The top-selling products in every decade from the 40s to the noughties

Most popular consumer goods from the 1940s to the 2000s

Robee Shepherd/Contributor/Getty Images

In the mood for some serious nostalgia? Whether you're a Baby Boomer, Generation X-er or Millennial, read on to see the top-selling products the decade you were born.

1940s: Hoover Model 27

Courtesy Hoover

Production of many consumer goods ceased during World War II, including vacuum cleaners. Factories started making appliances again in 1945 and the Hoover Model 27, launched that same year, was North America's top-seller during the decade. The smaller, more affordable Hoover Senior was number one in the UK.

1940s: Forever Amber by Kathleen Winsor

Courtesy Macmillan

Controversial at the time, this racy 1944 historical novel topped the best-seller lists throughout the 1940s, selling three million copies in the USA alone. The book is also credited with popularizing Amber as a girl's name during the latter half of the 20th century.

1940s: Sunbeam Coffeemaster

Sunbeam

Percolators were the coffee makers of choice in households worldwide before they were usurped by drip coffee machines in the 1970s. During the 1940s, the biggest-selling percolator was Sunbeam's Coffeemaster.

1940s: Chevrolet Fleetline Aerosedan

Sicnag Flickr CC

Like many other consumer goods, automobile production ground to a halt during wartime and resumed in 1945. Chevrolet was the number one marque in North America during the decade, Austin was the UK's top-seller, while Holden dominated the market Down Under.

1940s: Slinky

Courtesy Original Slinky

Invented by naval engineer Richard T. James in 1943, the $1 Slinky toy sold out following its first department store demo in Philadelphia in 1945, and James went on to sell 100 million Slinkys during the late 1940s.

1940s: Kenmore Automatic Washer

Courtesy Kenmore archives

Spelling the end for manual washing machines, the Kenmore Automatic Washer was launched in the mid-1940s at Sears, Roebuck in the US. Despite its price tag of $239.95, a hefty $3,000 in today's money, it became the best-selling washing machine of the decade in North America.

1950s: Chevrolet Bel Air

Courtesy Chevrolet

Chevrolet was the top-selling marque of the 1950s in North America, shifting more than 13.4 million units, and the gorgeous Bel Air model was its flagship car. Down Under, the Holden FJ was the best-seller while in the UK the Morris Minor was tops.

1950s: RCA Victor TV

Roadsidepictures Flickr CC

Although only 0.5% of US households had a television in 1946, 55.7% had one in 1954, and by the end of the decade most American families owned a set. An attractive black and white TV, the RCA Victor was the most popular model of the 1950s.

1950s: From Here to Eternity by James Jones

Courtesy Charles Scribner's Sons

The decade's best-selling book and James Jones' debut novel, From Here to Eternity won the National Book Award and was made into a classic Oscar-winning movie starring Burt Lancaster and Deborah Kerr.

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1950s: Matchbox

Todd Lapin Flickr CC

In 1953, Matchbox toy cars were launched in the UK by Lesney Products and the brand went on to conquer the world. Millions of the tiny cars were sold until rival Hot Wheels overtook Matchbox during the 1970s.

1950s: Silly Putty

Courtesy Crayola

Invented during World War II, Silly Putty, which is made from squidgy silicone, was marketed as a toy during the 1950s and became a major craze. At one point during the decade, 250,000 Silly Putty eggs were sold in just three days.

1950s: Sony TR-610

Courtesy Sony

An almost-mandatory gadget for teenagers at the time, the pocket transistor radio made its first appearance in 1954. By the late 1950s, the gizmos were ubiquitous. Sony's TR-610 model, which was released in 1958, was the first transistor radio to sell more than half a million units.

1950s: Bic Cristal

Vangelis Vassalakis/Shutterstock

The quintessential ballpoint pen was launched in France in December 1950 by entrepreneur Marcel Bich and was soon selling in the millions, hitting the North American market in 1959. By 2006, a whopping 100 billion Bic Cristal pens had been sold.

1960s: Sunbeam Mixmaster

Courtesy Sunbeam/Etsy

In North America, Australia and New Zealand, the slick Sunbeam Mixmaster was the best-selling food mixer of the 1960s, while the Kenwood Chef was the top cooking gadget in UK kitchens.

1960s: Sony Trinitron

Courtesy Sony

The first properly modern color TV, Sony introduced the Trinitron in 1968. An instant success, the original 12-inch model outclassed the competition in terms of picture quality and ease of use. Sony went on to sell 100 million Trinitron TVs before the brand was ditched in 2008.

1960s: Chevrolet Impala

AllenW/Shutterstock

America's most popular 1960s car, the Chevrolet Impala sold over a million units in 1965, the highest annual sales volume ever achieved by a vehicle in the US. The BMC AD016 outclassed the competition in the UK, while the Holden EH came out tops in Australia and New Zealand.

