An analysis of Audit Bureau of Circulation data covering newsstand sales from 2001 to 2011 shows that the Top 68 magazines on American newsstands have seen their sales nearly halved during the past decade. During the first six months of 2001 the leading titles managed sales of 22,019,953 copies, while for the first six months of 2011 the same magazines sold just 11,562,028 copies.

 

An analysis by Media Book shows that the decline in magazine sales has been accelerating. After dropping just 23% over the first six years of the past decade, the sales of the top magazines plummeted 32% more over the past 4 years. 

 

Only 10 out of the top 68 magazines actually managed to grow their newsstand circulation, and those gains have been modest in nature. Magazines targeting women were among the biggest circulation losers with Better Homes & Garden down 52.5%, Good Housekeeping down 67%, Family Circle plunging 68.2%, and Martha Stewart Living down 60.3%.

 

Men’s magazines were not immune with Maxim falling from favor by 70.5%, and ESPN: The Magazine plunging 76.3%. Esquire and Men’s Health have managed to post circulation gains, but Car & Driver (-52.1%), Motor Trend (-52.3%), and Road and Track (-62.8%) all declined steeply.   Among celebrity magazines, People, which has seen its sales slide by 23.5% has fared better than Entertainment Weekly, which has seen its circulation decline by a precipitous 70% during the past decade.

 

While magazines appear to be a good fit for tablet computers, digital sales have been modest so far with Conde Nast reporting six week’s of sales of digital copies of all its magazines only amounted to just 106,000 copies.