# Madonna albums discography
The Madonna albums discography is the catalog of studio, soundtrack, live, and compilation albums released by the American singer Madonna (born 1958) between her self-titled debut in 1983 and the present. As of January 2022 it comprised fourteen studio albums, three soundtrack albums, six live albums, six compilation albums, and thirty-six other limited releases, and a fifteenth studio album, *Confessions II*, was announced for release on July 3, 2026.[1](https://ddd.uab.cat/pub/estudis/2022/254907/sonempwom_a2022.pdf) • [2](https://apnews.com/article/d210d4f86ff0dea359b26da6f002e4b8) With roughly 300–400 million records sold worldwide, she is counted among the most commercially successful recording artists in history.[3](https://cdn2.f-cdn.com/files/download/214062242/How%20Madonna%20Changed%20the%20Music%20Industry.pdf) • [21](https://www.guinnessworldrecords.com/world-records/best-selling-female-recording-artist)
| Key fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Studio albums | 14 studio albums by January 2022, from *Madonna* (1983) to *Madame X* (2019); *Confessions II* announced as the 15th for July 3, 2026[1](https://ddd.uab.cat/pub/estudis/2022/254907/sonempwom_a2022.pdf) • [2](https://apnews.com/article/d210d4f86ff0dea359b26da6f002e4b8) |
| Other album categories | Three soundtrack albums, six live albums, six compilation albums, and thirty-six other limited releases (as of January 2022)[1](https://ddd.uab.cat/pub/estudis/2022/254907/sonempwom_a2022.pdf) |
| Sales | Estimated worldwide sales are 300–400 million records, with seven Grammy awards and over $1.31 billion earned from tours[3](https://cdn2.f-cdn.com/files/download/214062242/How%20Madonna%20Changed%20the%20Music%20Industry.pdf) • [21](https://www.guinnessworldrecords.com/world-records/best-selling-female-recording-artist) |
| Biggest U.S. certifications | *The Immaculate Collection* certified Diamond (album) on May 5, 2023; *Bedtime Stories* and *Music* certified 3X Platinum[4](https://www.riaa.com/gold-platinum/?tab_active=default-award&se=Madonna#search_section) |
| Signature release | *Confessions on a Dance Floor* (2005) sold more than 10 million copies worldwide and won the 2006 Grammy for best electronic/dance album[5](https://www.lemonde.fr/en/culture/article/2026/07/03/with-confessions-ii-madonna-celebrates-the-pleasures-of-partying-blending-glittering-hedonism-and-hypnotic-power_6755130_30.html) • [2](https://apnews.com/article/d210d4f86ff0dea359b26da6f002e4b8) |
| Labels | Sire and Warner Bros./Warner Records through *Hard Candy* (2008); Interscope for *MDNA* (2012)[4](https://www.riaa.com/gold-platinum/?tab_active=default-award&se=Madonna#search_section) |
## The 1980s: debut through Like a Prayer
Madonna signed with [Sire Records](https://www.edgepedia.org/sire-records) after using the success of the [Stephen Bray](https://www.edgepedia.org/stephen-bray)-written single "Everybody" to convince the label to produce a full-length album.[6](https://www.biography.com/musicians/madonna) The self-titled debut was released in September 1983, and "Holiday" became her first [Top 40](https://www.edgepedia.org/top-40) hit the following month.[7](https://www.allmusic.com/artist/madonna-mn0000237205/biography) That first album sold 2.8 million copies in the United States.[8](https://time.com/3721312/madonna-history/)
**Like a Virgin (1984).** Her second album, released in November 1984, was produced with Sire's Nile Rodgers and went triple-platinum in February 1985, its singles occupying the charts in succession.[9](https://flora.insead.edu/fichiersti_wp/inseademccctheseswave20/85160.pdf) It sold about twice as much in the U.S. as the debut.[8](https://time.com/3721312/madonna-history/) Apple Music's survey of her catalog groups *Like a Virgin*, *True Blue*, and *Like a Prayer* as the string of albums that "continue to define" the 1980s.[10](https://music.apple.com/us/artist/madonna/20044)
**True Blue (1986).** AllMusic describes it as a more ambitious and accomplished record than its two predecessors; it reached number one in both the U.S. and the U.K. and sold over five million copies in America alone.[7](https://www.allmusic.com/artist/madonna-mn0000237205/biography) A retrospective assessment in *Slant Magazine* notes that five of the album's nine tracks rank among the strongest singles of her career.[11](https://www.slantmagazine.com/music/every-madonna-album-ranked/)
**Like a Prayer (1989).** The lead single and title track of her fourth studio album was described by *Time*, naming Madonna to its 1989 Women of the Year list, as a "hymn of joyous carnality" that marked her as an artist in it for the long haul.