Top 10 Most Popular Canon Cameras and Lenses of 2018

As is tradition, let’s countdown the most popular Canon items of 2018! We compiled statistics via our street price program as well as through our posted deals (new and refurbished), and we sorted by number of copies purchased.

You can compare with 2017 and 2016’s list. Surprised by any of the items in our listing? Chime in below in the comments!

All the best to our CPW readers in 2019!

  1. Sigma Art 35mm f/1.4 DG HSM

    This year, sneaking in at #10 is our first third-party lens. The Sigma Art lenses have been extremely popular this year (hitting a great balance of quality and price), and the most popular lens was the Sigma Art 35mm f/1.4 DG HSM. No surprise, given the number of great Sigma sales during the year; the current sale expires on January 7th.

  2. EF 100mm f/2.8L Macro IS USM

    Dropping a few positions was the EF 100mm f/2.8L Macro IS USM. The only reason why it still made the list this year was a very strong end-of-year sale with prices in the $600s for this great lens. The trend is for this lens to fall off the top 10 next year.

  3. EF 85mm f/1.4L IS USM

    The first full year for the 85mm f/1.4L sees it debut on the top ten list. We’ve seen a few small discounts on this lens this year, but expect stronger discounts next year on this lens, replacing demand from the 85mm f/1.2L II.

  4. EOS-1D X Mark II

    The EOS-1D X Mark II slides up a few places on the list — thanks in part to some great end-of-year discounts and a street price of $4699. We expect this is likely the last year on the list for this camera — Canon doesn’t have a habit of discounting 1-series bodies, so sales will likely decrease if prices are held steady.

  5. EOS R

    The full-frame mirrorless EOS R debuts on our list in the #6 position, despite only being introduced in September. After all the pre-release hype and speculation cleared, initial reaction was negative (mostly due to the high price and mid-range features set). However, this camera has been extremely popular and has been selling very well. On a full-year basis, the camera would be in the top 3 or 4 on this list.

  6. EF 70-200mm f/2.8L IS USM II

    The 70-200 II drops one to #5 in its eighth year since its announcement. It’s still one of the best Canon zoom lenses ever made. Even though the Mark III version of this lens was released in August, the Mark II stayed popular due to the lack of significant improvement in the Mark III. We do expect Canon to discontinue this lens as supply continues to dwindle, so this may be the last year on this list for this hall-of-fame lens.

  7. EF 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6L IS II

    The fourth full year for the 100-400mm II since its release in late 2014, and its strongest year yet. Some end-of-year great discounts and deals pushed this lens past the 70-200 II, and we expect to see this lens strong again next year.

  8. EOS 6D Mark II

    Surprise? A strong Black Friday discount saw the EOS 6D Mark II drop below $1K with a free printer and battery grip — the most popular deal of the season. Without that sale, this body wouldn’t have even made this list. The regular price of $1499 or $1599 during the year had very few takers.

  9. EF 24-70mm f/2.8L II USM

    The popularity of the EF 24-70mm f/2.8L II USM tracks very closely with the popularity of full-frame cameras, as this lens is often the first stop after a full-frame purchase. With full frame cameras at the #1 and #3 position, no surprise that this lens is strong at #2. A fantastic performer and now tremendous value at $1449.

  10. EOS 5D Mark IV

    1425404166000_1274705The 5D Mark IV repeats as the number #1 Canon item (according to CPW data), in its second full year of sales. The current street price of $2599 with a free battery grip is a great price point for this high performer.


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5 comments on “Top 10 Most Popular Canon Cameras and Lenses of 2018

  1. December 31, 2018 at 10:39 am EDT

    So much to say here! To start, Sigma Art 35mm is one I have my eye on now that I have a 5D. A fast 35mm with a great price and also Sigma Art glass is a big yes in mind. Didn’t care so much about it when all I had was crop cameras, since I prefer crop glass at lengths of 35mm or wider on those cameras. The 100mm macro is probably only falling on the list becasue everyone has one already! LOL. I don’t jsut yet, making due with my Sigma 105mm since I don’t do a lot of dedicated macro, but starting to see the shortcomings of it. The Canon is one of their best lenses, I can see why it is so popular. If I see a used 100mm for under 600 from KEH I think I might go for it (EX condition though). The EOS R might have been disappointing in specs for a lot of folks, but I think some see it as a less expensive way to get 5D quality photos for their low key style shooting. I took a pass, but am looking forward to future offerings. The 70-200mm IS II I think will be around for another year on the list. The price tag and stock will probably still be around in 2019, and I don’t think we will see the trend disappear until we see the mkIII drop to 1950, which I am confident will happen at some point. Maybe by the end of 2019 it will, and that will signal the end days for the mkII, which I must say has done nothing but impress me since I got one earlier this year. I’m not surprised to see the 6DmkII on the list. I think a lot of folks that are grabbing these are either those that shoot crop and want to go FF, people looking for a cheap back up to their 5D or 1D, or are video shooters that care about FF but not 4K. Still fits a nice price range, but in all seriousness I would advise people to get an EOS R with adaptor over the 6D at this point, unless they can only afford the 6D. Even then, I would probably even advise a different course of action, since the lens cost of the 6D is considerable if you don’t have a lot of FF glass. If you are stretching your budget to get it, then you should probably take a pass on FF until you have more money saved up or have more ways to justify it (like if you are getting paid or have enough FF glass already to use on it). Just look at the cost of even cheap wide to standard lenses for it, and that should give you a better idea of what it will really cost you. You are going to shoot at those FL more than any other, so jsut keep that in mind. Keep saving in those cases is the overall point there, also not everyone really has to have a FF camera. It is only an upgrade if it does something you can not currently do. Not surprised to see the 24-70mm at #2, since there were some great sales on it this year, but in all honesty I really don’t see why people wouldn’t go for the Tamron G2 model instead. It’s cheaper, has VC (Tamron’s IS), a crazy 6 year warranty, excellent IQ, and performs very well in about all situations. I have been using one for a few weeks now, and so far so good. I know the Canon likely will nail AF more often, but even in really bad light, using continuous AF, I am not having an issue with the Tamron, at least not yet. We will see once I have had it a while. Lastly, the 5D. I added to that list this year. 🙂 In spite of that it probably could have been a better camera it is still a very good camera. For the 2450 I paid I am pretty happy with it (was one of the lucky ones on that deal). It is a workhorse, and I am looking forward to that improved performance in low light over my 80D. Stronger background blur I think might be a mixed bag. I am used to the DOF I am getting from my 80D, might take some adjusting once I do some shallow portraits with it.

    Thanks for the list Gordon, and all the hard work you do for us! Happy New Year to y’all!

  2. Bill Jensen
    January 1, 2019 at 9:03 am EDT

    Echoing my thanks for Gordon and CPwatch. Happy 2019!

  3. David S.
    January 2, 2019 at 5:14 pm EDT

    I can’t help but think that, as Canon expands its RF offerings, that almost everything on the list will be new next year. There might be some more inroads from the Sigma Art lineup, especially as their 70-200 Sport hits the market. But I think a lot of that will depend on what sort of mid-year and end-of-year deals are to be had. If I had to make a prediction, I’d be willing to bet the 5D4, the EOS R, and the 85mm f1.4 IS will be all that remains on this list next year. And maybe the 100-400. I’d be willing to bet money that the RF 28-70 f2.0 will be on the list, likely in the top 5.

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