Eventually, citizens become Aristocrats, and require at least ten different goods and numerous services, such as access to a large church or a bathhouse.

Retailers pre-purchased 450,000 units of the game ahead of its launch,[3] and it became a hit that "dominated" the charts in German-speaking countries during its first months of release, according to 4players.

[4] It debuted at #1 on GfK's weekly computer game sales charts for the German market,[5] following the title's release on October 25.

[1] Anno 1503 proceeded to claim first place on German firm Media Control's chart for the month as a whole,[6] after reaching domestic sales of 115,000 units during its first three days.

[7] The Verband der Unterhaltungssoftware Deutschland (VUD) soon awarded the game "Gold" status, indicating sales of at least 100,000 units across Germany, Switzerland, and Austria.

[8] Anno 1503 finished its first seven days with a total of 160,000 sales in the German market,[9] and went on to hold the #1 position on GfK's charts in its second and third weeks.

[10][11] On November 15, Sunflowers revealed that German-region sales of Anno 1503 had surpassed 200,000 units in two and a half weeks,[12] and the VUD certified the game "Platinum" to reflect that growth.

[6] In early December, Sunflowers announced a record €1.4-million television advertising campaign for Anno during the last two weeks of 2002, in an effort to further boost sales.

[32] Coinciding with the 2003 holiday shopping season and the release of the Treasures, Monsters, and Pirates expansion pack, Sunflowers dropped Anno 1503's price to €29 in October.

At the time, it was the fastest full-price computer title to reach this milestone in the region, a record previously held by Anno 1602.

[37][38] Anno 1503's worldwide sales surpassed 800,000 copies that August,[39] when it finished 14th on Media Control's list for the German market.

[39] The game remained on Germany's sales charts by 2006,[41][42] at which time it had sold over 2 million units worldwide and 750,000 in German-speaking countries.