Taylor Swift’s The Life of a Showgirl has officially set a new benchmark in music history, breaking Adele’s long-standing record for the biggest first-week
numbers ever for an album. According to Billboard, in just five days, Swift’s latest release racked up over 3.5 million equivalent album units across sales and streaming — surpassing the 3.482 million that Adele’s 25 achieved in its first week back in December 2015. Even more impressively, Swift reached this milestone with two days still left in the chart week, meaning her final tally could climb even higher. While Adele still narrowly holds the record for pure album sales — 25 sold 3.378 million copies in its first week — Swift is rapidly closing in, with Showgirl already moving 3.2 million copies in five days. Much of the album’s massive momentum stems from a mix of pre-orders and Swift’s savvy rollout strategy. Throughout the week, she released multiple CD and digital variants featuring exclusive acoustic bonus tracks, including a 24-hour digital version sold exclusively through her webstore. Also Read: Does Travis Kelce Feel 'Cocky' About Taylor Swift's Song Wood About Him? NFL Star Says 'I Love That Girl So...' This achievement doesn’t just eclipse Adele’s decade-long record — it also smashes Swift’s own personal best. Her previous high was 2.61 million units for The Tortured Poets Department in 2024, a figure Showgirl has already outperformed by a staggering 600,000 units. Industry watchers now speculate whether Showgirl could even hit the 4 million mark by week’s end, a number once thought impossible in the streaming era. Either way, the record’s domination is clear: Swift has rewritten the rules of album success, becoming the first artist to top both the Billboard 200 and the box office in the same season — thanks to her concert film Taylor Swift: The Official Release Party of a Showgirl, which earned $33 million over its three-day theatrical run. In breaking Adele’s near-decade reign, Taylor Swift hasn’t just set a new record — she’s redefined what a global pop phenomenon looks like in 2025.
