# List of best-selling fiction authors

This is a list of best-selling fiction authors to date, in any language. While finding precise sales numbers for any given author is nearly impossible, the list is based on approximate numbers provided or repeated by reliable sources. "Best selling" refers to the estimated number of copies sold of all fiction books written or co-written by an author. To keep the list manageable, only authors with estimated sales of at least 100 million are included. Authors of comic books are not included unless they have been published in book format (for example, comic albums, manga tankōbon volumes, trade paperbacks, or graphic novels).
Authors such as Jane Austen, Miguel de Cervantes, Alexandre Dumas, Charles Dickens, Arthur Conan Doyle, Victor Hugo, Jules Verne, Rick Riordan, Ernest Hemingway, Jack Higgins, Isaac Asimov and Leon Uris have not been included in the table because no exact figures could be found—although there are indications that they too have more than 100 million copies of their work in print.

## List

Estimates come from different years and are therefore not directly comparable.
| Author | Min. estimated sales | Max. estimated sales | Original language | Genre and/or major works | Number of books | Nationality |
| William Shakespeare | 2 billion | 4 billion | English | Plays and poetry, e.g. Romeo and Juliet, Macbeth, and Hamlet | 42 | British |
| Agatha Christie | 2 billion | 4 billion | English | Whodunits, including the Miss Marple and Hercule Poirot series | 86 | British |
| Barbara Cartland | 500 million | 1 billion | English | Romance | 723 | British |
| Danielle Steel | 500 million | 800 million | English | General fiction, romance | 179 | American |
| Harold Robbins | 750 million | 750 million | English | Adventure | 23 | American |
| Georges Simenon | 500 million | 700 million | French | Detectives, Maigret, romans durs | 570 | Belgian |
| J. K. Rowling | 600 million | 650 million | English | Harry Potter among other works | 22 | British |
| Eiichiro Oda | 500 million | 535 million | Japanese | Manga, One Piece | 110 | Japanese |
| Enid Blyton | 400 million | 600 million | English | Children's literature, Noddy, The Famous Five, The Secret Seven | 800 | British |
| Jackie Collins | 400 million | 500 million | English | Romance | 32 | British |
| Sidney Sheldon | 300 million | 500 million | English | Suspense | 21 | American |
| Gilbert Patten | 125 million | 500 million | English | Adolescent adventures | 209 | American |
| Dr. Seuss | 100 million | 500 million | English | Children's literature | 44 | American |
| Akira Toriyama | 298 million | 438 million | Japanese | Manga, Dr. Slump, Dragon Ball, Dragon Ball Super | 66 | Japanese |
| Leo Tolstoy | 413 million | 413 million | Russian | War and Peace, Anna Karenina | 48 | Russian |
| Corín Tellado | 400 million | 400 million | Spanish | Romance | 4,000 | Spanish |
| James Patterson | 400 million | 400 million | English | Thriller, Alex Cross Maximum Ride | 400+ | American |
| Dean Koontz | 325 million | 400 million | English | Horror, thriller, science fiction, fantasy | 91 | American |
| Stephen King | 300 million | 400 million | English | Horror, science fiction, fantasy, It, The Shining, The Stand, Pet Sematary, Salem's Lot, The Green Mile | 77 | American |
| Horatio Alger | 200 million | 400 million | English | Dime novels | 135 | American |
| Nora Roberts | 145 million | 400 million | English | Romance | 200+ | American |
| R. L. Stine | 100 million | 400 million | English | Goosebumps series, Fear Street series, horror, comedy | 430+ | American |
| Alexander Pushkin | 357 million | 357 million | Russian | Plays, poetry, prose, Eugene Onegin | 17 | Russian |
