US Trade Book Sales Set July Record at US$745 Million
US readers spent US$745 million on trade books in July 2026, up 18% from a year earlier. The figure is a monthly record for trade books, meaning general-interest titles sold through bookshops and online rather than to schools and colleges, according to Association of American Publishers StatShot data, the US industry's monthly sales tracker reported via Publishers Marketplace.
The previous high was US$705 million in July 2021. July was the second record in a row, after US$703 million in June. The jump follows a soft comparison, with July 2025 sales down 13% year on year.
Adult books did most of the work. Sales in the category totalled US$550 million in July, up 19%. Within that, adult fiction totalled US$326.5 million, up 17%, while adult nonfiction totalled US$223 million, up 23%.
The July record sits inside a stronger first half for US publishing. StatShot-tracked industry sales across all categories rose 3.9% in the first six months of 2026, according to Publishers Weekly. Year-to-date trade revenue reached US$4.6 billion through June, up 3.8%, the Association reported in its June release. Year-to-date hardback revenue, meaning sales of hardcover editions, was US$1.5 billion, down 0.8%.
Monthly totals for the wider industry were also up. Total revenue across all categories was US$936.3 million in June 2026, up 11.0% on June 2025, the Association said in its June report. May totalled US$931.1 million, up 6.8%. Adult fiction rose 19.3% in June alone, and was up 8.2% across the first half.
What makes this stand out is the pace. Two records in two months. A quiet July last year now reads as the low base for a fast summer.
