Reasonable Doubt (studio album)
by Jay-Z

Reasonable Doubt by Jay-Z
Year: 1996
Overall rank: 788th   Overall chart historyOverall chart history
Average Rating: 
76/100 (from 519 votes)
  Ratings distributionRatings distribution   Average rating historyAverage rating history
Accolades:
Award Top 20 albums of 1996 (12th)
Award Top albums of the 1990s (138th)
Award Top 1,000 albums of all time (788th)

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JAY-Z REASONABLE DOUBT ROC-A-FELLA P150592 US ORIGINAL Mcrds VINYL 2LP
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JAY-Z Reasonable Doubt (Debut LP) 1996 Cassette Tape Original Authentic (RARE!!)
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Jay-Z Reasonable Doubt OG Pressing 12” VINYL LP SUPER RARE 1996 Roc A Fella A-1
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Jay-Z bestography

Reasonable Doubt is ranked 2nd best out of 16 albums by Jay-Z on BestEverAlbums.com.

The best album by Jay-Z is The Blueprint which is ranked number 523 in the list of all-time albums with a total rank score of 3,333.

Jay-Z album bestography « Higher ranked (523rd)
The Blueprint
This album (788th)
Reasonable Doubt
Lower ranked (942nd) »
The Black Album

(N.B. Bestographies include all albums by an artist (and their variations), but do not include albums ranked outside the top 100,000).

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Los Terricolas De Nestor Daniel
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06
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Plague Vendor and Strawberry Fuzz with The Schizophonics
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02
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Reasonable Doubt track list

  Track ratingsTrack ratings The tracks on this album have an average rating of 80 out of 100 (all tracks have been rated).

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Reasonable Doubt rankings

Reasonable Doubt collection

Reasonable Doubt ratings

Average Rating: 
76/100 (from 519 votes)
  Ratings distributionRatings distribution Average Rating = (n ÷ (n + m)) × av + (m ÷ (n + m)) × AV
where:
av = trimmed mean average rating an item has currently received.
n = number of ratings an item has currently received.
m = minimum number of ratings required for an item to appear in a 'top-rated' chart (currently 10).
AV = the site mean average rating.

Showing latest 5 ratings for this album. | Show all 519 ratings for this album.

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RatingDate updatedMemberAlbum ratingsAvg. album rating
 
75/100
 Report rating
07/01/2025 22:17 Nacho212  Ratings distributionRatings distribution 1,85772/100
 
60/100
 Report rating
05/16/2025 20:41 thepardunk  Ratings distributionRatings distribution 2,52670/100
 
75/100
 Report rating
05/12/2025 13:51 CharonBri  Ratings distributionRatings distribution 1,00175/100
 
80/100
 Report rating
04/24/2025 06:54 dukeboxkool  Ratings distributionRatings distribution 1,92972/100
 
65/100
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02/24/2025 18:08 paladisiac  Ratings distributionRatings distribution 7,24765/100

Rating metrics: Outliers can be removed when calculating a mean average to dampen the effects of ratings outside the normal distribution. This figure is provided as the trimmed mean. A high standard deviation can be legitimate, but can sometimes indicate 'gaming' is occurring. Consider a simplified example* of an item receiving ratings of 100, 50, & 0. The mean average rating would be 50. However, ratings of 55, 50 & 45 could also result in the same average. The second average might be more trusted because there is more consensus around a particular rating (a lower deviation).
(*In practice, some albums can have several thousand ratings)

This album is rated in the top 4% of all albums on BestEverAlbums.com. This album has a Bayesian average rating of 76.4/100, a mean average of 74.5/100, and a trimmed mean (excluding outliers) of 76.5/100. The standard deviation for this album is 22.0.

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Reasonable Doubt comments

Showing latest 10 comments | Show all 28 comments |
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Rating:  
75/100
From 01/02/2025 12:39
Album Rating: 76.50
(1,071/14)

Jay-Z (RD - US - Jun 96) - Reasonable Doubt

25.06.1996

1.Jay-Z (RD - US - Jun 96) - Can't Knock The Hustle (Feat. Mary J.Blige) 84
2.Jay-Z (RD - US - Jun 96) - Politics As Usual 80
3.Jay-Z (RD - US - Jun 96) - Brooklyn's Finest (Feat. The Notorious B.I.G.) 79
4.Jay-Z (RD - US - Jun 96) - Dead Presidents II 84
5.Jay-Z (RD - US - Jun 96) - Feelin' It 86
6.Jay-Z (RD - US - Jun 96) - D'evils 78
7.Jay-Z (RD - US - Jun 96) - 22 Two's 71
8.Jay-Z (RD - US - Jun 96) - Can I Live 84
9.Jay-Z (RD - US - Jun 96) - Ain't No Nigga (Feat. Foxy Brown) 64
10.Jay-Z (RD - US - Jun 96) - Friend Or Foe 68
11.Jay-Z (RD - US - Jun 96) - Coming Of Age (Feat. Memphis Bleek) 70
12.Jay-Z (RD - US - Jun 96) - Cashmere Thoughts 70
13.Jay-Z (RD - US - Jun 96) - Bring It On (Feat. Big Jaz, Sauce Money) 73
14.Jay-Z (RD - US - Jun 96) - Regrets 80