| Paulo Coelho | 225 million | 350 million | Portuguese | The Alchemist | 28 | Brazilian |
| Jirō Akagawa | 300 million | 330 million | Japanese | Mystery | 500+ | Japanese |
| Jeffrey Archer | 250 million | 330 million | English | Saga, thriller, short stories, Kane and Abel, The Clifton Chronicles | 33 | British |
| Louis L'Amour | 230 million | 330 million | English | Western | 101 | American |
| René Goscinny | 325 million | 325 million | French | Franco-Belgian comics, Asterix, Lucky Luke, Iznogoud | 108 | French |
| Erle Stanley Gardner | 100 million | 325 million | English | Mystery, Perry Mason | 140 | American |
| Edgar Wallace | 300 million | 300 million | English | Detective | 175 | British |
| Janet Dailey | 300 million | 300 million | English | Romance | 93 | American |
| Jin Yong | 100 million | 300 million | Chinese | Wuxia | 15 | Chinese |
| Robert Ludlum | 110 million | 290 million | English | Espionage, Jason Bourne | 40 | American |
| Osamu Tezuka | 276 million | 276 million | Japanese | Manga, Astro Boy, Black Jack, Buddha | 62 | Japanese |
| Frédéric Dard | 200 million | 270 million | French | Detective, San Antonio | 300 | French |
| Stan and Jan Berenstain | 200 million | 260 million | English | Berenstain Bears | 300+ | American |
| Roald Dahl | 200 million | 250 million | English | Children's literature | 50 | British |
| Zane Grey | 250 million | 250 million | English | Western | | American |
| Irving Wallace | 250 million | 250 million | English | Suspense | | American |
| Masashi Kishimoto | 250 million | 250 million | Japanese | Manga, Naruto | 72 | Japanese |
| Gosho Aoyama | 250 million | 250 million | Japanese | Manga, Detective Conan | 100 | Japanese |
| J. R. R. Tolkien | 200 million | 250 million | English | The Lord of the Rings, The Hobbit, classical fantasy | 36 | British |
| John Grisham | 100 million | 250 million | English | Legal thriller | 35 | American |
| Karl May | 100 million | 200 million | German | Western, adventure | 80 | German |
| Mickey Spillane | 100 million | 200 million | English | Detective, Mike Hammer | | American |
| C. S. Lewis | 100 million | 200 million | English | The Chronicles of Narnia, fantasy, popular theology | 38 | British |
| Kyotaro Nishimura | | 200 million | Japanese | Mystery | 400+ | Japanese |
| Mitsuru Adachi | | 200 million | Japanese | Manga, Touch, H2, Slow Step, Miyuki,Cross Game | | Japanese |
| Rumiko Takahashi | | 200 million | Japanese | Manga Urusei Yatsura, Ranma ½, Inuyasha, Maison Ikkoku, Rin-ne | | Japanese |
| Dan Brown | 200 million | 200 million | English | Thriller, Robert Langdon | 7 | American |
| Alistair MacLean | 150 million | 200 million | English | Adventure, thriller, war stories | 32 | British |
| Ann M. Martin | 172 million | 180 million | English | The Baby-sitters Club | 335 | American |
| Ryōtarō Shiba | | 180 million | Japanese | Historical | 350 | Japanese |
| Arthur Hailey | 150 million | 170 million | English | Thriller | 11 | British/Canadian |
| Astrid Lindgren | 100 million | 165 million | Swedish | Children's literature | 100 | Swedish |
| Koyoharu Gotouge | 150 million | 150 million | Japanese | Manga, Demon Slayer | 23 | Japanese |
| Anne Rice | 150 million | 150 million+ | English | Gothic fiction, vampires, Interview with the Vampire (The Vampire Chronicles) The Witching Hour (Lives of the Mayfair Witches) | 40 | American |
| Gérard de Villiers | | 150 million | French | Detectives, SAS | 170 | French |
| Beatrix Potter | 100 million | 250 million | English | Peter Rabbit | 23 | British |
| Michael Crichton | 150 million | 150 million | English | Techno thriller | 25 | American |
| Richard Scarry | 100 million | 150 million | English | Illustrated children's books | 300+ | American |
