2016 Top 38 Girl Group Ranking

[myrrhcat.livejournal.com]

(youtube: Aaron J)

leopolitan posted last year's ranking, and here's the 2016 version! (or rather, the end-of-2015 version) It's objectively ranked based on sales figures, public recognition, etc. I transcribed the rankings from the video and compared each to last year.

* The plus/minus number next to each one denotes how much they went up or down in rank compared to last year. (~) means their rank stayed the same, and new groups that weren't on last year's list have no changes listed.

38. April
Digital Sales: 36
Physical Sales: 32
Korean Fandom: 33
International Fandom: 38
Public Recognition: 38

37. Sonamoo (-3)
Digital Sales: 37 (-3)
Physical Sales: 30 (-2)
Korean Fandom: 35 (-2)
International Fandom: 36 (-4)
Public Recognition: 37 (-3)

36. Stellar (-3)
Digital Sales: 35 (-1)
Physical Sales: 37 (-9)
Korean Fandom: 38 (-5)
International Fandom: 35 (-3)
Public Recognition: 29 (+5)

35. Sunny Hill (-3)
Digital Sales: 27 (+7)
Physical Sales: 38 (-10)
Korean Fandom: 34 (-1)
International Fandom: 37 (-5)
Public Recognition: 35 (-1)

34. SPICA (-7)
Digital Sales: 33 (-4)
Physical Sales: 36 (-5)
Korean Fandom: 37 (-7)
International Fandom: 32 (-10)
Public Recognition: 30 (-7)

33. CLC (+2)
Digital Sales: 38 (-3)
Physical Sales: 25 (+4)
Korean Fandom: 31 (+3)
International Fandom: 28 (+5)
Public Recognition: 36 (-1)

32. Fiestar (-1)
Digital Sales: 28 (+3)
Physical Sales: 33 (+1)
Korean Fandom: 36 (-5)
International Fandom: 29 (+1)
Public Recognition: 28 (+6)

31. BESTie (-3)
Digital Sales: 31 (-4)
Physical Sales: 34 (-8)
Korean Fandom: 28 (-1)
International Fandom: 27 (+1)
Public Recognition: 33 (-3)

30. 15& (-1)
Digital Sales: 20 (~)
Physical Sales: 35 (-2)
Korean Fandom: 32 (~)
International Fandom: 33 (-4)
Public Recognition: 31 (-3)

29. Oh My Girl
Digital Sales: 34
Physical Sales: 22
Korean Fandom: 26
International Fandom: 30
Public Recognition: 34

28. Ladies’ Code (-6)
Digital Sales: 26 (-4)
Physical Sales: 31 (-7)
Korean Fandom: 27 (-4)
International Fandom: 34 (-9)
Public Recognition: 24 (-4)

27. Hello Venus (-4)
Digital Sales: 32 (-5)
Physical Sales: 27 (-5)
Korean Fandom: 24 (-4)
International Fandom: 24 (-1)
Public Recognition: 32 (-6)

26. Rainbow (-2)
Digital Sales: 29 (-4)
Physical Sales: 28 (-5)
Korean Fandom: 30 (-4)
International Fandom: 22 (-2)
Public Recognition: 25 (-1)

25. Dal Shabet (+1)
Digital Sales: 21 (+5)
Physical Sales: 29 (-4)
Korean Fandom: 29 (-4)
International Fandom: 26 (~)
Public Recognition: 27 (-2)

24. Crayon Pop (-5)
Digital Sales: 30 (-12)
Physical Sales: 24 (-10)
Korean Fandom: 25 (-4)
International Fandom: 23 (-2)
Public Recognition: 21 (-6)

23. After School & Orange Caramel (-6)
Digital Sales: 25 (-9)
Physical Sales: 23 (-2)
Korean Fandom: 21 (-2)
International Fandom: 16 (-2)
Public Recognition: 23 (-9)

22. Davichi (-4)
Digital Sales: 7 (-1)
Physical Sales: 21 (-2)
Korean Fandom: 19 (-3)
International Fandom: 31 (-4)
Public Recognition: 19 (-3)

21. GFriend (+9)
Digital Sales: 9 (+23)
Physical Sales: 18 (+9)
Korean Fandom: 23 (+6)
International Fandom: 25 (+6)
Public Recognition: 20 (+13)

