Earlier today, Diamond Comic Distributors released their annual chart of top selling single comic book issues and graphic novels. With seven out of the top ten best-selling single issues of the year, Marvel took home to top-selling publisher trophy, eating a hefty 38.24% chunk of the comic market.
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Marvel’s Big Two counterpart DC Comics finished in a close second with a 30.04% market share when discussing dollars earned.
No other comic publisher had over 10% of a market share with the largest independent publisher — Portland’s Image Comics — captured 9.93% of dollars earned. Coincidentally enough, Image dominated the top-selling graphic novels list, tallying five of the top ten best-selling graphic novels.
According to Diamond — the sole comic distributor in the country — sales of individual comic issues saw a slight increase in 2018, up 3.3% from 2017. Sales of graphic novels, on the other hand, saw a steady drop, declining 6.6% year over year.
Diamond made sure to point out DC’s landmark Action Comics #1000 was by and large the best selling single issue of the year. Keep scrolling to see if any of your favorite issues from 2018 were top sellers!
#1 – Action Comics #1000
(W) Dan Jurgens, Peter J. Tomasi, Marv Wolfman, Geoff Johns, Richard Donner, Scott Snyder, Tom King, Louise Simonson, Paul Dini, Brad Meltzer, Brian Michael Bendis
(A) Dan Jurgens, Norm Rapmund, Patrick Gleason, Curt Swan, Butch Guice, Kurt Schaffenberger, Olivier Coipel, Rafael Albuquerque, Clay Mann, Jerry Ordway, Jos? Luis Garcia-Lopez, Kevin Nowlan, John Cassaday
(A/CA) Jim Lee, Scott Williams
Celebrate 1000 issues of Action Comics with an all-star lineup of top talent as they pay tribute to the comic that started it all! From today’s explosive action to a previously unpublished tale illustrated by the legendary Curt Swan to the Man of Tomorrow’s future-this very special, oversized issue presents the best of the best in Superman stories!
#2 – Amazing Spider-Man #800 (Blank Variant)
(W) Dan Slott
(A) Stuart Immonen, Humberto Ramos, Giuseppe Camuncoli, Jim Cheung
- Dan Slott and Stuart Immomen are joined by many of the artists who made the last 10 years of Spider-Man so Amazing!
- The biggest Peter Parker/Norman Osborn story of all time unfolds over one 80-page story, a scope unmatched in comics!
- Who lives?! Who dies?! And what scars will Spider-Man bear from here on out?!
#3 – Batman #50
(W) Tom King
(A) David Finch, Joelle Jones, Mitch Gerads, Rafael Albuquerque, Neal Adams, Andy Kubert, Becky Cloonan, Ty Templeton, Jos? Luis Garcia-Lopez, Frank Miller, Lee Bermejo
(A/CA) Mikel Janin
It’s the wedding you never thought you’d see! The Batrimony is real as Bruce Wayne and Selina Kyle are set to tie the knot in a can’t-miss, extra-length milestone issue that will reshape Gotham City. All their friends (and a few enemies?) will be party to a comic book coupling for the ages. Superstar scribe Tom King officiates the sure-to-be-offbeat nuptials, joined by an all-star lineup of guest classic Bat-artists doffing their hats to the lucky couple in a series of pre-wedding flashback scenes sure to set the romantic mood.
#4 – Fantastic Four #1 (Adams Wraparound Variant)
(W) Dan Slott
(A) Sara Pichelli, Simone Bianchi, Skottie Young
(CA) Arthur Adams
FOUREVER Part One BECAUSE YOU DEMANDED IT – THE WORLD’S GREATEST COMIC MAGAZINE IS BACK! Since the end of SECRET WARS, there’s been a gap in the Marvel Universe. A void no other team can fill. And it’s time for the world to move on. But can it? A life-changing decision by the Thing! A momentous declaration by the Human Torch! A clarion call-to-arms that summons Doctor Doom! And a signal in the sky that heralds the return of hope to the Marvel Universe! All this, and Alicia Masters adopts kittens! So cute! Plus, the Impossible Man! AND BONUS STORIES ILLUSTRATED BY SIMONE BIANCHI AND SKOTTIE YOUNG! IF YOU READ ONLY ONE MARVEL COMIC THIS MONTH, THIS IS THE ONE!