1960s: Western Electric 500

Irina Silayeva/Shutterstock

The Western Electric 500 was the standard phone issued by the Bell System and a feature of most American homes during the 1960s. Over in the UK, the GPO Type 706 was adopted in hundreds of thousands of households following its launch in 1968.

1960s: Valley of the Dolls by Jacqueline Susann

Bernard Geis Wikimedia Commons

Despite poor reviews, Jacqueline Susann's novel about three women who become dependent on prescription pills ('dolls') was a publishing juggernaut in the 1960s. An incredible 31 million copies of the book have been sold since its release in 1966.

1960s: Kodak Instamatic 104

Courtesy Kodak

The Instamatic series was Kodak's most lucrative line – 60 million units were shifted during the 1960s and 1970s. The Instamatic 104, which hit the stores in 1963, was one of its best-sellers. The camera retailed for $20 at the time, around $130 in today's money.

1960s: Barbie

RomitaGirl67 Flickr CC

The most wished-for doll of the decade in the USA, Canada and Down Under, Mattel's Barbie flew off toy store shelves during the 1960s, selling in the millions. In the UK, however, the more realistic-looking Sindy doll was more popular.

1970s: Polaroid OneStep Land Camera

Courtesy Polaroid

Instant color photography was all the rage in the 1970s and the SX-70 Polaroid OneStep was the decade's biggest-selling instant camera. First manufactured in 1977, the device was much cheaper than its predecessors with a release price of $40, around $160 in today's money.

1970s: Oldsmobile Cutlass

Chad Horwedel Flickr CC

A handsome yet affordable automobile, the Oldsmobile Cutlass was North America's biggest-selling car during the 1970s. Elsewhere, the Ford Cortina was tops in the UK and the Holden Kingswood dominated the market Down Under.

1970s: Texas Instruments TI-30

Courtesy Texas Instruments

Personal computers didn't come cheap in the 1970s, so many tech fans opted for a pocket calculator instead. The Ti-30 from Texas Instruments, which was released in 1976, was the most popular calculator of the decade.

1970s: Hot Wheels

Wade Brooks Flickr CC

Overtaking competitor Matchbox cars in sales, Mattel's tiny Hot Wheels toy cars sold in their millions during the 1970s. As it was gaining market share, Mattel came up with the slogan 'Go with the winner' to entice people away from Matchbox.

1970s: Atari 2600

Evan Amos Wikimedia Commons

The Atari 2006 was launched in 1977 as the Atari Video Computer System. The first successful mass-market console, the gadget popularized fondly-remembered games such as Pac-Man, Pong and Combat.

1970s: TI-500

Joe Haupt Flickr CC

The first-ever commercial digital watch, the Hamilton Pulsar P1 was launched in 1972 and cost as much as a small car. By the late 1970s, digital watches had plummeted in price and the best-selling model of the decade, the 1976 Texas instruments TI-500, was priced at just $20, which is $85 in today's money.

1970s: Little Professor

Courtesy Texas Instruments

Another Texas Instruments best-seller, the Little Professor was marketed as the world's first electronic educational toy. More than a million of the gizmos were sold during the 1977 holiday season in North America.

1980s: Sony Walkman WM-2

Courtesy Sony

Before the Game Boy arrived on the scene, the Walkman was the portable gadget du jour. The most popular model, the WM-2, was launched in 1981. All in all, Sony sold 1.5 million units of this iconic personal cassette player during the 1980s. Overall cassette Walkman sales have topped 186 million units worldwide.

1980s: Ford Escort

Courtesy Ford

The Ford Escort was the best-selling car in North America, the UK and Australia throughout the 1980s. Not the most glamorous of vehicles by a long stretch, the reliable car clearly made up in popularity what it lacked in style.

1980s: Rubik's Cube

Popartic Shutterstock

You couldn't move for these things in the 1980s – If you didn't own one, it's likely at least one of your friends did. Baffling kids the world over, the Rubik's Cube craze really did take the planet by storm in the early 1980s. In fact, from 1980 to 1983 alone, over 200 million were sold.

1980s: Cabbage Patch Kids

Courtesy Coleco/Wicked Cool Toys

An equally frenzied craze, Cabbage Patch Kids featured in many a letter to Santa in the 1980s and fights even broke out in toy stores as parents fought to get their hands on the coveted dolls. In total, 65 million Cabbage Patch Kids were 'adopted' during the decade.

