The Life of a Showgirl spent 12 weeks at number one on the Billboard 200.
Those 12 weeks were non-consecutive, meaning the album returned to the top after other releases temporarily occupied the position. The achievement made it Swift’s second-longest-running number-one album.
Her longest-running leader remained The Tortured Poets Department, which spent 17 weeks at number one. That comparison is why 17 weeks is a plausible but incorrect answer for Showgirl.
The Billboard 200 ranks albums in the United States using a combination of album sales, equivalent album units, and streaming activity. Showgirl’s record-breaking physical and digital performance contributed substantially to its extended chart run.