How many copies of Metallica's 1991 album were sold in its first U.S. week?

Metallica's 1991 album, commonly called The Black Album, sold 598,000 copies in its first U.S. week.

That opening figure helped the album debut at number one on the Billboard 200, marking Metallica's first chart-topping album in the United States. The release arrived on August 12, 1991, after extensive anticipation built by the “Enter Sandman” single and its heavily played video.

The number is a first-week sales figure, not the album's lifetime total. The record continued selling for decades, eventually becoming one of the best-selling albums in U.S. history and a landmark of the Nielsen SoundScan era.

Sales figures can vary across sources when they refer to different territories, formats, reissues, or later certification totals. The 598,000 figure specifically describes U.S. copies sold during the album's initial week of availability, which is why it should not be confused with worldwide sales.