The 25 Best Dance Albums of 2025: Staff Picks

Once again and as always, the dance albums released in 2025 served as a reminder of the genre’s vastness.

But while on the surface bass might not have much to do with house which might not have much to do with techno which might not have much in common with trance or the many other varieties of sound that exist under the umbrella, together they form the sonic tapestry of the global scene and function as the raw material that drives this world forward.

And while it remains a singles-driven genre to be sure, in dance music albums function as statement pieces, full-length works demonstrating an artist’s intent and identity — which also provide them with the material to form their live shows. (And serve as buffets for other artists to eat from when it comes to their own sets.)

In 2025, dance albums pushed further out in every aforementioned genre direction and more, further realizing the glorious multitudes contained in the humble “dance” descriptor and giving fans a way to bring their favorite artists into the fold while well outside the confines of the club. We got UKG and fresh takes on techno, nostalgic dubstep, future-facing bass and a lot of music that functioned as template examples of classic sounds, but still somehow sounded fresh.

The albums from many of these year-defining artists are below, along with some of the more under-the-radar releases that resonated, as part of our staff’s picks for the 50 best albums that 2025 had to offer.