1. Harry Potter Series by J.K. Rowling – 500 million copies

With more than 500 million copies sold worldwide, Rowling’s creation doesn’t just top the best-selling fantasy list, it tops them all. The first novel in the series, Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone, has sold over 120 million copies alone, while its successors (The Chamber of Secrets (1998), The Prisoner of Azkaban (1999), The Goblet of Fire (2000), The Order of the Phoenix (2003), The Half-Blood Prince (2005), The Deathly Hallows (2007)) have all broken the records as the fastest-selling books of all time.

2. The Lord of the Rings by J. R. R. Tolkien – 150 million copies

Just pipping its prequel to the post is another entry from Hobbit creator J. R. R. Tolkien, The Lord of the Rings. The epic high fantasy novel began life as a simple sequel to Tolkien’s earlier work but grew into something much larger, much lengthier, and just a little more popular (at least if its sales of 150 million-plus are anything to go by). The trilogy plunges us back into the world of Middle-Earth, resurrecting our old friend Bilbo Baggins and introducing us to some new faces along the way (some friendly, some, quite frankly, the stuff of nightmares). 

3. The Hobbit by J. R. R. Tolkien – 142 million copies

For over 70 years before Peter Jackson breathed cinematic life into the world of Bilbo Baggins, Gandalf, et al, Tolkien was doing a pretty good job of generating interest in Middle-Earth all by himself. With its stories of battles, adventures, dwarfs, wizards, dragons, and elves, The Hobbit checks off every item you’d expect to find in an epic fantasy novel… and the results speak for themselves.

Today, Tolkien’s masterpiece has sold in the region of 142 million copies worldwide. The film adaptation, meanwhile, has become one of the highest-grossing film series of all time, pulling in 1,021,103,568 in worldwide gross.

4. Le Petit Prince (The Little Prince) by Antoine de Saint-Exupéry – 140 million copies

Antoine de Saint-Exupéry’s most famous work, The Little Prince, gets extra credit as one of the few stand-alone additions to our list. Despite not having a huge franchise behind it, Saint-Exupéry’s masterful blend of fantasy, philosophy, and magical realism has still managed to shift over 140 million copies worldwide.

5. The Chronicles of Narnia by C. S. Lewis – Over 100 million copies

The series that inspired millions of children to wander aimlessly around in wardrobes is next up on our list. With its overtones of religion and morality, it may not sound a natural crowd-pleaser, but CS Lewis’ skillful mastery of the English language and delightful imagination makes this one collection you don’t want to miss.

According to moneyinc.com