UK recorded music and vinyl markets grow again in 2025
The BPI has revealed the UK‘s recorded music market has grown for the 11th consecutive year in 2025.
The growth in success, both at home and internationally, has been helped by a new batch of British artists who have broken through into the mainstream in 2025, such as Olivia Dean and Lola Young, according to the BPI.
As a result, overall recorded music consumption across sales and streams has jumped by 4.9 per cent over the past 12 months to a new high of 210.3 million albums in sales or equivalent streams.
For an 18th consecutive year, the vinyl sector also has reason to celebrate, as it has continued to surge. Due to the growing popularity of vinyl, the recorded music on physical formats market, which also includes CDs and cassettes, has grown by 1.4%, marking a second year of growth for the once-dead sector.
Throughout 2025, 27 different British albums topped the UK Album Chart, including Wet Leg’s Moisturizer, and Olivia Dean also became the first female artist in history to occupy number one in the UK Album Chart and UK Singles Chart in the same week.
However, while homegrown artists have given the BPI something to cheer about, it was Taylor Swift who secured the biggest-selling album of the year with The Life of a Showgirl. She also topped the 2024 sales with The Tortured Poets Department, and has become the first artist to achieve this feat in back-to-back years since ABBA in the 1970s.
Similarly, on the singles front, American singer-songwriter Alex Warren led the way with the biggest-selling single of 2025 with ‘Ordinary’.
Dr Jo Twist OBE, BPI CEO, said of the new report: “2025 saw UK talent break through domestically and globally, an impressive feat given more acts than ever are vying for audience attention. New British talent are now chart-topping sensations at home and are making their presence felt in key markets around the world.”
Twist continued, “This is testament to the diverse, exceptional talent that exists throughout the UK, and to the vital role labels play in supporting artists to long-term success.”
She concluded, “This impact should be a powerful reminder that British music is a global headline act, and one of the crown jewels of the UK’s creative industries. Ensuring its success should be high on the Government’s agenda in 2026.”
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