CD sales have surged unexpectedly in 2026, with the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) reporting a sharp increase despite the format having declined the previous year. The rebound highlights the continued strength of physical media in an era dominated by streaming, suggesting collectors and younger listeners are driving demand even as playback habits shift elsewhere.

The RIAA found that 17.5 million CDs were sold in the first half of 2026, up 45.7% from 12 million in the same period of 2025, with revenue climbing 58.6% to $171.1 million — a striking reversal after sales had fallen 22% between 2024 and 2025. Research firm Luminate corroborated the trend with a similar figure of 16.3 million units sold, attributing much of the growth to special-edition releases from K-pop acts such as BTS, with roughly half of buyers treating CDs as collectibles rather than something to actually play. Vinyl sales also rose nearly 21% to 26.5 million units, and "other physical" formats (including cassettes and DVDs) jumped over 73% to 1.6 million units, though streaming still dominates overall, growing 4.7% to $4.9 billion in revenue.