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There are only 11 artists in the history of the Billboard Hot 100 who have topped the chart at least 10 times.
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Taylor Swift recently earned her 12th leader, tying Madonna and The Supremes for fifth place.
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The Beatles have the most No. 1 songs (20), followed closely by Mariah Carey (19).
Throughout music history, there have been plenty of record-breaking songs, albums, and acts. These 11, however, have seen the most success on the Billboard Hot 100 — widely considered to be the definitive ranking of best-selling songs in the US.
Rihanna, Stevie Wonder, The Beatles, and Whitney Houston are among the elite group of artists who have earned at least 10 chart-toppers in their careers.
Keep scrolling to see the top tier of singles artists, ranked from least to most No. 1 hits.
7 (tie). Stevie Wonder was the youngest artist ever to top the chart. Since then, he’s done it nine more times.
In 1963, at just 13 years old, Stevie Wonder earned his first No. 1 song with “Fingertips.”
Throughout his illustrious career, Wonder has added nine more hits to the list: “Superstition” in 1972, “You Are the Sunshine of My Life” in 1973, “You Haven’t Done Nothin'” in 1974, “I Wish” in 1976, “Sir Duke” in 1977, “Ebony and Ivory” in 1982, “I Just Called to Say I Love You” in 1984, and both “Part-Time Lover” and “That’s What Friends Are For” in 1985.
7 (tie). Janet Jackson, who also has 10, claimed the No. 1 spot in three different decades.
Janet Jackson’s Hot-100 reign began with 1986’s “When I Think of You,” which topped the chart when she was 20 years old.
Next came 1989’s “Miss You Much,” 1990’s “Escapade,” “Black Cat,” and “Love Will Never Do (Without You),” 1993’s “That’s the Way Love Goes” and “Again,” 1997’s “Together Again,” 2000’s “Doesn’t Really Matter,” and 2001’s “All for You.”
6. Whitney Houston has the sixth-most No. 1 songs in history with 11 to her name.
Whitney Houston has no shortage of iconic songs, but she earned her first No. 1 with “Saving All My Love for You” in 1985. That same year, she also put “How Will I Know” in the top spot.
Over the next decade, Houston collected nine more chart-toppers: “The Greatest Love of All” in 1986; “I Wanna Dance with Somebody (Who Loves Me),” “Didn’t We Almost Have It All,” and “So Emotional” in 1987; “Where Do Broken Hearts Go” in 1988; “I’m Your Baby Tonight” and “All the Man That I Need” in 1990; “I Will Always Love You” in 1992; and “Exhale (Shoop Shoop)” in 1995.
5 (tie). Taylor Swift recently earned her 12th chart-topping hit.
Taylor Swift earned her first No. 1 hit with “We Are Never Ever Getting Back Together” in 2012. It was the lead single from her fourth album “Red.”
Swift’s fifth album, “1989,” spawned three No. 1 singles: “Shake It Off” and “Blank Space” in 2014, followed by the “Bad Blood” remix featuring Kendrick Lamar in 2015.
“Look What You Made Me Do” became her fifth leader in 2017, followed by “Cardigan” and “Willow” in 2020.
In 2021, Swift launched her series of rerecorded albums, sending an extended version of a nine-year-old deep cut, “All Too Well,” to the top of the chart. At 10 minutes and 13 seconds, it’s the longest No. 1 hit in Billboard history.
Swift’s 2022 single “Anti-Hero” became her longest-running No. 1 hit, reigning atop the chart for eight weeks.
Finally, in 2023, Swift notched her milestone 10th leader with “Cruel Summer,” fueled by the success of The Eras Tour. Shortly after, “Is It Over Now?” and “Fortnight” joined the ranks, bringing Swift’s grand total to 12.
5 (tie). Madonna topped the chart 12 times since the ’80s.
Madonna has been topping the chart for decades, and it all began with “Like a Virgin” in 1984.
She followed up with “Crazy for You” in 1985 before she scored three No. 1 hits in 1986 alone: “Live to Tell,” “Papa Don’t Preach,” and “Open Your Heart.”
The so-called “Queen of Pop” added to her collection with “Who’s That Girl” in 1987, “Like a Prayer” in 1989, “Vogue” and “Justify My Love” in 1990, “This Used to Be My Playground” in 1992, “Take a Bow” in 1994, and “Music” in 2000.
5 (tie). The Supremes also had 12 No. 1 songs, all in a span of five years.
The Supremes are known as one of the best-selling girl groups of all time, and with 12 No. 1 hits in half as many years, it’s easy to see why.
In the mid-’60s, the trio released a string of five singles that all went to No. 1 on the chart: “Where Did Our Love Go,” “Baby Love,” and “Come See About Me” in 1964, then “Stop! In the Name of Love” and “Back in My Arms Again” in 1965.
