23 Amazon Book Sales Statistics, Trends & Facts
With more and more online bookstores, such as Abebooks and Booktopia occupy the top book sales, Amazon faces unprecedented competition.
So if you’re looking for book sales stats on Amazon, keep reading this article for stats on best-selling genres, book formats, top deals, and more.
23 Amazon Book Sales Statistics, Trends & Facts
1. Top-selling book genre
According to reports, Amazon’s best-selling genre is memoir and biography, which currently holds that spot.
Below memoirs and biographies are self-help, religion and spirituality, health and fitness, and political and social science.
Amazon regularly updates its bestsellers by genre, so note that these stats may not be available for later dates.
2. Amazon ebook and paperback sales
While Amazon doesn’t release much information on e-book versus paperback sales, e-books account for only 21% of total book sales.
In this small market, Amazon accounts for 67% of e-book sales.
The most recent statistics for ebook versus hardcover sales on Amazon are from 2016, where print book sales on Amazon outnumbered ebook sales by $4.6 billion.
However, while this statistic is over 5 years old, considering that paper paperbacks/hardcovers still outsell ebooks overall, it is reasonable to conclude that Amazon still outsells paperbacks over ebooks.
3. Auditory Statistics
Amazon’s Audible is still currently the most used audiobook app ahead of Audiobooks.com and Serial Box.
While there are no sales statistics available for their audiobooks, they frequently update their bestseller lists for each genre, with romance novels currently the number one selling genre.
4. Amazon’s Most Read List
Amazon’s Most Read list ranks Andy Weir’s Hail Mary project No. 1 in fiction and Barack Obama’s The Promised Land at No. 1 in nonfiction.
5. Amazon Top Selling List
Amazon’s Bestsellers Ranks Laura Dave’s The Last Thing He Told Me No. 1 in Fiction and Matthew McConaughey (Matthew McConaughey’s Greenlights) was the No. 1 non-fiction category.
6. Kindle Bestseller
Amazon’s Amazon Kindle Bestseller is Daniel Silva’s suspense, suspense and thriller genre cellist.
The #1 free book on Amazon Kindle is Andrew Cunningham’s Lies: The Mystery Thriller Series, also in the Mystery, Mystery, and Thriller genres.
7. Audio Bestseller
Amazon’s current No. 1-selling book on Audible is the health and fitness genre, The Energy Paradox: What to Do When You Get Up and After You Get Out of Wake by Steven R. Gundry, MD.
8. Hardcover books sell the most on Amazon
The top three best-selling hardcover books are as follows:
- First Place: Political and Social Sciences
- Second: Biographies of Actors and Entertainers
- Third place: President of the United States
It should be noted that these sales statistics are updated periodically and are subject to change.
9. Amazon sells the most in paperback genre
The top three paperback book sellers are as follows:
- First: Reference Books
- Second: New Adult and College Romance
- Third: Success and Self-Help
It should be noted that these sales statistics are updated periodically and are subject to change.
10. Amazon is the best-selling children’s book
The top three best-selling children’s books are as follows:
- First: If Animals Kissed Goodnight by Ann Whitford Paul
- 2nd Place: The Very Hungry Caterpillar by Eric Carle
- Third: My First Workbook for Learning to Write by Crystal Radke
It should be noted that these sales statistics are updated periodically and are subject to change.
11. Classic Books Are Best Selling on Amazon
The top three classic book sales are as follows:
- First: JRR Tolkien’s Lord of the Rings Trilogy (Audiobook)
- Runner-up: 1984 by George Orwell
- Third Place: To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee
It should be noted that these sales statistics are updated periodically and are subject to change.
12. Literature and Fiction are the top sellers on Amazon
The top three books in the literature and fiction categories are as follows:
- 1st Place: How I Saved the World by Jesse Watters
- 2nd Place: Cellist by Daniel Silva
- Third: Project Hail Mary by Andy Weir (audiobook)
It should be noted that these sales statistics are updated periodically and are subject to change.
