Are CDs worth collecting in 2026?
CDs are the last cheap physical format with genuinely great sound. Here's where to start.
Cheap, and still the best value physical format
A CD that costs three pounds today cost fifteen new. Whole discographies can be assembled for the price of two new vinyl LPs, and the sound is uncompressed and unworn.
Albums that never made it back to vinyl
Huge stretches of the 1985–2005 catalogue exist only on CD. Plenty of it has never been reissued in any format, which makes original CD pressings the only way to own it.
Where to start
Start with the reissues and box sets of albums you already know, dig the under-a-fiver shelves for chances, then move into Japanese pressings and limited editions once you know what you like.