1980s: Commodore 64

Bill Bertram, CC BY-SA 2.5 <https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.5>, via Wikimedia Commons

Old-school computing heaven, the Commodore 64 was North America's top-selling PC during the 1980s, with 17 million units sold. Over in Europe, the ZX Spectrum ruled the roost. Its total sales amounted to around five million.

1980s: Nintendo Entertainment System

Courtesy Nintendo

The Nintendo Entertainment system was the decade's biggest-selling video game console. Just under 62 million units were sold in the 1980s, beating the rival Sega Genesis console by a comfortable 31 million. Super Mario Bros. was the decade's number one game.

1980s: Speak & Spell

Courtesy Texas Instruments

Every nerd's most-wanted toy, the educational gadget with the robotic voice sold like hot cakes after it made a star appearance in 1982's E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial, the decade's highest-grossing movie.

1990s: Nokia 3210

Courtesy Nokia

Before Apple stole its thunder in the late 2000s, Nokia was of course untouchable and its reliable 3210 handset, which launched in 1999, went on to sell in the hundreds of millions. Cutting-edge features like predictive texting and customizable ringtones cemented the cellphone's success.

1990s: Ford Taurus

Courtesy Ford

The Ford Taurus was North America's best-selling car for most of the 1990s, standing its ground until 1997, when Toyota muscled in to take the top spot. Across the pond in the UK, another Ford car reigned supreme, the compact Fiesta.

1990s: Motorola Bravo

Courtesy Motorola

Earlier on in the decade, cellphones were the preserve of hotshot executives, while everyone else, particularly in North America, relied on a pager like the Motorola Bravo to communicate on the move. Yet by the 2000s, only doctors and drug dealers were still using the things.

1990s: The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho

Courtesy HarperCollins

While it was first published in 1988, Brazilian writer Paulo Coelho's The Alchemist wasn't a global sensation until the 1990s. The best-selling novel of the decade, a total of 65 million copies of the allegorical tale were sold from 1990 to 1999.

1990s: Tamagotchi

Courtesy Bandai

If you were a kid in the 1990s, there's a strong chance you owned one of these digital handheld pets, which no doubt died on you far too many times to count. The fad, which kicked off in 1997, spilled over into the 2000s. By 2010, over 76 million Tamagotchis had been sold worldwide.

1990s: Sony PlayStation

Courtesy Sony

The first incarnation of Sony's PlayStation console was released in 1995 in North America and the following year in Europe and Down Under. A resounding success, over 70 million were sold by 1999, making the PlayStation the most popular console of the decade.

1990s: Nintendo Game Boy

Courtesy Nintendo

Sony may have dominated the home video game console market, but Nintendo's Game Boy was the king of the portable consoles during the decade. Debuting in 1989, the must-have gizmo was super-popular in the 1990s, with a total of 118.69 million units sold.

2000s: Apple iPod

Courtesy Apple

Released in October 2001, Apple's portable media player was a runaway success from the get-go, selling 125,000 by the end of the year and finally killing off the portable CD player. Fast forward to 2010 and Apple had sold 225 million iPods, having cornered the MP3 market with a 74% share.

2000s: Nokia 1100

Courtesy Nokia

A staggering 250 million Nokia 1100 handsets were sold from 2003 to 2009, mostly in developing countries, making it the biggest-selling cellphone of the 2000s. In contrast, Apple shifted 42.5 million iPhones during the decade.

2000s: Sony PlayStation2

Courtesy Sony

Sony won the console wars during the 2000s, offloading more than 155 million PlayStation2 devices, the trailblazing console it launched in 2000. The Nintendo DS takes the number two spot with 154 million units sold.

2000s: Toyota Camry

Courtesy Toyota

The trusty Toyota Camry was the best-selling car in North America and Australia in the 2000s, while another Toyota model, the Corolla, is the best-seller of all time, with 45 million units sold. Over in Britain, the Ford Focus garnered the top spot during the decade.

2000s: Garmin Nuvi 350

Courtesy Garmin

In 2000, the US government removed GPS restrictions and a flood of sat-nav devices entered the market, rendering paper maps pretty much obsolete. Hitting stores in 2005 and selling in the millions, the Garmin Nuvi 350 was the most popular GPS gadget of the decade.

2000s: The Da Vinci Code by Dan Brown

Courtesy Doubleday

Easily the best-selling book of the 2000s, Dan Brown's gripping conspiracy-fiction novel hit the shelves in 2003. By 2010, over 80 million copies had been sold, beating the second best-seller of the decade, Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince, by a cool 15 million.

2000s: Amazon Kindle

Courtesy Amazon

Though paper books are still with us, Amazon's game-changing e-book reader has saved countless trees nonetheless. The device, which remains the world's top-selling e-reader, was released in 2007 and soon destroyed the competition, with three million units sold by 2010.

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