By this time, you might be tired of hearing holiday nuggets such as José Feliciano’s “Feliz Navidad,” “Last Christmas” from Wham!, Bobby Helms’s timeless “Jingle Bell Rock,” or Brenda Lee’s immortal “Rockin’ Around The Christmas Tree” on constant rotation on the radio and in stores and other public places. There’s a good reason why they get such frequent play: They are among the most popular Christmas songs of all time.
To determine the most popular Christmas songs of all time, 24/7 Tempo reviewed performance data on the Billboard Hot 100 charts. Holiday songs were ranked based on an inverse score wherein a week at No. 1 is worth 100 points, a week at No. 2 worth 99 points, and so on, up to a week at No. 100 worth one point. Chart data is current through the week of Dec. 17, 2022. (If you want to hear more than just a song or two here and there, consider some of the best Christmas albums of all time.)
Popularity in Yuletide music, as reported by Billboard, includes songs extending from the 1950s through 2022. Great stars of the past are well-represented – including Frank Sinatra, Chuck Berry, Johnny Cash, and Ray Charles – as are luminaries of our own day, such as Lizzo, Ed Sheeran, Taylor Swift, and of course Justin Bieber (who shows up four times).
Click here to see the most popular Christmas songs of all time
Two of the top-selling Christmas songs here – “Baby It’s Cold Outside” and “Do They Know It’s Christmas” – have been controversial in recent years, the former because some people think it advocates date rape, the latter because it is said to engage in racial stereotyping. That hasn’t hurt their popularity, however. “Baby It’s Cold Outside” appears three times on this list, in three different versions, while “Do They Know It’s Christmas” shows up twice, once by the original 1984 Band Aid super-group of stars and again by 1984’s Band Aid 30 lineup.
On a lighter note, there are plenty of novelty numbers here, from “Grandma Got Run Over by a Reindeer” to “The Chipmunk Song” by David Seville and the Chipmunks, which appears three times, recharting in different eras. (Here are some more songs that have returned to the Billboard Hot 100.)
Traditionalists will be pleased to see favorites like “Silent Night,” “I’ll Be Home for Christmas,” and “White Christmas” on the list. And there’s even one song here that frankly isn’t about Christmas at all: Adam Sandler’s modern-day classic “The Chanukah Song.”
50. The Star Wars Intergalactic Droid Choir & Chorale, “What Can You Get A Wookiee For Christmas (When He Already Owns A Comb?)”
> Entered Hot 100: Dec. 13, 1980
> Peak position on Hot 100: #69 (for 3 weeks)
> Total weeks on Hot 100: 6
[in-text-ad]
49. Taylor Swift, “Christmas Tree Farm (Old Timey Version)”
> Entered Hot 100: Dec. 11, 2021
> Peak position on Hot 100: #62 (for 1 week)
> Total weeks on Hot 100: 5
48. Dan + Shay, “Pick Out a Christmas Tree”
> Entered Hot 100: Dec. 11, 2021
> Peak position on Hot 100: #63 (for 1 week)
> Total weeks on Hot 100: 5
47. Ed Sheeran & Elton John, “Merry Christmas”
> Entered Hot 100: Dec. 18, 2021
> Peak position on Hot 100: #55 (for 1 week)
> Total weeks on Hot 100: 4
[in-text-ad-2]
46. Coldplay, “Christmas Lights”
> Entered Hot 100: Dec. 18, 2010
> Peak position on Hot 100: #25 (for 1 week)
> Total weeks on Hot 100: 3
45. Jackson 5, “Santa Claus Is Comin’ to Town”
> Entered Hot 100: Jan. 2, 2021
> Peak position on Hot 100: #41 (for 1 week)
> Total weeks on Hot 100: 3
[in-text-ad]
44. Eartha Kitt, “Santa Baby”
> Entered Hot 100: Dec. 25, 2021
> Peak position on Hot 100: #35 (for 1 week)