Ranked in order:

* Jay-Z (RD - US - Jun 96) - Feelin' It 86
* Jay-Z (RD - US - Jun 96) - Can I Live 84
* Jay-Z (RD - US - Jun 96) - Can't Knock The Hustle (Feat. Mary J.Blige) 84
* Jay-Z (RD - US - Jun 96) - Dead Presidents II 84
* Jay-Z (RD - US - Jun 96) - Politics As Usual 80
* Jay-Z (RD - US - Jun 96) - Regrets 80
* Jay-Z (RD - US - Jun 96) - Brooklyn's Finest (Feat. The Notorious B.I.G.) 79
* Jay-Z (RD - US - Jun 96) - D'evils 78
* Jay-Z (RD - US - Jun 96) - Bring It On (Feat. Big Jaz, Sauce Money) 73
* Jay-Z (RD - US - Jun 96) - 22 Two's 71
* Jay-Z (RD - US - Jun 96) - Cashmere Thoughts 70
* Jay-Z (RD - US - Jun 96) - Coming Of Age (Feat. Memphis Bleek) 70
* Jay-Z (RD - US - Jun 96) - Friend Or Foe 68
* Jay-Z (RD - US - Jun 96) - Ain't No Nigga (Feat. Foxy Brown) 64
#306767 | Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | -1 votes (0 helpful | 1 unhelpful)
Rating:  
95/100
From 06/07/2024 20:44
Smooth production and a good flow from Jay-Z. He clearly is not yet at his peak, although it is still a strong debut. The first half is much stronger than the second half. 9.5/10!
#303899 | Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | 0 votes (0 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
Rating:  
100/100
From 01/11/2022 19:15
Hov's best album and a magnificent lyrical display. Incredible production!
#279163 | Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | +1 votes (1 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
Rating:  
75/100
From 12/12/2020 14:33
Production, lyrics, delivery, everything works. A classic for a reason.
#262595 | Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | -1 votes (0 helpful | 1 unhelpful)
Rating:  
70/100
From 11/08/2020 15:01
A few memorable moments, but not much that sticks with me.
#260370 | Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | -1 votes (0 helpful | 1 unhelpful)
Rating:  
85/100
From 07/15/2020 19:16
Good rap album a little bit over average but jay-z is smooth on this record. Favorite song: Dead Presidents II
#255634 | Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | 0 votes (0 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
Rating:  
75/100
From 06/27/2020 02:53
Nearly the entire first half of Reasonable Doubt is stellar. Effortlessly engaged from the beginning with a particularly good opening track. There's a bit to sift through as the album enters its 3rd quarter, but overall so much incredible word play and tremendous drum sound. A great record.
#254589 | Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | 0 votes (0 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
Rating:  
80/100
From 12/27/2019 09:58
Jay-Z just really seems to be more in his element in the '90s. "Jay-Z, Big Smalls nigga, shit ya draws" is the type of hip hop obnoxiousness I can stomach because of the perfect amount of humor. The flow really is off the charts on this one. Where had it gone after the turn of the milennium? Maybe still there though, the beats just don't fit anymore, he need that boom bap.
#245969 | Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | -1 votes (0 helpful | 1 unhelpful)
Rating:  
80/100
From 11/09/2019 02:49
This really sounds more pure... if you will. It's Jay-Z without the artificial colour or flavour.
#244572 | Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | -1 votes (0 helpful | 1 unhelpful)
Rating:  
75/100
From 05/13/2018 22:31
Pretty cool, on first listen. I think its score will rise.

75/100 (Above Average)
#214770 | Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | 0 votes (0 helpful | 0 unhelpful)

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Best Albums of 1996
1. If You're Feeling Sinister by Belle And Sebastian
2. Pinkerton by Weezer
3. Endtroducing..... by DJ Shadow
4. Ænima by Tool
5. Odelay by Beck
6. Long Season by フィッシュマンズ [Fishmans]
7. Soundtracks For The Blind by Swans
8. ATLiens by OutKast
9. Everything Must Go by Manic Street Preachers
10. Tigermilk by Belle And Sebastian
11. The Score by Fugees
12. Reasonable Doubt by Jay-Z
13. Richard D. James Album by Aphex Twin
14. Murder Ballads by Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds
15. New Adventures In Hi-Fi by R.E.M.
16. Beautiful Freak by Eels
17. Sublime by Sublime
18. Being There by Wilco
19. On Avery Island by Neutral Milk Hotel
20. Emperor Tomato Ketchup by Stereolab
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