Highlights and Milestones About the Harry Potter Series

  • Every Harry Potter book has been a number 1 New York Times and USA Today bestseller

 

  • More than 600 million copies of Harry Potter books have sold worldwide

 

  • In the US alone, there have been more than 230 million copies of Harry Potter books sold
 
  • Harry Potter is published in 85 languages
 
  • The seventh book, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, sold 8.3 million copies in the first 24 hours breaking all publishing records (set by previously published Harry Potter titles)
 
  • The playscript for Harry Potter and the Cursed Child: Parts One and Two has sold 5 million copies in North America since its publication on July 27, 2015
 
  • Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them: The Original Screenplay has sold 2 million copies sold in North America since its release on November 18, 2016

 

Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone (Book 1)

 

  • Pub Date: September 1998
 
  • Initial Print run: 50,000
 
  • Chapters: 17

 

Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets (Book 2)

 

  • Pub Date: June 2, 1999
 
  • Initial Print run: 250,000
 
  • Chapters: 18

 

Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban (Book 3)

 

  • Pub Date: September 8, 1999
 
  • Initial print run: 500,000
 
  • Chapters: 22

 

Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire (Book 4)

 

  • Pub Date: July 8, 2000
 
  • Initial Print run: 3.8 million
 
  • Sold 3 million copies in the first weekend on sale; went back to press for additional 3 million.
 
  • Chapters: 37

 

Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix (Book 5)

 

  • Pub Date: June 21, 2003
 
  • Initial Print run: 6.8 million
 
  • Went back pre-publication for second printing of 1.7 million
 
  • Ordered third printing of 800K on June 24, bringing in print to 9.3 million
 
  • Sold 5 million copies in first 24 hours
 
  • Sold 11 million copies in first 12 weeks
 
  • Chapters: 38

 

Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince (Book 6)

 

  • Pub Date: July 16, 2005
 
  • Initial Print run: 10.8 million
 
  • Second printing of 2.7 million
 
  • Sold 6.9 million in the first 24 hours
 
  • Sold 11 million in first 9 weeks
 
  • Chapters: 30

 

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows (Book 7)

 

  • Pub Date: July 21, 2007
 
  • Initial Print run: 12 million
 
  • Sold 8.3 million in the first 24 hours
 
  • Sold 11.5 million it first 10 days
 
  • Chapters: 36 plus Epilogue

 

(All sales figures are U.S. only)

 

  • July 8, 2000 – 3.8 million – The record-breaking initial print-run of Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire. 
 
  • July 11, 2000 – 3 million – Copies sold in the first weekend from the release of Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire breaking all publishing sales records.
 
  • March, 12, 2001 – Release of Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them and Quidditch Through the Ages with net proceeds to benefit Comic Relief, UK.
 
  • June 21, 2003 – 6.8 million – The record-breaking initial print-run of Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix.
 
  • June 22, 2003 – 5 million – Copies sold in the first 24 hours following the release of Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, breaking all publishing records.
 
  • July 16, 2005 – 10.8 million – The record-breaking initial print-run of Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince.
 
  • July 17, 2005 – 6.9 million – Copies sold in the first 24 hours following the release of Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince, breaking all publishing records.
 
  • June 14, 2006 – The Scholastic Kids and Family Reading Report reveals that 76% of parents say reading Harry Potter has helped their child do better in school.
 
  • August 1 & 2, 2006 – 2 sold-out nights of "Harry, Carrie & Garp" J.K. Rowling, Stephen King and John Irving read and answered questions for fans at Radio City Music Hall, benefiting Doctors without Borders and The Haven Foundation.
 
  • June 4 – July 20, 2007 – 40 libraries across the country visited by the Knight Bus where fans were invited to share on video their thoughts and feelings about the Harry Potter Books.
 
  • July 21, 2007 – 12 million – The record-breaking initial print-run of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows
 
  • July 22, 2007 – 8.3 million – Copies sold in the first 24 hours following the release of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, breaking all industry records.
 
  • August 2, 2007 –  11.5 million – Copies sold in the first 10 days following the release of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows.
 
  • October 15-19, 2007 – 2,000 – Books signed by J.K. Rowling at each of four free events on the Open Book Tour, where J.K. Rowling read, from Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows and answered questions at the Kodak Theater in Los Angeles, the New Orleans Convention Center and Carnegie Hall in New York City.
 
  • June 11, 2008 – The Scholastic Kids and Family Reading Report finds that 74% of kids say reading Harry Potter made them interested in reading other books.
 
  • September 23, 2008 – 7 ½ hours – Spent by hundreds of fans reading aloud J.K. Rowling's first book,Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone in its entirety at Scholastic’s "Cover to Cover" event in celebration of the tenth anniversary of the book’s publication.
 
  • December 3, 2008 – Scholastic releases The Tales of Beedle the Bard to benefit the Children's High Level Group, a charity co-founded in 2005 by J.K. Rowling and Baroness Nicholson of Winterbourne, MEP to make life better for vulnerable children.