Our verified census holds 3,050 independent record shops across 30 countries as of September 2026. This is not a count of every record shop on earth — it covers the markets we have mapped, which are North America and Europe. Shops open and close constantly, so the figure is a snapshot rather than a permanent total.

The United States, with 1,156 verified shops — 44% of the census. The United Kingdom is second with 269 and Germany third with 210. Measured per head of population rather than in absolute numbers the ranking changes completely, with Greece, Belgium and the Netherlands rising sharply.

4.70 out of 5, across 751,137 Google reviews. The figure barely moves between countries: every market with more than ten verified shops falls between 4.57 and 4.82.

No. Big-box retailers and chains that sell vinyl alongside other categories were removed from the census in September 2026. They carry very large review counts that would distort every average, and they are not what people mean by a record shop. The Vinyl Radar still lists some of them as places to buy vinyl, but they are excluded from these statistics.

Public Google Business Profile data — name, location, rating, review count, opening hours and category — cross-checked against each shop's own website where one exists. Every shop in the census has an individual profile page on the Vinyl Radar showing the same data, so any figure here can be traced back to a single source.

The census is refreshed periodically and the date of the last update is shown at the top of this page. Ratings and review counts drift constantly, so a figure quoted six months from now may differ slightly from what you see today. Cite the date alongside the number.

Write to admin@keepthemspinning.com and tell us what you need. We are happy to pull a country, a city, or a cut we have not published here for anyone writing about the sector.