20. Nine Muses (~)
Digital Sales: 17 (+2)
Physical Sales: 20 (-2)
Korean Fandom: 20 (-2)
International Fandom: 18 (-1)
Public Recognition: 18 (~)

19. Twice
Digital Sales: 19
Physical Sales: 6
Korean Fandom: 22
International Fandom: 20
Public Recognition: 22

18. Secret (-6)
Digital Sales: 23 (-12)
Physical Sales: 15 (-2)
Korean Fandom: 17 (-5)
International Fandom: 17 (-2)
Public Recognition: 16 (-5)

17. Lovelyz (+4)
Digital Sales: 16 (+8)
Physical Sales: 11 (+4)
Korean Fandom: 11 (+3)
International Fandom: 21 (-3)
Public Recognition: 26 (+1)

16. Brown Eyed Girls (-3)
Digital Sales: 18 (-4)
Physical Sales: 26 (-6)
Korean Fandom: 12 (-4)
International Fandom: 14 (-2)
Public Recognition: 13 (~)

15. T-ara (-4)
Digital Sales: 24 (-9)
Physical Sales: 9 (-2)
Korean Fandom: 18 (-3)
International Fandom: 3 (~)
Public Recognition: 17 (~)

14. Mamamoo (+11)
Digital Sales: 10 (+11)
Physical Sales: 19 (+13)
Korean Fandom: 7 (+17)
International Fandom: 19 (+5)
Public Recognition: 15 (+7)

13. miss A (-4)
Digital Sales: 11 (-4)
Physical Sales: 17 (-5)
Korean Fandom: 15 (-5)
International Fandom: 13 (-4)
Public Recognition: 11 (-2)

12. KARA (-2)
Digital Sales: 22 (-5)
Physical Sales: 16 (-10)
Korean Fandom: 8 (-1)
International Fandom: 8 (-2)
Public Recognition: 12 (~)

11. Wonder Girls (+3)
Digital Sales: 14 (+9)
Physical Sales: 14 (+3)
Korean Fandom: 4 (-1)
International Fandom: 12 (-1)
Public Recognition: 10 (+9)

10. EXID (+5)
Digital Sales: 2 (+10)
Physical Sales: 12 (+4)
Korean Fandom: 14 (+3)
International Fandom: 15 (+4)
Public Recognition: 8 (+2)

9. 4minute (-1)
Digital Sales: 12 (-2)
Physical Sales: 10 (~)
Korean Fandom: 13 (-4)
International Fandom: 6 (+1)
Public Recognition: 9 (-1)

8. Red Velvet (+8)
Digital Sales: 6 (+7)
Physical Sales: 4 (+5)
Korean Fandom: 10 (+12)
International Fandom: 9 (+7)
Public Recognition: 14 (+7)

7. Sistar (-2)
Digital Sales: 4 (-3)
Physical Sales: 13 (-2)
Korean Fandom: 16 (-3)
International Fandom: 7 (+1)
Public Recognition: 2 (~)

6. Girl's Day (-2)
Digital Sales: 8 (-4)
Physical Sales: 8 (-3)
Korean Fandom: 3 (+1)
International Fandom: 11 (-1)
Public Recognition: 4 (-1)

5. AOA (+2)
Digital Sales: 3 (+2)
Physical Sales: 5 (+3)
Korean Fandom: 9 (+2)
International Fandom: 10 (+3)
Public Recognition: 6 (~)

4. f(x) (+2)
Digital Sales: 13 (-4)
Physical Sales: 3 (~)
Korean Fandom: 6 (~)
International Fandom: 4 (~)
Public Recognition: 7 (~)

3. 2NE1 (-1)
Digital Sales: 15 (-13)
Physical Sales: 7 (-3)
Korean Fandom: 5 (~)
International Fandom: 2 (~)
Public Recognition: 3 (+2)

2. APink (+1)
Digital Sales: 5 (-2)
Physical Sales: 2 (~)
Korean Fandom: 2 (~)
International Fandom: 5 (~)
Public Recognition: 5 (-1)

1. Girl's Generation (~)
Digital Sales: 1 (+7)
Physical Sales: 1 (~)
Korean Fandom: 1 (~)
International Fandom: 1 (~)
Public Recognition: 1 (~)

"This ranking was made objectively based on 5 categories:
-Digital sales (numbers of downloads from Gaon digital charts in 2015), previous achievements are also considered.
-Physical sales (numbers of album copies from Gaon 2015), previous achievements are also considered.
-Korean fandom (numbers of members in Daum fancafe and/or estimation of fans)
-International fandom (Youtube views, Facebook fanpages, fan sites, fan threads on major Kpop sites, news reports, international polls, music show voting...)
-Public regconition (Korean public popularity poll from Gallup, media coverage from major Korean internet sites ie. Naver, Newsen, Sports Chosun...)

