The Most Expensive Record Store Day Releases of All Time

Record Store Day 2021 is fast approaching. The limited-edition nature of this annual event — broken up into two different drops this year on June 12 and July 17 — creates an aftermarket of seismic proportions. The following ranking explores the most expensive Record Store Day releases of all time (or at least, since 2008 when RSD began).

The list is determined by the median sale value in USD on Discogs, the world’s largest online music database. This means that you might find a copy for more — or less! — in the Discogs Marketplace. If you do find one with a higher price tag, that could be an indication that the album will appreciate in value.

Obviously, the popularity of the album or artist will cause the resale value to increase. Usually, the original price tags are on par for the format or number of releases, but the latter is what tends to influence price over time.

For example, take a closer look at that album sitting at No. 1. There are supposed to be six copies in existence, only four of which have been claimed. The Boards of Canada 12-inch was dropped on RSD 2013 purely as a promotional stunt. The actual record contains mostly dead space, a really short clip of music, and someone reading the numbers “936557” aloud. Is it the most rapturous song to come from the electronic duo? Not by a long shot. But its scarcity has ensured a top spot in this ranking (and the band eventually released a full-length later that year).

Another example is The Shuttered Room movie soundtrack, which was first developed in 1967 (the film is also known as Blood Island). Apparently, there are only 29 copies in existence and a test pressing was raffled off by Trunk Records.

Most of the other expensive RSD releases don’t even come close to breaking the $1,000 mark, but the median sale values are still impressive. These weighty price tags are the cause of many collectors’ ire towards Record Store Day, which was created as a celebration of the vinyl community but has spawned a resale market that emphasizes exclusivity over quality. That being said, Discogs sees some big-ticket items with big-ticket price tags roll through the Marketplace every month (17 “normal” albums sold for more than the most expensive RSD release in March 2021 alone).

If you’re looking for more information about Record Store Day 2021, we have a wide variety of coverage and all of the information you need on RSD 2021 releases.

Most Expensive RSD Releases of All Time

Check out Record Store Day for more information about the drops on June 12 and July 17 this year. Discogs is not affiliated with the RSD organization but we agree with their mission of bringing more people into record stores.

If you see a release missing above, let us know at editor@discogsinc.com! We love learning more about the info floating around in the Database. This article was been updated in 2021 with the most recent median sale prices.