The numbers don’t lie, Fifty Shades of Grey, first published as fan fiction is now not only a blockbuster book and movie franchise, but also the bestselling book in the U.S. book market over the past decade, according to NPD BookScan.
The The Fifty Shades trilogy has sold close to 35 million copies in print and e-book editions over the past decade.
Other titles on the decade’s top-ten list included The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins at #4 (8.7 million copies sold), and Kathryn Sockett’s 2009 novel The Help (8.7 million) coming at #5 .
Rank Title Author Publisher Year /Unit Sales
1. Fifty Shades of Grey E. L. James Random House 2011 15.2 million
2. Fifty Shades Darker E. L. James Random House 2011 10.4 million
3. Fifty Shades Freed E. L. James Random House 2012 9.3 million
4. The Hunger Games Suzanne Collins Scholastic Books 2008 8.7 million
5. The Help Kathryn Stockett Penguin Group USA 2009 8.7 million
6. The Girl on The Train Paula Hawkins Penguin Group USA 2015 8.2 million
7. Gone Girl Gillian Flynn Random House 2012 8.1 million
8. The Fault in Our Stars John Green, Penguin Group 2012 8 million
9. The Girl with The Dragon Tattoo Stieg Larsson Random House 2008 7.9 million
10. Divergent Veronica Roth Harpercollins Publishers 2011 6.6 million
* Source: The NPD Group / NPD Bookscan, NPD PubTrack Digital, includes U.S. print book and e-book sales, 2010-2019.
Vincent Salera
Founder @ World's Best Story™ amplifier of creativity & fun!
