Before streaming services, MP3 players and iPods, music lovers collected their favourite tunes in a very different format. Now, years later, CDs could be making a comeback. While some music purists never moved on from records, a vinyl boom made the format even more popular in the 2020s. But CDs, largely, didn’t get the same treatment. Luminate, an entertainment data and insight company, reported CD sales in the United States jumped 16 per cent in the first half of 2026. That number, representing 16.3 million units, is nearly seven times the growth of vinyl within that same time frame. Some music and tech experts are not surprised to see CDs get an encore. “We traded quality for convenience, having 100 million songs at your fingertips or at your beck and call,” said technology expert Marc Saltzman. “That’s incredible, but the music does not sound as good as CDs did.” For some the attraction lies in the liner notes, for others it’s the appeal of owning a physical copy that can’t suddenly disappear from a streaming service. An influx of interest in K-Pop, or popular Korean music, is also helping to drive the trend, as many K-Pop albums include exclusive photos and keepsakes. Seeing a future in CDs Some fans say CDs never really went away. “We never stopped selling them,” said Mark Logan, the owner of Encore Records in Kitchener, Ont. “So, for us, the demand has remained constant.” As one of the few shops that still stocks the discs, they became a Canadian go-to. “Because there are so many stores that don’t carry CDs across the country, our mail order for CD sales is huge,” Logan explained. The cost of CDs, he added, can also be far lower. “It’s deceptive because the price for vinyl is so much higher. If our sales of vinyl are $1,000 and our CD sales are $500, we’re actually selling more CDs based on the cost,” Logan explained. If CDs continue to remain popular, it poses another important question: is it time to dust off our old Walkmans? “What about cars as well? Any new vehicle probably doesn’t have a CD player,” Saltzman said. “Most Canadians don’t even have a DVD player anymore for their TV to play CDs.” But Salzman said the popularity of CDs will need to climb much higher before technology companies even consider bringing back the hardware.
