Top 100 Music Albums of the 1990s
by 
RoundTheBend 
Re-evaluated the 90s. Listened to 229 albums all in about a month's time.
My own complaint about this chart is it is artist dense... but hell... that's my opinion of the decade. I'd rather listen to 5 Smashing Pumpkins albums before I listen to Pavement albums.
Part of me says limit the artist density to top 2 or something and then part of me says, dude, why would you not include a rated 90 album and replace it with a rated 80 album just to appease the wankers?
- Chart updated: 07/15/2018 18:15
- (Created: 01/16/2012 04:19).
- Chart size: 100 albums.
There are 16 comments for this chart from BestEverAlbums.com members and Top 100 Music Albums of the 1990s has an average rating of 86 out of 100 (from 25 votes). Please log in or create an account to leave a comment or assign a rating.
Log in or create an account to rate this chart, leave comments or join the discussion.
Available from
100
[First added to this chart: 01/26/2012]
Year of Release:
1991
Appears in:
Rank Score:
11,394
Rank in 1991:
Rank in 1990s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
Available from
97.5
[First added to this chart: 01/26/2012]
Year of Release:
1999
Appears in:
Rank Score:
13,955
Rank in 1999:
Rank in 1990s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
3. (6) 3
Safe Mode: On Certain images on this site may contain sensitive content and are flagged as 'unsafe'. BestEverAlbums.com does not display these images by default, but you may choose to show or hide these images from your profile page. If you choose to hide these images, you'll see an image with a warning message instead of the actual image. If you choose to show them, you'll see these images no differently than regular (safe) images.
Available from
96.9
[First added to this chart: 01/26/2012]
Year of Release:
1991
Appears in:
Rank Score:
35,666
Rank in 1991:
Rank in 1990s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
Available from
96.6
[First added to this chart: 01/26/2012]
Year of Release:
1997
Appears in:
Rank Score:
58,884
Rank in 1997:
Rank in 1990s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
Available from
96.5
[First added to this chart: 01/26/2012]
Year of Release:
1993
Appears in:
Rank Score:
1,633
Rank in 1993:
Rank in 1990s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
Available from
96.5
[First added to this chart: 01/26/2012]
Year of Release:
1993
Appears in:
Rank Score:
16,925
Rank in 1993:
Rank in 1990s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
Available from
96.2
[First added to this chart: 01/26/2012]
Year of Release:
1992
Appears in:
Rank Score:
18,402
Rank in 1992:
Rank in 1990s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
Available from
96
[First added to this chart: 01/26/2012]
Year of Release:
1992
Appears in:
Rank Score:
11,211
Rank in 1992:
Rank in 1990s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
Available from
95.7
[First added to this chart: 01/26/2012]
Year of Release:
1994
Appears in:
Rank Score:
8,664
Rank in 1994:
Rank in 1990s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
Available from
95.6
[First added to this chart: 04/13/2012]
Year of Release:
1999
Appears in:
Rank Score:
7,210
Rank in 1999:
Rank in 1990s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
Total albums: 100. Page 1 of 10
Don't agree with this chart? Create your own from the My Charts page!
