Originally posted by cancer Britney was definitely bigger musically during Circus though. She started off very strong and was the highest debuting album by a female WW in 2008. She just stopped promoting right after the album came out whereas Beyonce continued promoting her album for 2 years straight and even released single after single. Had Britney done the same Circus would have outsold IASF. Britney's name was definitely bigger up until the BJ era.

Originally posted by Ascension The end result was still IASF selling 8m to Circus' 4m and 34m+ singles to Circus' 16m+. Bey was bigger commercially regardless of the excuses. And Bey was a bigger celeb/greater media presence than Britney since 2011; they were about even in press going from early 2009 (after Britney's initial come back after the breakdown buzz died down and SL had exploded into a full blown pop cultural phenomenon) up until 2011. The only angles you can argue for Britney in this comparison was that Britney was a bigger celebrity up to the time period following the breakdown/Circus era's initial "comeback" push, Circus Tour outgrossed IASF tour and that the FF singles were more successful than 4's.

Well the thread isn't asking "who sold more?". If that were the case the answer would be objective and there would be no need for a discussion.
It's asking "who was bigger?" which requires more critical thinking and considering different factors such as Who was in the public eye more? Beyonce. Who released more singles? Beyonce. Which era lasted longer? IASF. Who's slayage was more effortless? Britney's. etc.
Both ladies were really big in that time frame but even by living through both eras I can say without hesitation that Britney not only was the bigger star but also had more selling power to her name.
Her team ****ed it all up with how they handled her career the second they started doing the disastrous promo for FF. They tarnishing of Britney's name took another hit in 2012 when she was a judge on the X-Factor (co-star Demi Lovato, mind you ), I don't even have to mention how much 2013's BJ ruined her brand, 2014 was a bad year, 2015 had the disastrous PG. Britney has been taking blows to her name for 5 years at the very least. She's finally turning things around now but, at this point, the public kinda feels like its too little too late which is sad because had Britney cared and had she been managed properly post 2010 she could have been on par with Beyonce and P!nk in terms of longevity.

Originally posted by Shelter No one asked how much promo each did. IASF was a bigger era full stop. The amount of excuses people make. There is no way Circus would have out sold IASF. That album had good longevity, it still charts. Circus does not.

Nobody is "making excusess!!!111"
I'm just looking at it in a subjective way which is what you're supposed to do when having a discussion.
If we just look at who sold more than there wouldn't even need to be a discussion (that's not even the question the OP is asking.)

Originally posted by Havoc Britney hasn't been bigger than Bey since 2000.

Originally posted by modeblock We can just take a gander at the good sis Wikipedia to see who's sold more records. Hint: it's not the girl in your avi.