This eliminates Britney, Rihanna, and Katy and leaves Beyonce, Adele, and P!nk.

First, by far.

Consistency.

For example, Katy never had a seller like The Fame, but in 2014 she still selling millions while Gaga has sold less than 700k in US and struggles to sell 2m WW.

P!nk is also a good example, she never had an era like BOMT or Stripped, but after more than a decade she is selling more than Britney and Xtina.

!!!
exactly.

Femme Fatale hasn't sold 2 million copies worldwide. It must've sold 20K at best last year.

Where are the lies?

More success>less success.

I would rather sell 1,000,000 albums a year for 50 years and end my career with 50,000,000 albums sold than go diamond in a year and never sell another album again.

Since Britney's first two albums sold so much more than all 5 of Bey's solo albums, then I guess I would prefer to have no consistency (though kii @ Britney also selling more than every Bey solo studio album despite having a radio ban the entire era).

Which one is going to continue on to sell more in the end is the key question

This.

Bey's first album was released in 2003 so no, Britney has never sold more than her.

The Britney Army only has receipts from pre-digital era because that's the only thing they've got left.

But my point still stands - which of the examples sold more, made more money in the long run from JUST the music (Bey's overall empire notwithstanding)?

If you gave me an artist who had an immediate peak like Adele-sized and the never sold another major amount in their life and provided an example contrary to that with an artist who sells consistently and has outsold the aforementioned artist-of-the-minute, then I'd side with "The Bey Track". Your OP doesn't clearly state that one must have outsold the other, but it's total final sales that would determine my standing on the issue. I have no preference of HOW my artist outsells others or how the others outsell my artist.

that doesn't make any sense because it blatantly ignores 85% britney's peak what's fairer is to have a look at DC album sales but many would question that.

Well if Bey is at 65 mill with DC, then she'd have to have 7 eras where the album sold just as much as Beyonce did to catch up with Britney. And that's only if Britney quit releasing

It doesn't make sense to say *insert artist here* has had more success than *insert artist here* based solely off of album sales - much of those achieved before the digital era where physically buying an album was the only way to have them.

Beyoncé has had more number-one songs (both solo and with Destiny's Child) than Britney, and has had more top ten songs (both solo and with Destiny's Child).

But they're quick to mention career longevity since Britney and Beyoncé have been in the music industry for the same amount of time.

AKA : Never

But again, that's not the point. The thread asks for which track I'd prefer for my fave with regard to albums sales. Based on albums sales, I would want my fave to experience success regardless of method. The examples provided weren't even my point initially - my point was, "which path is going to make my fave sell more?" Whichever path answers that question, regardless of whether it's a situation as in the OP or as I provided in which consistency wins out, I'd want that.