America's 100 most popular magazines
Since the 17th century, magazines have played a key role in the spread of information and selling of goods. Long before readers were introduced to marketing efforts like perfume sample pages and advertorials, there was a 1660s German circulatory called “Erbauliche Monaths Unterredungen.” And before Vogue was even a twinkle in Conde Nast’s eye, there was “Harper’s Magazine,” the oldest general interest monthly magazine in the United States.
In 2018, print has lost much of its influence to the digital landscape. There are still plenty of magazines in wide circulation, however, catering to a diverse readership. There’s a publication out there for gamers, gourmets, important business people, and even Oprah-worshippers—you need only look to find features, human interest stories, recipes, hacks, and anything else that might grab your attention.
Each of those magazines, along with many more you may not have heard of, has a place on this list of America’s 100 most popular magazines. To create this ranking, Stacker pulled data from Alliance for Audited Media’s Snapshot Report. This data represents the average paid, verified circulation for a six-month period ending on June 30, 2018.
So put down your copy of Food & Wine or Car and Driver, and read on to find out which magazines the rest of the country loves flipping through.
#100. Outdoor Life
Total paid circulation: 600,817
#99. Bloomberg Businessweek
Total paid circulation: 614,270
#98. Kiplinger's Personal Finance
Total paid circulation: 625,685
#97. Ducks Unlimited
Total paid circulation: 631,810
#96. American Legion Auxiliary
Total paid circulation: 650,261
#95. Coastal Living
Total paid circulation: 656,684
#94. Runners World
Total paid circulation: 663,764
#93. Arthritis Today
Total paid circulation: 666,752
#92. Reminisce
Total paid circulation: 674,430
#91. Experience Life
Total paid circulation: 677,197
#90. Forbes
Total paid circulation: 682,882
#89. Outside
Total paid circulation: 694,933
#88. Inc.
Total paid circulation: 713,860
#87. Fast Company
Total paid circulation: 720,302
#86. Fortune (North America)
Total paid circulation: 752,202
#85. Harpers Bazaar
Total paid circulation: 755,921
#84. Esquire
Total paid circulation: 759,222
#83. Star
Total paid circulation: 764,144
#82. Scouting
Total paid circulation: 798,491
#81. Woman's World
Total paid circulation: 801,684
#80. This Old House
Total paid circulation: 810,778
#79. House Beautiful
Total paid circulation: 811,264
#78. Conde Nast Traveler
Total paid circulation: 819,001
#77. Architectural Digest
Total paid circulation: 819,396
#76. Field And Stream
Total paid circulation: 819,419
#75. Boys' Life
Total paid circulation: 846,554
#74. First For Women
Total paid circulation: 857,826
#73. Wired
Total paid circulation: 879,522
#72. Traditional Home
Total paid circulation: 886,774
#71. American Hunter
Total paid circulation: 890,248
#70. Popular Science
Total paid circulation: 899,437
#69. GQ (Gentlemen's Quarterly)
Total paid circulation: 929,394
#68. Food & Wine
Total paid circulation: 936,062
#67. Travel + Leisure
Total paid circulation: 955,383
#66. Midwest Living
Total paid circulation: 956,454
#65. Food & Family
Total paid circulation: 1,002,240
#64. Motor Trend
Total paid circulation: 1,006,314
#63. Marie Claire
Total paid circulation: 1,007,363
#62. EatingWell
Total paid circulation: 1,013,459
#61. VFW Magazine
Total paid circulation: 1,036,697
#60. Essence
Total paid circulation: 1,073,717
#59. Birds And Blooms
Total paid circulation: 1,085,665
#58. Popular Mechanics
Total paid circulation: 1,112,844
#57. Elle
Total paid circulation: 1,117,673
#56. Weight Watchers
Total paid circulation: 1,121,820
#55. Allure
Total paid circulation: 1,191,856
#54. Car and Driver
Total paid circulation: 1,212,174
#53. The Family Handyman
Total paid circulation: 1,223,711
#52. Vogue
Total paid circulation: 1,231,650
#51. Vanity Fair
Total paid circulation: 1,236,446
#50. Men's Journal
Total paid circulation: 1,237,599
#49. Sunset
Total paid circulation: 1,268,196
#48. The New Yorker
Total paid circulation: 1,269,055
#47. Rolling Stone
Total paid circulation: 1,272,976
#46. The Magnolia Journal
Total paid circulation: 1,282,352
#45. TV Guide Magazine (U.S.)
Total paid circulation: 1,283,701
#44. Guideposts
Total paid circulation: 1,303,145
#43. HGTV Magazine
Total paid circulation: 1,328,334
#42. Health
Total paid circulation: 1,361,089
#41. Country Living
Total paid circulation: 1,378,889
#40. Golf Magazine
Total paid circulation: 1,413,862
#39. Allrecipes
Total paid circulation: 1,417,529
#38. Entertainment Weekly
Total paid circulation: 1,511,269
#37. Bon Appetit
Total paid circulation: 1,513,658
#36. Women's Health
Total paid circulation: 1,543,222
#35. Money
Total paid circulation: 1,606,113
#34. Golf Digest
Total paid circulation: 1,642,049
#33. In Style
Total paid circulation: 1,708,509
#32. Rachael Ray Every Day
Total paid circulation: 1,718,511
#31. Food Network Magazine
Total paid circulation: 1,760,721
#30. Cooking Light
Total paid circulation: 1,780,148
#29. Smithsonian
Total paid circulation: 1,808,770
#28. Men's Health
Total paid circulation: 1,825,164
#27. The American Legion
Total paid circulation: 1,859,529
#26. American Rifleman
Total paid circulation: 1,891,046
#25. Seventeen
Total paid circulation: 1,901,924
#24. Us Weekly
Total paid circulation: 1,964,332
#23. Real Simple
Total paid circulation: 1,984,532
#22. Parents
Total paid circulation: 2,064,665
#21. Martha Stewart Living
Total paid circulation: 2,064,993
#20. Taste Of Home
Total paid circulation: 2,080,735
#19. Redbook
Total paid circulation: 2,109,366
#18. ESPN magazine
Total paid circulation: 2,144,483
#17. Glamour
Total paid circulation: 2,303,374
#16. Time
Total paid circulation: 2,348,566
#15. The Oprah Magazine
Total paid circulation: 2,381,944
#14. Shape
Total paid circulation: 2,544,949
#13. Readers Digest
Total paid circulation: 2,701,972
#12. National Geographic
Total paid circulation: 2,720,313
#11. Sports Illustrated
Total paid circulation: 2,763,966
#10. Southern Living
Total paid circulation: 2,823,644
#9. Cosmopolitan
Total paid circulation: 3,040,285
#8. Woman's Day
Total paid circulation: 3,255,790
#7. People
Total paid circulation: 3,423,322
#6. Family Circle
Total paid circulation: 4,018,288
#5. Good Housekeeping
Total paid circulation: 4,311,679
#4. Game Informer
Total paid circulation: 7,137,476
#3. Better Homes & Gardens
Total paid circulation: 7,645,902
#2. AARP Bulletin
Total paid circulation: 23,475,727
#1. AARP The Magazine
Total paid circulation: 24,099,602
