Report: BTS’ “BE” Wins US Album Sales Race, Debuts At #1 On Overall Chart

“BE” unsurprisingly debut at #1 in the United States, becoming the fifth career chart-topper for BTS.

According to Hits Daily Double, “BE” sold just under 181K US copies during the November 20-26 tracking period. With units from track sales and streams included, the album generated 246K in total first-week consumption.

“BE” notably received more units from track sales than it did track streams, a rarity in today’s market. Hits credits “BE” with about 39K Track Equivalent Albums (equivalent to 390,000 track sales) and 26K Streaming Equivalent Albums.

To set some context for the achievement, no other album even broke 2.4K in TEA (24,000 track sales) this week.

The numbers are slightly shy of initial estimates (215-225K sales, 265-295K total units) but still position “BE” as a dominant #1 on both fronts. The album sales total tops that of the week’s #2 seller (AC/DC’s “POWER UP” with 29K) by more than 6x, while the consumption total bests the #2 album (Megan Thee Stallion’s “Good News” with 103K) by nearly 2.5x.

From a numerical standpoint, “BE” did not rival the performance of predecessor “Map Of The Soul: 7” (347K US sales, 422K total US units). There were, however, some key differences in the release strategy. The physical version of “BE,” notably, was only available as a single $45-55 box set. “MOTS: 7,” on the other hand, was available in four separate collector’s editions (each with more traditional album pricing). “BE” also has fewer tracks, lowering its ceiling for TEA and SEA units.

Due Sunday, Billboard’s specific sales and consumption figures may differ slightly from those reported by Hits. The overall conclusion will, however, be the same. “BE” was the #1 album for both US sales and total US consumption during the November 20-26 tracking week.