From TMNT to Berserk, These Are Industry's Top-Selling Graphic Novels

There was no shortage of outstanding comic book series and graphic novels made available for fans to purchase in 2024, with the likes of Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles and Berserk being a few major standouts. However, those two books were far from the only top-selling graphic novels of last year, as there is a comprehensive list of amazing books that fans just couldn’t get enough of. From TMNT to Berserk, these are the industry’s top-selling graphic novels of 2024!

ICv2: The Business of Geek Culture calculated the unit and dollar sales of graphic novels sold in 2024 using the data that was collected by the ComicHub system. Comic shops across the United States - and even around the world - use ComicHub, which tracks their sales to offer the most accurate breakdown of what graphic novels sold the most, which directly translates to which books fans enjoyed the most that year.Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: The Last Ronin and Berserk were a few of the standouts, to be sure, but those graphic novels were far from the only ones.

As previously mentioned, these graphic novels have been ranked in two separate categories: unit and dollar sales. So, what does that mean? Well, unit sales refers to the total number of individual items that were sold, while dollar sales refers to the total revenue from those sales. Therefore, there are a few discrepancies between the two rankings, but for the most part, these two Top 20 lists are practically identical, and together, they represent the all-time most popular graphic novels of 2024.

Source: ICv2

Spider-Man, Berserk, & TMNT: Why These Graphic Novels Were So Popular in 2024

A Breakdown of Some of the Stories Fans Liked the Most

Some of the titles that ranked the highest on these lists are Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: The Last Ronin, Ultimate Spider-Man, and Berserk. Those are the more mainstream graphic novels when compared with the more niche books, like Something is Killing the Children and Beneath The Trees Where Nobody Sees. That’s not to say the niche titles weren’t as popular as the mainstream ones (indeed, Something is Killing the Children is one of the highest graphic novels ranked), but the mainstream books are certainly more widely recognized, while also delivering stories fans clearly connected with.

So, what were some of these books about? Well, starting off with the top-spot on both lists, fans unanimously agreed that Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: The Last Ronin (hardcover edition) was their favorite graphic novel of 2024. That story followed Michelangelo aka the Last Ronin, seeking vengeance against the Foot Clan after the evil ninjas murdered his entire family. Not only that, but Mikey also sought to rid the world of the evil the Foot Clan was spreading all around the globe, and by the end of the comic, he succeeded in doing just that.

Ultimate Spider-Man ranked in the Top 5 on both lists, and upon taking a look at that story, it’s easy to see why. Ultimate Spider-Man follows a version of Peter Parker from the newly-introduced Ultimate Universe who’s in his 30s and married with children. But then, Parker’s life is changed when Tony Stark (in an effort to undo the damage the Maker had done to this timeline) gives Peter the radioactive spider that should have bitten him as a teenager. Peter’s destiny was stolen from him by the Maker, but thanks to Stark, he gets the chance to become Spider-Man.

Berserk (Dark Horse Comics hardcover Deluxe Edition Vol. 1) also ranked high on the Top 20 list. In this volume, readers are introduced to Guts aka the Black Swordsman, who has been marked by a demonic Brand, which effectively makes him a beacon for evil entities. Readers get to see Guts’ brutal fighting style, his life as a former mercenary, and his relationship with his first companion, Puck. Berserk Vol. 1 lays the groundwork for the epic tale that anime and manga fans everywhere know and love, and stands as one of the most popular stories in that genre.

One Comic Book Publisher was a Clear Winner: Image Comics

Why More Fans Bought Image Comics’ Graphic Novels than Any Other

While it’s clear to see how some of the more popular graphic novels earned their top-spots on these lists, it’s also important to take a look at which publisher came out on top. On both lists, the clear winner was Image Comics, which is actually a fascinating outcome. This proves that fans are just as interested in the more obscure books as they are in the mainstream ones, which allowed Image Comics to really cash-in, as Image offered fans a nice mixture of mature, niche titles along with those that are more widely recognized.

So, what Image Comics books sold the best? Invincible, Transformers, and Void Rivals (which takes place in Transformers continuity) are the most recognizable titles from Image Comics that fans clearly couldn’t get enough of. However, some of Image’s more obscure titles also sold extremely well, like Sage and Houses of the Unholy. It’s cool that some lesser-known graphic novels get the love they deserve in 2024, while at the same time, the more recognizable comics proved once again why they’re so popular. A healthy mix of niche and mainstream is important, and Image Comics certainly delivered in 2024.

2024’s Top-Selling Graphic Novels Prove Some Stories are Timeless

A Few Graphic Novels are Stories that are Years Old, Yet Still Sold Well in 2024

One of the coolest pieces of information derived from this data is that some comic book storylines are simply timeless, as they are still just as popular today as they were when they were first published. Arguably the biggest standout is Marvel Comics’ Secret Wars, which was published in 2015. A publisher like Marvel Comics releases a great number of company-wide ‘event comics’ every single year, so to see this one - which was always meant to be a definitive moment in Marvel Comics history - stand the test of time is truly remarkable.

Of course, Secret Wars isn’t the only ‘older’ comic that remains just as popular today as it was upon initial release, as that honor also goes to stories including Batman: Hush, All-Star Superman, and Watchmen. All these stories are truly timeless, and the fact that they sold so well in 2024 proves that. But, more than anything else, these ranking charts offer fans unparalleled insight into what fans enjoyed reading the most in 2024, from Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles to Berserk, and everything in-between.