Adele has been revealed as the best selling artist in Amazon's 15 year history, ahead of Coldplay who came second and The Beatles in third in the website's countdown.

Her album, 21, was the best selling album on Amazon ever, while her debut, 19, placed at No.2 on the album list. Meanwhile the James Bond theme tune 'Skyfall' as sung by Adele was beaten to the punch only by Rage Against the Machine's 'Killing In The Name'.

Rage Against the Machine's track achieved high sales when in 2009 a viral campaign to prevent the X Factor from reaching the top spot was mounted.

In a statement Paul Firth head of music at Amazon said: "Adele's achievement in securing both the best-selling artist title and the top two best-selling albums of the past 15 years on Amazon.co.uk is remarkable.

"The fact that Rage Against The Machine's 'Killing In The Name' has pushed Adele into second place in the best-selling singles chart is indicative of how much the UK loves a good campaign and how the public love the underdog."

Below: watch the video for Rage Against The Machine's 'Killing In The Name Of'

The full list of best selling artists on Amazon over the last 15 years is as follows: 

 Artists (All Formats)

1. Adele
2. Coldplay
3. The Beatles
4. Lady Gaga
5. Rihanna
6. Michael Bublé
7. Kings of Leon
8. Snow Patrol
9. Muse
10. Michael Jackson

Artists (Physical /Digital)

1. Adele / Lady Gaga
2. The Beatles / Rihanna
3. Coldplay / Glee Cast
4. Michael Bublé /Adele
5. Snow Patrol / Katy Perry
6. Pink Floyd / The Black Eyed Peas
7. Kings of Leon / Take That
8. Amy Winehouse / Coldplay
9. Susan Boyle / Florence + The Machine
10. Bob Dylan / Jessie J
11. U2 / Kings of Leon
12. Queen / Bruno Mars
13. Muse / Michael Jackson
14. Robbie Williams / Eminem
15. Elbow / Pixie Lott
16. Oasis / Rage Against The Machine
17. Michael Jackson / Michael Bublé
18. Rihanna / Beyoncé
19. Foo Fighters / Flo Rida
20. The Killers / Maroon 5

Best-selling Albums (all formats)

1. Adele - 21
2. Adele - 19
3. Take That - Progress
4. Susan Boyle - I Dreamed A Dream
5. Various Artists - Now That's What I Call Music! 83
6. Kings Of Leon - Only By The Night
7. Amy Winehouse - Back To Black
8. Mumford & Sons - Sigh No More
9. Various Artists - Now That's What I Call Music! 80
10. Various Artists - Now That's What I Call Music! 77

Best-selling Singles (MP3)

1. Rage Against The Machine - 'Killing In The Name' [Explicit]
2. Adele - 'Skyfall'
3. Psy - 'Gangnam Style'
4. Adele - 'Someone Like You'
5. Black Eyed Peas - 'I Gotta Feeling' (Album Version)
6. Robin Thicke - 'Blurred Lines' [feat. T.I., Pharrell]
7. Carly Rae Jepson - 'Call Me Maybe'
8. Gotye - 'Somebody That I Used To Know' [feat. Kimbra]
9. Daft Punk - 'Get Lucky' (Radio Edit)
10. James Arthur - 'Impossible' 

Below: the evolution of Adele as an icon