13. The top selling suspense thrillers
The top three books in the suspense and thriller category are as follows:
- 1st Place: The Cellist by Daniel Silva (Kindle Edition)
- Second: The Last Thing He Told Me by Laura Dave (Audiobook)
- 3rd Place: The Cellist by Daniel Silva (audiobook)
It should be noted that these sales statistics are updated periodically and are subject to change.
14. Best Sci-Fi and Fantasy Bestsellers
The top three science fiction and fantasy books are as follows:
- 1st Place: Andy Weir’s Hail Mary Project
- Second: Matt Haig’s Midnight Library
- Third place: Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone
It should be noted that these sales statistics are updated periodically and are subject to change.
15. Amazon Book Coupons and Sales
Amazon regularly updates its book coupons and promotions, and offers coupons in the following categories: Deals of the Day, Lightning Deals, Savings and Sales, and Prime Early Access Deals.
They offer discounts on books in the following price ranges: 10% off, 25% off, and 50% off or more. Currently, the most consistent book discount offer is 50% off.
16. Daily Amazon Book Discounts
Amazon changes its book discounts/sales daily in the Today’s Best Deals coupon section.
Their current top discounts are on music books, novels, activity books for kids, and story books for kids. The highest discount price is between 40-50%.
17. Audiobook CD Amazon Sale
Amazon currently has no information regarding its audiobook CD sales statistics.
However, despite Audible’s current success, they still have CD audiobooks on their bestseller lists.
18. Amazon Bestseller Collection Genre
Currently, the top three types of book sets are as follows:
- 1st Place: Magic and Fantasy
- Second: Greek and Roman Stories/Mythology for Children
- Third Place: Children’s Book About Adoption
It should be noted that these sales statistics are updated periodically and are subject to change.
19. Best-selling book publisher on Amazon
While Amazon doesn’t list the top sellers for book publishers, the companies that published the top 3 bestsellers are as follows:
- First: Threshold version
- 2nd Place: Broadside Books
- Third place: Henry Holt & Co.
It should be noted that these sales statistics are updated periodically and are subject to change.
20. Amazon Kindle best-selling author
Amazon Kindle Direct Publishing features hundreds of bestselling authors. The current top-ranked Amazon Kindle authors are as follows:
First place: LJ Ross
- The author has sold more than 4.5 million copies of her 19 novels through Amazon.com and broke the Kindle bestseller record seven times between 2019 and 2021.
Second place: Rachel Abbott
- The author’s 11 books have sold more than 4 million copies through Amazon.com, each achieving six-figure sales in their first year of publication.
Third place: Adam Neville
- While sales figures for the author on Amazon are currently unavailable, his Amazon.com-published books currently outsell all of his other traditionally published works, including his 2011 novel, which was recently adapted into a Netflix original film.
21. Amazon Book Warehouse Deals
Amazon Warehouse Sale is regularly updated across all categories, including books.
Currently, the hottest deals are in healthcare services, driver education, and LPN and LVN types.
It should be noted that these sales statistics are updated periodically and are subject to change.
22. Amazon Book Deals
Book deals at Amazon Outlet include free shipping, discounted prices, and a variety of book types.
Currently, the best prices are between 10-20%, free shipping within 15-20 hours of placing an order, and a guaranteed delivery date no later than 7 days.
23. Amazon Holiday Book Deals
Amazon currently offers holiday deals on Children’s Books, Literature & Fiction, Mystery, Thriller & Mystery, Romance, Science Fiction, and Fantasy.
While the holiday season isn’t in full swing, there’s still about $5 off right now.
To learn more about Amazon, you can also check out our posts on what is Amazon Pay, Amazon’s slogan, and Amazon’s target market.
in conclusion
Amazon generates about $386 billion in annual revenue, about $1 billion of which comes from book sales.
Based on the statistics listed above, Amazon will maintain its top spot as the leading e-commerce site for book purchases.
Amazon’s Kindle Direct Publishing service puts them ahead of other book selling sites by not only stocking books but also producing and selling their own books.
Judging from the above statistics, Amazon’s book sales revenue in 2023 will continue to grow.
