Long gone are the days when listening to music meant
either pirating it off sketchy websites or buying tracks one by one through platforms like iTunes. Today, streaming has flattened that entire experience, putting decades’ worth of music just a click away through platforms like Spotify, where access has effectively replaced ownership as the default model.
Launched in 2006, the Swedish pay-to-stream platform has since grown into one of the most dominant players in the global music industry, reshaping not just how people listen, but how artists release, promote, and monetize their work. Two decades in, its influence is measurable in numbers that are hard to wrap your head around; billions of streams, a unique algorithm-driven discovery feature,
and a listening culture that now, thanks to them, moves faster than ever.Celebrating its 20th birthday this month, Spotify pulled the curtain back on its all-time most-streamed artists, albums and songs, offering a rare look at which of them didn’t just trend, but endured the test of time.
“Drawn from years of listening across hundreds of millions of fans, these lists capture the music and stories that didn’t just break through, but stayed, becoming part of everyday life around the world,” a recently-shared press release explained.
Below, the 20 most-streamed artist, albums and tracks in Spotify’s history to date.
Most streamed artists of all time
- Taylor Swift
- Bad Bunny
- Drake
- The Weeknd
- Ariana Grande
- Ed Sheeran
- Justin Bieber
- Billie Eilish
- Eminem
- Kanye West
- Travis Scott
- BTS
- Post Malone
- Bruno Mars
- J Balvin
- Rihanna
- Coldplay
- Kendrick Lamar
- Future
- Juice WRLD
Most streamed albums of all time
- Un Verano Sin Ti by Bad Bunny
- Starboy by The Weeknd
- ÷ (Deluxe) by Ed Sheeran
- SOUR by Olivia Rodrigo
- After Hours by The Weeknd
- SOS by SZA
- Hollywood’s Bleeding by Post Malone
- Lover by Taylor Swift
- AM by Arctic Monkeys
- WHEN WE ALL FALL ASLEEP, WHERE DO WE GO? by Billie Eilish
- Future Nostalgia by Dua Lipa
- beerbongs & bentleys by Post Malone
- ? by XXXTENTACION
- MAÑANA SERÁ BONITO (BICHOTA SEASON) by KAROL G
- YHLQMDLG by Bad Bunny
- Doo-Wops & Hooligans by Bruno Mars
- Views by Drake
- Midnights by Taylor Swift
- Scorpion by Drake
- Beauty Behind The Madness by The Weeknd
Most streamed songs of all time
- “Blinding Lights” by The Weeknd
- “Shape of You” by Ed Sheeran
- “Sweater Weather” by The Neighbourhood
- “Starboy” by The Weeknd and Daft Punk
- “As It Was” by Harry Styles
- “Someone You Loved” by Lewis Capaldi
- “Sunflower – Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse” by Post Malone and Swae Lee
- “One Dance” by Drake, Wizkid, and Kyla
- “Perfect” by Ed Sheeran
- “STAY (with Justin Bieber)” by The Kid LAROI and Justin Bieber
- “Believer” by Imagine Dragons
- “I Wanna Be Yours” by Arctic Monkeys
- “Heat Waves” by Glass Animals
- “lovely (with Khalid)” by Billie Eilish and Khalid
- “Yellow” by Coldplay
- “The Night We Met” by Lord Huron
- “Closer” by The Chainsmokers and Halsey
- “BIRDS OF A FEATHER” by Billie Eilish
- “Riptide” by Vance Joy
- “Die With A Smile” by Lady Gaga and Bruno Mars