Top 100 Music Albums of the 1990s composition
| Year | Albums | % | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1990 | 6 | 6% | |
| 1991 | 13 | 13% | |
| 1992 | 7 | 7% | |
| 1993 | 10 | 10% | |
| 1994 | 18 | 18% | |
| 1995 | 9 | 9% | |
| 1996 | 8 | 8% | |
| 1997 | 9 | 9% | |
| 1998 | 9 | 9% | |
| 1999 | 11 | 11% |
| Artist | Albums | % | |
|---|---|---|---|
|
|
|||
| The Smashing Pumpkins | 5 | 5% | |
| R.E.M. | 5 | 5% | |
| Beck | 4 | 4% | |
| Nirvana | 4 | 4% | |
| Pearl Jam | 4 | 4% | |
| Foo Fighters | 3 | 3% | |
| Red Hot Chili Peppers | 3 | 3% | |
| Show all | |||
Top 100 Music Albums of the 1990s chart changes
| Biggest climbers |
|---|
Up 10 from 16th to 6th |
Up 3 from 8th to 5th |
Up 3 from 7th to 4th |
| Biggest fallers |
|---|
Down 10 from 2nd to 12th |
Down 10 from 4th to 14th |
Down 8 from 3rd to 11th |
Top 100 Music Albums of the 1990s similar charts
| Title | Source | Type | Published | Country |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Top 100 Music Albums of the 1990s | shanelovesyou1111 | 1990s decade chart | 2021 | |
| Top 100 Music Albums of the 1990s |  StefanR10 | 1990s decade chart | 2020 |  |
| Top 100 Music Albums of the 1990s | elton229 | 1990s decade chart | 2012 |  |
| Top 100 Music Albums of the 1990s | Kettwig | 1990s decade chart | 2018 |  |
| Top 100 Music Albums of the 1990s | Finky | 1990s decade chart | 2025 | |
| Top 100 Music Albums of the 1990s | album guru joe | 1990s decade chart | 2012 |  |
| Top 100 Music Albums of the 1990s |  elo269megv | 1990s decade chart | 2019 | |
| Top 100 Music Albums of the 1990s | pdapperens | 1990s decade chart | 2015 |  |
| Top 100 Music Albums of the 1990s | NickyTBlizzad | 1990s decade chart | 2021 | |
| Top 100 Music Albums of the 1990s |  Montpejo | 1990s decade chart | 2025 |  |
Top 100 Music Albums of the 1990s similarity to your chart(s)
Not a member? Creating an account is quick, easy and FREE!
Join 50,000+ music fans
- Join a community of over 50,000 music fans.
- Create & share your own charts.
- Influence the overall album rankings.
- Post comments in the forums and vote on polls.
- Comment on or rate any album, artist, track or chart.
- Discover new music & improve your music collection.
- Customise the overall chart using a variety of different filters & metrics.
- Create a wishlist of albums.
- Unlock Dark Mode and other member features.
- Help maintain the BEA database.
- Earn member points and gain access to increasing levels of functionality!
- And much more.
Join now It only takes a moment.
Other decade charts by RoundTheBend
RoundTheBend has shared 6 more decade charts with the community. Browse them all here.| Title | Source | Type | Published | Country |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Top 100 Music Albums of the 2010s | RoundTheBend | 2010s decade chart | 2023 | |
| Top 100 Music Albums of the 2000s | RoundTheBend | 2000s decade chart | 2019 | |
Top 100 Music Albums of the 1990s ratings
Average Rating = (n ÷ (n + m)) × av + (m ÷ (n + m)) × AVwhere:
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 3 ratings for this chart. | Show all 25 ratings for this chart.
| Rating | Date updated | Member | Chart ratings | Avg. chart rating |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ! | 03/18/2019 05:06 |  Purplepash | 1,867 | 88/100 |
| ! | 03/17/2019 20:34 |  mickilennial | 715 | 77/100 |
| ! | 07/30/2018 19:58 |  ForegroundNoise | 472 | 87/100 |
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 charts can have several thousand ratings)
This chart has a Bayesian average rating of 86.1/100, a mean average of 85.6/100, and a trimmed mean (excluding outliers) of 86.2/100. The standard deviation for this chart is 9.5.
Please log in or create an account if you want to be able to leave a rating
Top 100 Music Albums of the 1990s favourites
Showing all 1 members who have added this chart as a favourite
Top 100 Music Albums of the 1990s forum mentions
This chart has been referenced 6 times on the forums, Explore the wider forum discussion to see what members have said about it.
From 
BestEverAlbums 07/27/2018 08:00 in Chart of the day (#2469): By sethmadsen
BestEverAlbums 07/27/2018 08:00 in Chart of the day (#2469): By sethmadsen“Today's chart of the day Top 100 Music Albums of the 1990s by sethmadsen () 1. Achtung Baby by U2 (1991) 2. Ágætis Byrjun by Sigur Rós (1999) 3. Nevermind by Nirvana (1991) 4. OK Computer by Radiohead (1997) 5. Zooropa by U2 (1993) 6. Siamese Dream by The Smashing Pumpkins (1993) 7. Automatic For…”
(2 mentions across Chart of the Day topics)View latest topic →
From RoundTheBend 05/23/2016 04:35 in Chart talk
RoundTheBend 05/23/2016 04:35 in Chart talk“Very excited to get to the 2010s... starting the 2000s now, but alas, I just finished my 1990s chart. I ended up going with double albums get a slightly weighted rating with rating only the top 13 songs on the album and therefore my top 2,3, and 4 albums came up from lower rankings:”
View post →From RoundTheBend 05/23/2016 00:46 in Good Bye, Lenin!