They continued to dominate the decade with a flood of hits: “I Hear a Symphony,” also in 1965; “You Can’t Hurry Love” and “You Keep Me Hangin’ On” in 1966; “Love Is Here and Now You’re Gone” and “The Happening” in 1967; “Love Child” in 1968; and “Someday We’ll Be Together” in 1969.
4 (tie). Michael Jackson topped the chart 13 times.
Michael Jackson began appearing on the charts as a child with The Jackson 5, but after he struck out on his own, the so-called “King of Pop” racked up more hits than any solo artist at the time.
Perhaps most impressively, five out of his 13 No. 1 songs came from the same album (“Bad”), setting a record that remains unbroken. (It was tied in 2011 by Katy Perry with “Teenage Dream”).
Jackson’s first chart-topper was “Ben” in 1972 when he was 14 years old. “Don’t Stop ‘Til You Get Enough” and “Rock with You” both took the top spot in 1979, followed by “Billie Jean,” “Beat It,” and “Say Say Say” in 1983; “I Just Can’t Stop Loving You,” “Bad,” and “The Way You Make Me Feel” in 1987; “Man in the Mirror” and “Dirty Diana” in 1988; and “Black or White” in 1993.
He capped his collection with “You Are Not Alone” in 1995, which also became the first song in history to debut at No. 1 on the chart.
4 (tie). Drake recently tied the “King of Pop” with 13 No. 1 songs of his own.
Drake is arguably the most dominant artist of the streaming era, racking up 13 chart-topping singles to date — the vast majority at breakneck speed in a seven-year period.
The rapper notched his first No. 1 hit thanks to Rihanna, when their collaboration “What’s My Name” reigned atop the chart in 2010.
In 2016, Drake topped the chart again as a featured artist on Rihanna’s song “Work.” Later that year, “One Dance” became his first solo hit to ascend to first place.
He notched three No. 1 hits in 2018 with “God’s Plan,” “Nice for What,” and “In My Feelings,” followed by “Toosie Slide” in 2020; “What’s Next” and “Way 2 Sexy” in 2021; “Wait for U and “Jimmy Cooks” in 2022; and “Slime You Out” and “First Person Shooter” in 2023.
Nine of those songs arrived in the chart’s top spot, making Drake the artist with the most No. 1 song debuts in history.
3. Whenever Rihanna releases her next album, she’ll surely rise, but for now she’s in third place with 14 hits.
In the span of just 14 years, Rihanna earned 14 No. 1 songs, starting with “SOS” in 2006 when she was still a teenager.
Next came “Umbrella” in 2007; “Take a Bow,” “Live Your Life,” and “Disturbia” in 2008; “Rude Boy,” “Love the Way You Lie,” “Only Girl (In the World),” and “What’s My Name” in 2010; “S&M” and “We Found Love” in 2011; “Diamonds” in 2012; “The Monster” in 2013; and finally “Work” in 2016, the lead single from her most recent album, “Anti.”
2. Mariah Carey’s 19 chart-topping songs put her just one behind the all-time record.
In terms of No. 1 songs, Mariah Carey is the second best-selling artist of all time, the best-selling solo artist of all time, and the best-selling female artist of all time.
Her first No. 1 hit was also her debut single, 1990’s “Vision of Love.” Her next four singles would also top the chart: “Love Takes Time” in 1990, followed by “Someday,” “I Don’t Wanna Cry,” and “Emotions” in 1991.
Then came a veritable feast of hit songs: “I’ll Be There” in 1992; “Dreamlover” and “Hero” in 1993; “Fantasy” and “One Sweet Day” in 1995; “Always Be My Baby” in 1996; “Honey” in 1997; “My All” in 1998; “Heartbreaker” in 1999; “Thank God I Found You” in 2000; “We Belong Together” and “Don’t Forget About Us” in 2005; and “Touch My Body” in 2008.
In 2020, she became the first and only artist in history to top the Billboard Hot 100 in four different decades, thanks to the longevity of her 1994 holiday single “All I Want for Christmas Is You.”
1. The Beatles have 20 No. 1 hits, the most in history.
The Beatles still reign supreme with the most No. 1 songs ever on the Billboard Hot 100, earning 20 in the span of just eight years.
In chronological order, the British band topped the chart with “Love Me Do” in 1962; “She Loves You” and “I Want to Hold Your Hand” in 1963; “Can’t Buy Me Love,” “A Hard Day’s Night,” and “I Feel Fine” in 1964; “Eight Days a Week,” “Ticket to Ride,” “Help!,” “Yesterday,” and “We Can Work It Out” in 1965; “Paperback Writer” in 1966; “Penny Lane” “All You Need Is Love,” and “Hello, Goodbye” in 1967; “Hey Jude” in 1968; “Get Back” and “Something” in 1969; and “Let It Be” and “The Long and Winding Road” in 1970.
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