| Clive Cussler | 40 million | 150 million | English | Adventure, Dirk Pitt | 37 | American |
| Ken Follett | 90 million | 150 million | English | Spy thriller, historical thriller | 30 | British |
| Debbie Macomber | 60 million | 140 million | English | Romance | | American |
| Naoki Urasawa | | 140 million | Japanese | Manga | | Japanese |
| E.L. James | 100 million | 125 million | English | Fifty Shades of Grey | 7 | British |
| Carter Brown | 100 million | 120 million | English | Detective | | Australian |
| Tite Kubo | | 120 million | Japanese | Manga, Bleach | 74 | Japanese |
| Eiji Yoshikawa | | 120 million | Japanese | Musashi | 7 | Japanese |
| Hajime Isayama | 120 million | 120 million | Japanese | Manga, Attack on Titan | 34 | Japanese |
| Catherine Cookson | 100 million | 120 million | English | Romance | 103 | British |
| Stephenie Meyer | 100 million | 116 million | English | The Twilight Saga, The Host, romance | 6 | American |
| Norman Bridwell | 100 million | 110 million | English | Clifford the Big Red Dog | 80 | American |
| David Baldacci | | 110 million | English | Thriller | 25 | American |
| Nicholas Sparks | 90 million | 105 million | English | Romance | 22 | American |
| Hirohiko Araki | 120 million | 120 million | Japanese | Manga, Jojo's Bizarre Adventure | 131 | Japanese |
| Tom Clancy | 100 million | 100 million | English | Espionage, Thriller, Jack Ryan | 19 | American |
| Andrew Neiderman | 100 million | 100 million | English | V. C. Andrews, The Devil's Advocate | 60 | American |
| Evan Hunter | 100 million | 100 million | English | Detective (Ed McBain) | 94 | American |
| Roger Hargreaves | 100 million | 100 million | English | Children's literature, Mr. Men | | British |
| Robin Cook | 100 million | 100 million | English | Medical thriller Coma | 27 | American |
| Wilbur Smith | 80 million | 100 million | English | African adventure | 32 | South African/British |
| Erskine Caldwell | 80 million | 100 million | English | Literature | 25 | American |
| Judith Krantz | 80 million | 100 million | English | Romance | 12 | American |
| Eleanor Hibbert | 100 million | 100 million | English | Romance, historical, suspense | 200 | British |
| Lewis Carroll | | 100 million | English | Alice's Adventures in Wonderland, absurdist literature | 5 | British |
| Denise Robins | | 100 million | English | Romance | 200 | British |
| Cao Xueqin | | 100 million | Chinese | Dream of the Red Chamber | | Chinese |
| Ian Fleming | 100 million | 100 million | English | James Bond | 14 | British |
| Hermann Hesse | 100 million | 100 million | German | Steppenwolf, Siddhartha, The Glass Bead Game | 45 | German-Swiss |
| Rex Stout | 100 million | 100 million | English | Nero Wolfe | 50 | American |
| Anne Golon | 100 million | 100 million | French | Angélique | 14 | French |
| Frank G. Slaughter | | 100 million | English | Medical | 62 | American |
| Edgar Rice Burroughs | 100 million | 100 million | English | Tarzan, Barsoom and Pellucidar series, science fantasy | | American |
| John Creasey | | 100 million | English | Crime thriller | 600 | British |
| James A. Michener | | 100 million | English | Historical | 47 | American |
| Yasuo Uchida | | 100 million | Japanese | Mystery | 130+ | Japanese |
| Seiichi Morimura | | 100 million | Japanese | Mystery | 350+ | Japanese |
| Mary Higgins Clark | 100 million | 100 million | English | Thriller | | American |
| Penny Jordan | 90 million | 100 million | English | Romance | 200+ | British |
| Patricia Cornwell | | 100 million | English | Thriller, Kay Scarpetta series | 34+ | American |
| Terry Pratchett | 122 million | 122 million | English | Discworld and others | 50+ | British |