RoundTheBend 05/23/2016 00:46 in Good Bye, Lenin!“Well... I think I'm moving on from the 90s. There's probably tons more to discover, but I think what I'd discover I wouldn't be crazy about right away or at least wouldn't make my list. There's maybe 20 albums on the cusp of making my last 10 and so I kind of went with my gut on the last 10. Anyway…”
View topic (2 mentions) →View all forum mentions
Top 100 Music Albums of the 1990s comments
Showing latest 5 comments | Show all 16 comments |
Top Comments First | Newest First | Positive Sentiment First | Longest Comments First
(Showing comments with any number of votes. Manage Profile)
Top Comments First | Newest First | Positive Sentiment First | Longest Comments First
(Showing comments with any number of votes. Manage Profile)
From
Grzywa 05/24/2016 07:48 | #166760
Grzywa 05/24/2016 07:48 | #166760
So... a praise anthem for 1990s which proves once for all that it was the last time the guitar ruled the world. Happy high school days, and even though I was strongly hooked on post punk/gothic rock/psychedelic genres back then, I always recognised the value in Nirvana, Smashing Pumpkins, etc. I'll have to check out 'The Carnival' and Yo-Yo Ma/McFerrin collaboration. Solid work as ever, mate !
Helpful? (Log in to vote) · 2
Log in to reply
From
buzzdainer TOP 100 COMMENTER 09/08/2016 17:23 | #174551
buzzdainer TOP 100 COMMENTER 09/08/2016 17:23 | #174551
Thanks for your honest assessment of the decade rather than appeasing the wankers. Seriously, this is a kickass nineties chart, and I'm so glad you took the time to listen to so many albums and reassess them. That's a project I'd like to undertake myself sometime, which would give me an opportunity to listen to some of the material on your chart that I think deserves a fresh listen: The Carnival, for example, and Ágætis Byrjun. And of course, I like the places where our charts overlap; I love OK Computer (doesn't everyone?), Nevermind, Grace, and Dummy, for starters. Terrific chart!
Helpful? (Log in to vote) · 1
Log in to reply
From
Mr. Shankly TOP 100 COMMENTER 01/29/2012 10:50 | #36129
Mr. Shankly TOP 100 COMMENTER 01/29/2012 10:50 | #36129
You've got the mainstream alternative side of the equation covered pretty well, but you're missing a lot of the best music from the 90's. I would advise you to check out some of the great indie rock of the period. Check out Pavement, Guided by Voices, Built to Spill, The Flaming Lips, Yo La Tengo, Belle and Sebastian, Neutral Milk Hotel, Liz Phair's first album, and many more. Happy listening.
Helpful? (Log in to vote) · 1
Log in to reply
From
ForegroundNoise 07/31/2018 13:19 | #218989
ForegroundNoise 07/31/2018 13:19 | #218989
Really great chart! Love loads of the picks (especially Ágætis Byrjun at #2 - wow that album is good) though maybe a little too much emphasis on American alt-rock for my liking. Here's a few of my faves from outside the US that hopefully you might enjoy it you haven't heard already. Keep it up man!!
Talk Talk - Laughing Stock
Fishmans - Long Season
Susumu Yokota - Sakura
Oval - 94 Diskont
Autechre - Tri Repetae
Helpful? (Log in to vote) · 1
Log in to reply
From
5thbeatle 12/26/2012 20:24 | #58965
39 in common with my own, can't disagree with much, nice inclusion of Primus
Helpful? (Log in to vote) · 2
Log in to reply
What do you think of this chart? Join the conversation!!
Log in or create an account to rate this chart, leave comments or join the discussion.