[12](https://time.com/5793713/madonna-100-women-of-the-year/)
## The 1990s: Erotica to Ray of Light
*[Erotica](https://www.edgepedia.org/erotica-madonna-album)* arrived in 1992 and *[Bedtime Stories](https://www.edgepedia.org/bedtime-stories-madonna-album)* in 1994, the latter featuring the Björk-penned "Bedtime Story," whose [Mark Romanek](https://www.edgepedia.org/mark-romanek) music video was permanently displayed at New York's Museum of Modern Art.[13](https://worldhistoryproject.org/topics/madonna/) • [7](https://www.allmusic.com/artist/madonna-mn0000237205/biography) The compilation *The Immaculate Collection* became her most certified album in the U.S., reaching Diamond status from the RIAA in 2023.[4](https://www.riaa.com/gold-platinum/?tab_active=default-award&se=Madonna#search_section)
**Ray of Light (1998).** The album was made with the English producer [William Orbit](https://www.edgepedia.org/william-orbit). Initial demo sessions began at Madonna's New York home, with vocals laid down at the Hit Factory before the main sessions at Larrabee North Studio in Hollywood; live drum tracks recorded early in the process were ultimately deemed unsatisfactory.[14](https://www.musicradar.com/artists/picture-madonna-the-biggest-pop-star-in-the-world-playing-with-this-retro-gear-that-you-could-buy-for-usd50-in-the-recycler-the-story-of-how-madonna-and-william-orbit-united-and-crafted-a-euphoric-electronic-pop-classic) Apple Music characterizes the record as "a well-centered chill-out classic" and lists it among her essential albums.[10](https://music.apple.com/us/artist/madonna/20044)
## 2000 to 2019: Music through Madame X
*Music* (2000) reunited her with Orbit and added production from Mark "Spike" Stent and the French electropop producer Mirwais.[15](https://www.allmusic.com/artist/madonna-mn0000237205) *American Life* (2003) is a concept album whose themes critique the [American Dream](https://www.edgepedia.org/american-dream) and materialism, blending folktronica and eurotechno influences.[16](https://thealbumorder.com/madonna) *Time* called its commercial and critical reception a debacle, after which *[Confessions on a Dance Floor](https://www.edgepedia.org/confessions-on-a-dance-floor)* (2005) deliberately returned to her disco roots and regained momentum.[17](https://time.com/3735645/review-madonna-rebel-heart/)
**Confessions on a Dance Floor (2005).** Produced with Stuart Price, the album was dance-pop disco aimed at a new era of clubgoers, produced the hits "Hung Up," "Sorry," "Get Together," and "Jump," was certified platinum by the RIAA, and won the 2006 Grammy for best electronic/dance album.[2](https://apnews.com/article/d210d4f86ff0dea359b26da6f002e4b8) It sold more than 10 million copies worldwide and stands as her last international triumph before a commercial decline.[5](https://www.lemonde.fr/en/culture/article/2026/07/03/with-confessions-ii-madonna-celebrates-the-pleasures-of-partying-blending-glittering-hedonism-and-hypnotic-power_6755130_30.html)
*Hard Candy* (2008) featured the collaboration "4 Minutes" with [Justin Timberlake](https://www.edgepedia.org/justin-timberlake) and [Timbaland](https://www.edgepedia.org/timbaland).[18](https://www.musicalmum.com/madonna-albums-in-order/) *MDNA* (2012), released on Interscope and certified Gold in the U.S., contains commentary on her divorce from [Guy Ritchie](https://www.edgepedia.org/guy-ritchie), including the dubstep-inflected "Gang Bang" and the ballad "Love Spent."[4](https://www.riaa.com/gold-platinum/?tab_active=default-award&se=Madonna#search_section) • [11](https://www.slantmagazine.com/music/every-madonna-album-ranked/) *Rebel Heart* (2015) was reviewed by *Time* as her most consistent album in a decade.[17](https://time.com/3735645/review-madonna-rebel-heart/) *Madame X* (June 2019) was preceded by the single "Medellín," a collaboration with the Colombian reggaeton singer Maluma, and drew on the fado music of her adopted home of Lisbon, Portugal.[15](https://www.allmusic.com/artist/madonna-mn0000237205) • [10](https://music.apple.com/us/artist/madonna/20044)