All groups were then ranked separated in these categories and averaged to get to final ranking.

DIFFERENT METHOD CAN RESULT IN DIFFERENT RANKING. THIS RANKING REFLECTS MY METHOD.
NOTES:
-Some groups don’t have an official fan café (eg. Girl’s Generation, Red Velvet, 15&,…), estimation of fan based on other sources will be used.
-Groups with multiple comebacks in 2015 (Girl’s Generation, Lovelyz, April), only the title tracks count.
-Groups who haven’t made a comebacks in 2015 (2NE1, Secret, After School) will have a disadvantage, but previous achievements and/or expected sales based on previous sales will be used."

Comments

[hitthoselightz.livejournal.com]

i need my faves to rise like a phoenix

[aneeleniffum.livejournal.com]

Hahaha now you make me wanna go listen to that song *opens Youtube*

[phresine.livejournal.com]

Sunny Hill still hanging in there...!!!

"International Fandom: 36 (-4)" I don't think they even have an international fansite rn. :(

[kary1591.livejournal.com]

Yay! Lovelyz are higher than I imagined <3

[donutism.livejournal.com]

Aoa and girls day <3

[gray-fairy.livejournal.com]

A Pink is above 2ne1 now? o_o even tho if they're mostly counting the achievements from last year it makes sense. Do they count overall digital sales or just from title tracks? if we go only by title tracks then groups like aoa, miss a, sistar or even gfriend had more downloads than snsd, a pink or gsd but i guess they count overall album downloads.
Props to gfriend and twice for being so high despite being rookies and surprised @ lovelyz being so high. They don't seem particulary great in any of the categories but i don't really follow them so idk.

[gathyou.livejournal.com]

A-Choo actually did well, they sold quite a lot of physical copies, and For You also sold well despite having just three songs. It seems that they already have a llw-key, dedicated fanbase + they've been around for a while and have four different physical releases already
GFriend and Twice will surely be higher than them in the end of 2016 though

[fabulousdoll.livejournal.com]

I love Lovelyz so this makes me happy <3 A-Choo is one of my fave kpop MVs, is so cute ^_^

[gathyou.livejournal.com]

Me too I love them <3 I even posted a few posts here about them despite being shit with html and lj, lol.
Their cute jpop-ish sound is not for everyone, but I love it, and I'm impressed that they have such a cohesive discography so far. They have many good singers too. So much potential to grow!

[bloodtaki2.livejournal.com]

For some reasons, ah Choo keeps charting regularly in top 20-30 on Melon even now despite being a song released last year. Also, I've seen a couple of idol groups who sing to it on their variety shows, or even actors like park bo gum humming to it. If my memory serves me right, yoo Jae suk also showed that he knows the song on some variety show. So it might not have been a hit like gfriend's Rough, but there is some kind of hype.

[pippopippo.livejournal.com]

Yay Red Velvet and EXID!!

[leopolitan.livejournal.com]

i love that you added the ranking changes OP! really puts it in perspective

i think by next year, gfriend will have vaulted into the top 10. im surprised theyre behind lovelyz tbh
i really hope exid can keep rising. their hype is starting to slow down and hani's hiatus is risky. hopefully their next cb is a full album. #2 in digital sales is amazing though
sistar are probably going to start falling from now on. i think they passed their peak as a group. i dont mind bc im excited for their future individual careers!!

[gray-fairy.livejournal.com]

Lovelyz being higher than gfriend (and twice) surprised me too, because both have better digital sales and more public recognition/hype. You can argue that gfriend maybe doesn't have a big fandom yet but twice are def over lovelyz not only in digital sales and public rec but also in fandom power and physical sales too so idgi.

[myrrhcat.livejournal.com]

i think Rough most likely put gfriend ahead of lovelyz, but this ranking was made before that release. they're definitely going to keep rising!

