability

CD sales are up once again, marking an unexpected resurgence in the music industry. Discover why this classic format is gaining popularity in a digital age.

by Bobby Owsinski of Music 3.0

If you thought that the death knell sounded for that round piece of plastic known as a CD, well, think again. The RIAA’s mid-year report just came out and it shows that CD sales are actually going up, while digital downloads are dropping like a rock. In fact, CDs now outsell digital albums by a factor of 3 to 1!

To be fair, CD sales are only up by 3.3%, but that still amounts to almost 17 million units at a cool $236 million in revenue to the music industry.

So I bet your question is, “Why the heck is this happening?”, followed by “Who’s buying these things?”

Unbelievably, the sales revival is being led by Gen Z buyers. In fact, 43% of all buyers are under 35 years old.

And why are they buying CDs in the first place? According to Headphonesty:

• Nostalgia and Novelty: For many Gen Zs, CDs are a physical link to a time they barely knew, creating a sense of both nostalgia and novelty.
• Artist-Driven Demand: Big releases from popular artists have made people interested in CDs again. For example, Taylor Swift’s “The Tortured Poets Department” sold 2.47 million CD copies in the first half of 2024.
• Physical Ownership: In a time when digital things can disappear, owning a physical copy of an album appeals to many music fans.
• Audio Quality: Some listeners prefer the uncompressed sound of CDs over streaming or compressed digital files.
• Affordability: Compared to vinyl, CDs are still a cheaper way to build a physical music collection.

So does that mean we’re all about to regret our collective decision to get rid of our CD collections?

For some, maybe, but I think most of us opted for the convenience over the sound quality, and many people are trying to rid themselves of “stuff” that they only use rarely. Of course the next problem is that you still need a CD player that you might have to buy. Plus, most recent autos no longer have an option for an in-dash player, which means that they’re not available in the very place where you’d like to listen to them the most.

That said, until high-resolution streaming becomes the norm, CDs are still a way better listening experience. For many music consumers, that’s plenty of reason to get back in the CD game.

Bobby Owsinski is a producer/engineer, author, blogger, podcaster, and coach. He has authored 24 books on music production, music, the music business, music AI, and social media.