Highlights
- BTS’ Arirang achieved 9.78M equivalent album units in under two months, says ChartMaster data.
- The album posted huge sales and streaming numbers, including 110M Spotify streams on day one and 4.2M physical sales in Korea.
- Arirang blends Korean cultural roots with global pop appeal, helping make it a historic K-pop release.
By the time most albums begin to lose their commercial momentum, BTS Arirang still happens to be lapping the competition. As per latest ChartMasters data, the group’s comeback album has amassed a remarkable 9.78 million equivalent album units (EAS). The figure is high enough to overshadow every other release ranked by ChartMasters.
The number breakdown is quite telling. When Arirang was released on March 20, the market responded by high-end album streaming on various platforms. ChartMasters data pointed out that the album currently logs more than 5.35M studio album equivalents and 4.17M streams, which signals of sustaining a staggering average of 75,830 streams daily.
Arirang Dominates Global Rankings
Following BTS is BLACKPINK, who is placed second owing to their DEADLINE success. The album sits at 3.25M total EAS. Mandopop icon Jay Chou's Children of the Sun holds the third place with 3.19M, powered mostly by LP equivalent streams with virtually limited singles activity. Rounding off the best performing albums of 2026 as of now includes another K-pop icon which recently underwent a lineup revision; and that group is ENHYPEN, whose The Sin: Vanish finished at 2.76M EAS.
ChartMaster
BTS Shatters Sales & Streaming Records
The margin of separation is not just numerical, but in fact, historical. In its debut week alone, Arirang earned 641,000 album-equivalent units in the United States. According to the Billboard, the outcome resulted in the largest opening week by a group since they began calculating units in its current form. The album additionally drew 110M Spotify streams on its first day and sold about 4.2M physical copies in South Korea in a seven-day period.
Arirang Blends Korean Roots with Global Appeal
Named after a 600-year-old Korean folk song that is tied to longing, sorrow, and resilience, Arirang positions itself alongside BTS' modern global ambitions and their deepest cultural roots, and this duality appears to have resonated universally. Nearly two months on, the numbers are not merely impressive. They're iconic.
