The American hitmaker was 66 when he was found in full cardiac arrest yesterday, October 2, and later died.
In his lifetime he sold more than 80 million records worldwide, and he’s selling even more today.
In the USA, his Greatest Hits collection has rocketed to No1 on the US iTunes rankings, while Wildflowers rises to No4 and Anthology: Through The Years is up to No6. Elsewhere in the Top 10, Full Moon Fever is at No9.
At No15 is Damn The Torpedoes, No24 is The Live Anthology, No32 is Into The Great Wide Open, No40 is Southern Accents, and several more pepper the lower end of the Top 100.
Singles are also proving popular, with Free Fallin’ at No8, Mary Jane’s Last Dance at No14, I Won’t Back Down at No16 and You Don’t Know How It Feels at No22.
It’s unclear at this early stage how the sales resurgence will play out on the main Billboard charts next week – as they incorporate a full week’s worth of streaming data and radio airplay as well as purchases.
In the UK, meanwhile, his Greatest Hits is at No2 on iTunes, behind only the Now! 97 compilation. Full Moon Fever follows at No22, with Anthology: Through The Years at No95.
British charts track sales from Friday to Thursday, with the rundown being announced the following day – so the impact of the sales surge on the overall official rankings will be known at the end of the week.
iTunes, for context, is thought to look at live sales from the last 24 hours.
Internationally, tracks are also scattered around the iTunes singles chart in Australia, with the Greatest Hits album at No4.
That same retrospective compilation is at No1 on iTunes in Canada.
Petty was born in Florida in 1950, and his band the Heartbreakers formed in 1975.