#5 – Amazing Spider-Man #1
(W) Nick Spencer
(A) Cliff Rathburn
(A/CA) Ryan Ottley
An alien invasion hits New York City and the only one who can stop it is…Spider-Man?! But that’s far from all you’ll find here – a revelation from the past puts Peter Parker’s job, relationships, and whole life in jeopardy! And if even that’s not enough, you’ll see a new roommate, new love interests – and a new villain! Spider-Man goes back to basics courtesy of Nick Spencer (SECRET EMPIRE, SUPERIOR FOES OF SPIDER-MAN) and the Marvel debut of RYAN OTTLEY (Invincible)!
#6 – Return of Wolverine #1 (Blank Variant)
(W) Charles Soule
(A) Steve McNiven
HE’S BACK, BUB. Parental Advisory
#7 – Venom #1 (Blank Variant)
(W) Donny Cates
(A) Ryan Stegman
A NEW SERIES BY DONNY CATES & RYAN STEGMAN! In the wake of S.H.I.E.L.D.’s collapse, an ancient and primordial evil has been awakened beneath the streets of New York, and with it, something equally evil has awakened in that most Wicked of Webslingers – VENOM! Still a Lethal Protector of the innocents in New York, this never-before-seen threat could force Venom to relinquish everything it holds dear – including Eddie Brock! Join two of the hottest creators in comics today, Donny Cates and Ryan Stegman, for a VENOM adventure a thousand years in the making!
#8 – Amazing Spider-Man #798 (Garron Young Guns Variant)
(W) Dan Slott
(A) Stuart Immonen
(CA) Javi Garron
GO DOWN SWINGING Part 2
- Dan Slott’s final SPIDER-MAN story continues!
- The GREEN GOBLIN HAS RETURNED – and he’s exacting his ultimate revenge not only on SPIDER-MAN, but on everyone the wall-crawler loves!
- Norman Osborn’s offering NO QUARTER, an ultimatum that threatens to finish PETER PARKER once and for all!
#9 – Batman Who Laughs #1
(W) Scott Snyder
(A/CA) Jock
Left rattled by the events of DARK NIGHTS: METAL, Bruce Wayne must come face to face with the nightmares spawned from the Dark Multiverse. But even though evil devoured evil in the collapse of Challengers Mountain, the Dark Knight still has his doubts. He discovers that the Batman Who Laughs not only survived the fight with The Joker at the end of METAL, but now he is enacting a sinister plan across the Multiverse-something both terrifying and oddly familiar. But when Bruce Wayne realizes the only way to stop this madman is to kill him, he must consider violating the very rule Batman won’t break…the same rule that created this insatiable villain-the Batman Who Laughs!
#10 – Amazing Spider-Man #799 (McGuinness Variant)
(W) Dan Slott
(A) Stuart Immonen
(CA) Ed McGuinness
GO DOWN SWINGING Part 3
- SPIDER-MAN will need to the help of friend and foe alike if he hopes to stop THE GREEN GOBLIN this time!
- The mystery of the RED GOBLIN is finally revealed, and it’s not going to be pretty for Peter Parker!
Graphic Novels
- Infinity Gauntlet TP (Marvel)
- Saga TP Vol 09 (Image)
- Saga TP Vol 01 (Image)
- Saga TP Vol 08 (Image)
- Action Comics 80 Years of Superman HC (DC)
- Walking Dead TP Vol 29 (Image)
- Paper Girls TP Vol 01 (Image)
- Batman White Knight TP (DC)
- Dark Nights Metal Deluxe Edition HC (DC)
Publisher Rankings
For the publisher rankings, there are two percentages involved — dollar share and unit share. Dollar share meaning total number of dollars earned while unit share means total number of books sold, regardless of price. In the list below, the first percentage in bold will serve as the dollar share provided by Diamond while the other percentage will reflect the publisher’s market share in units sold.
- Marvel Comics (38.24%, 40.40%)
- DC Entertainment (30.04%, 33.82%)
- Image Comics (9.93%, 9.90%)
- IDW Publishing (3.83%, 3.30%)
- Dark Horse Comics (2.92%, 2.10%)
- BOOM! Studios (2.24%, 1.90%)
- Dynamite Entertainment (1.86%, 1.73%)
- Viz Media (1.22%, 0.46%)
- Titan Comics (0.87%, 0.61%)
- Oni Press (0.83%, 0.54%)
- All Other Non-Top 10 Publishers (8.01%, 5.25%)
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Image Credit: Marvel Studios