## Commercial trajectory and the 2020s
*Le Monde* reports that *MDNA* (2012), *Rebel Heart* (2015), and *Madame X* (2019) each sold half as much as the previous one, disappointing both artistically and commercially.[5](https://www.lemonde.fr/en/culture/article/2026/07/03/with-confessions-ii-madonna-celebrates-the-pleasures-of-partying-blending-glittering-hedonism-and-hypnotic-power_6755130_30.html) Madonna's response was to reunite with Stuart Price for *Confessions II*, announced on April 15, 2026 for release on July 3 via [Warner Records](https://www.edgepedia.org/warner-records), 21 years after the original and her first full-length album in seven years.[2](https://apnews.com/article/d210d4f86ff0dea359b26da6f002e4b8) In the press announcement she and Price framed the dance floor as "a ritualistic space" where sound and repetition dissolve ego and time.[2](https://apnews.com/article/d210d4f86ff0dea359b26da6f002e4b8) The album received strong early reviews: the aggregator Chorus.Reviews records a ChoruScore of 83/100 across four professional reviews, the highest in her tracked discography.[19](https://chorus.reviews/artists/madonna/albums-ranked) The catalog has also been expanded with archival projects, including *[Veronica Electronica](https://www.edgepedia.org/veronica-electronica)*, a long-rumored release issued on July 25, 2025, which Chorus records at 60/100 across seven reviews.[20](https://www.rhino.com/artist/madonna) • [19](https://chorus.reviews/artists/madonna/albums-ranked)
## References
1. [Madonna, 'Hung Up': Hanging onto a Long Career (Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, 2022)](https://ddd.uab.cat/pub/estudis/2022/254907/sonempwom_a2022.pdf)
2. [Madonna announces new album, a sequel two decades later, 'Confessions on a Dance Floor: Part II', Associated Press](https://apnews.com/article/d210d4f86ff0dea359b26da6f002e4b8)
3. [How Madonna Changed the Music Industry](https://cdn2.f-cdn.com/files/download/214062242/How%20Madonna%20Changed%20the%20Music%20Industry.pdf)
4. [Gold & Platinum search: Madonna, RIAA](https://www.riaa.com/gold-platinum/?tab_active=default-award&se=Madonna#search_section)
5. [With 'Confessions II,' Madonna celebrates the pleasures of partying, Le Monde](https://www.lemonde.fr/en/culture/article/2026/07/03/with-confessions-ii-madonna-celebrates-the-pleasures-of-partying-blending-glittering-hedonism-and-hypnotic-power_6755130_30.html)
6. [Madonna: Biography, Singer, Grammy Winner, Biography.com](https://www.biography.com/musicians/madonna)
7. [Madonna — Biography, Discography, Albums & Expert Reviews, AllMusic](https://www.allmusic.com/artist/madonna-mn0000237205/biography)
8. [The Time Madonna Almost Quit Music for Good, TIME](https://time.com/3721312/madonna-history/)
9. [INSEAD thesis chapter on Like a Virgin](https://flora.insead.edu/fichiersti_wp/inseademccctheseswave20/85160.pdf)
10. [Madonna, Apple Music](https://music.apple.com/us/artist/madonna/20044)
11. [Every Madonna Album Ranked, from her Debut to 'Confessions II', Slant Magazine](https://www.slantmagazine.com/music/every-madonna-album-ranked/)
12. [1989: Madonna, TIME 100 Women of the Year](https://time.com/5793713/madonna-100-women-of-the-year/)
13. [Madonna timeline, World History Project](https://worldhistoryproject.org/topics/madonna/)
14. [The story of how Madonna and William Orbit united and crafted a euphoric electronic pop classic, MusicRadar](https://www.musicradar.com/artists/picture-madonna-the-biggest-pop-star-in-the-world-playing-with-this-retro-gear-that-you-could-buy-for-usd50-in-the-recycler-the-story-of-how-madonna-and-william-orbit-united-and-crafted-a-euphoric-electronic-pop-classic)
15. [Madonna — Biography, Discography, Albums & Expert Reviews, AllMusic](https://www.allmusic.com/artist/madonna-mn0000237205)
16. [Madonna Albums in Order — All 15 Studio Albums by Year, The Album Order](https://thealbumorder.com/madonna)
17. [Review: Rebel Heart Is Madonna's Most Consistent Album in a Decade, TIME](https://time.com/3735645/review-madonna-rebel-heart/)
18. [Madonna Albums in Order, Musical Mum](https://www.musicalmum.com/madonna-albums-in-order/)
19. [Madonna Albums Ranked, Chorus.Reviews](https://chorus.reviews/artists/madonna/albums-ranked)
20. [Madonna, Rhino Entertainment](https://www.rhino.com/artist/madonna)
21. [Best-selling female recording artist](https://www.guinnessworldrecords.com/world-records/best-selling-female-recording-artist)
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*Topic: Encyclopedia › Arts and culture › Music › Musical works and recordings › Albums and recorded releases › Artist discographies and song lists*
*Initially written Sep 17, 2026 · Reviewed: Sep 30, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Edited: Sep 30, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Last review: Oct 25, 2026*
*Copyright 2026 EdgeChat AI, a subsidiary of Biostate AI.*
License: Edgepedia Community License 1.0, https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license