[aneeleniffum.livejournal.com]

I'm actually Secret is doing quite well! I know they're a mess but I hope they'll release more catchy stuff like they did. Or any solo promos would be good cuz all Secret solos have been amazing!

[arysthaeniru.livejournal.com]

Yeah, I was expecting them to have dropped a lot lower than that, since they had no group cb in 2015, only hyosung's solo album, and then hyosung, jieun and sunhwa's acting. I was surprised by their sales and things, but I guess Hyo is a popular artist.

[shineebambi.livejournal.com]

tbh we might get one secret comeback before they go there seperate ways at the end of the year when contracts expire. Hyosung is having a solo comeback at the end of the month tho and im sure she and jieun will resign as solo artists ^__^

[seulgibear.livejournal.com]

i'm so happy to see red velvet that high! rise <3

[merylsteep.livejournal.com]

2NE1 \m/

[tree-star123.livejournal.com]

15& needs to comeback and 4minute needs better songs.

[eesor.livejournal.com]

yes please! with better songs!

[xxhna.livejournal.com]

GG forever slaying.


I'm happy to see rv & fx high!


This makes me curious about who will eventually take gg's place. I'm thinking ...gfriend maybe...or apink? Idk. Twice seem like they could be on their way.

[sayuridoll.livejournal.com]

yes red velvet<3
i need a secret and orange caramel comeback
hopefully once hyeri gets better, girls' day will give us a good comeback

plus, obligatory slay girls' generation

[ggumd.livejournal.com]

gg <3 9+ years and they are still number 1 slay and so happy for red velvet jumping up 8 spots, I feel like twice will jump like 10 spots next year if they keep killing it like they are now

[lazmy.livejournal.com]

seeing nm in top 20 was a surprise
stellar's public recognition went up but their sales and intl/krn fandom went down? sad

[pero, like (from livejournal.com)]

at least Kara died in the top 15

[nana-the-dwarf.livejournal.com]

I still don't know why Soshi doesn't have an official fan café, but then I remember those things are Korean members only so it doesn't matter anyway.

[lettace.livejournal.com]

i'm gonna have to respectfully disagree about lovely's public recognition lol

[gathyou.livejournal.com]

Thank you for sharing this, OP! It's really interesting.
Not surprised to see A Pink above 2NE1, they had a good year

[shocko-o.livejournal.com]

wow apink and aoa have come far

miss a :(

[ebenetwo.livejournal.com]

Stellar is gonna RISE ok

My sheer willpower alone will make it happen jaebal

[fabulousdoll.livejournal.com]

I love so many of this groups that I'm not sure which ones I want them to rise because it would mean other groups falling behind lol
Give love to everyone!!
I'm pretty sure my girls Twice are going to kill it for the next year. Her fans are "passionate" for good and bad U_U

[sethelaezekiel.livejournal.com]

Bestie:( with ujis vocals and dahyes thighs they should be the #1 gg!

[shineebambi.livejournal.com]

AHMEN!!!

[21banged.livejournal.com]

my loves 2NE1 hanging in there even tho they are probs gonna disband r i p

Nine Muses and Rainbow need to be higher, they have such solid jams :< Very very pleased with Mamamoo's progress doe, rise my babies riiiiiise

[bloodtaki2.livejournal.com]

Lol at people being surprised at lovelyz doing not half bad. It's like people who are surprised F(x) are a top tier gg group. Must people here don't pay attention to them, so I don't know how you would know how well they do in physical or digital sells. They don't have a hit song like gfriend or something, but they're not as irrelevant in Korea as they are irrelevant on omona. Lol

[burqaswag.livejournal.com]

Lovelyz!!! Come through babies

[jesymphony.livejournal.com]

Not surprised at Lovelyz doing well, but I hope they keep up the momentum T_T They were my pick to be the next great girl group but have been eclipsed by GFriend and it looks like Twice have been doing all the right things. Hopefully Lovelyz's career trajectory looks like Infinite - a few songs to make it big and then WHOOSH. Their vocalists and their cohesive discography/sound is just too good to be relegated to lower mid-tier.

[miwa201.livejournal.com]

lmao the only thing lovelyz have over gfriend is fandom, and twice has beaten them in everything else.
lol idk why but i irrationally dislike them especially kei

[frankoceans.livejournal.com]

ia