Metallica's self-titled 1991 album, commonly called The Black Album, topped the album charts in ten countries.
The record reached No. 1 in the United States, the United Kingdom, Australia, Canada, Germany, New Zealand, Norway, the Netherlands, Sweden, and Switzerland. This broad performance showed that the album's appeal extended well beyond the band's established metal audience.
In the United States, the album became Metallica's first to reach the top of the Billboard 200. It remained at No. 1 for four consecutive weeks, a result that marked a major commercial milestone for the band.
The album also performed strongly in several places where it did not reach the top position. It reached the top five in Austria, Finland, and Japan, and the top ten in Spain. These international results helped establish Metallica as a global arena-level act.