> Total weeks on Hot 100: 3
43. Jonas Brothers, “Like It’s Christmas”
> Entered Hot 100: Dec. 14, 2019
> Peak position on Hot 100: #44 (for 1 week)
> Total weeks on Hot 100: 4
42. Pentatonix, “Little Drummer Boy”
> Entered Hot 100: Dec. 21, 2013
> Peak position on Hot 100: #13 (for 1 week)
> Total weeks on Hot 100: 3
[in-text-ad-2]
41. The 4 Seasons, “Santa Claus Is Coming to Town”
> Entered Hot 100: Dec. 15, 1962
> Peak position on Hot 100: #23 (for 1 week)
> Total weeks on Hot 100: 3
40. Christina Aguilera, “The Christmas Song (Chestnuts Roasting On An Open Fire)”
> Entered Hot 100: Dec. 18, 1999
> Peak position on Hot 100: #18 (for 2 weeks)
> Total weeks on Hot 100: 4
[in-text-ad]
39. Nilsson, “Remember (Christmas)”
> Entered Hot 100: Dec. 23, 1972
> Peak position on Hot 100: #53 (for 2 weeks)
> Total weeks on Hot 100: 6
38. Connie Francis, “Baby’s First Christmas”
> Entered Hot 100: Dec. 11, 1961
> Peak position on Hot 100: #26 (for 1 week)
> Total weeks on Hot 100: 5
37. Boyz II Men featuring Brian McKnight, “Let It Snow”
> Entered Hot 100: Dec. 11, 1993
> Peak position on Hot 100: #32 (for 1 week)
> Total weeks on Hot 100: 7
[in-text-ad-2]
36. Thurl Ravenscroft, “You’re A Mean One, Mr. Grinch”
> Entered Hot 100: Jan. 4, 2020
> Peak position on Hot 100: #32 (for 1 week)
> Total weeks on Hot 100: 5
35. Elvis Presley, “Blue Christmas”
> Entered Hot 100: Jan. 5, 2019
> Peak position on Hot 100: #33 (for 1 week)
> Total weeks on Hot 100: 5
[in-text-ad]
34. Nat King Cole, “Deck The Halls”
> Entered Hot 100: Dec. 26, 2020
> Peak position on Hot 100: #30 (for 2 weeks)
> Total weeks on Hot 100: 5
33. Bobby Rydell/Chubby Checker, “Jingle Bell Rock”
> Entered Hot 100: Dec. 11, 1961
> Peak position on Hot 100: #21 (for 1 week)
> Total weeks on Hot 100: 7
32. Paul McCartney, “Wonderful Christmastime”
> Entered Hot 100: Dec. 29, 2018
> Peak position on Hot 100: #28 (for 1 week)
> Total weeks on Hot 100: 6
[in-text-ad-2]
31. Pentatonix, “Mary, Did You Know?”
> Entered Hot 100: Dec. 6, 2014
> Peak position on Hot 100: #26 (for 1 week)
> Total weeks on Hot 100: 7
30. Frank Sinatra, “Jingle Bells”
> Entered Hot 100: Jan. 5, 2019
> Peak position on Hot 100: #29 (for 1 week)
> Total weeks on Hot 100: 6
[in-text-ad]
29. Band Aid, “Do They Know It’s Christmas?”
> Entered Hot 100: Dec. 22, 1984
> Peak position on Hot 100: #13 (for 1 week)
> Total weeks on Hot 100: 9
28. Justin Bieber, “Mistletoe”
> Entered Hot 100: Nov.. 5, 2011
> Peak position on Hot 100: #11 (for 1 week)
> Total weeks on Hot 100: 12
27. David Seville and the Chipmunks, “The Chipmunk Song (Christmas Don’t Be Late)”
> Entered Hot 100: Dec. 14, 1959
> Peak position on Hot 100: #39 (for 1 week)
> Total weeks on Hot 100: 15
[in-text-ad-2]
26. Eagles, “Please Come Home for Christmas”
> Entered Hot 100: Dec. 9, 1978
> Peak position on Hot 100: #18 (for 2 weeks)
> Total weeks on Hot 100: 10
25. Kristen Bell, Agatha Lee Monn & Katie Lopez, “Do You Want to Build a Snowman?”
> Entered Hot 100: Jan. 11, 2014
> Peak position on Hot 100: #51 (for 1 week)
> Total weeks on Hot 100: 18
[in-text-ad]
24. Gene Autry, “Here Comes Santa Claus (Right Down Santa Claus Lane)”
> Entered Hot 100: Dec. 22, 2018
> Peak position on Hot 100: #26 (for 1 week)
> Total weeks on Hot 100: 12
24/7 Wall St.
23. Michael Bublé, “It’s Beginning To Look A Lot Like Christmas”
> Entered Hot 100: Dec. 17, 2011
> Peak position on Hot 100: #20 (for 1 week)
> Total weeks on Hot 100: 12
22. Chuck Berry, “Run Rudolph Run”
> Entered Hot 100: Dec. 15, 1958
> Peak position on Hot 100: #10 (for 1 week)
> Total weeks on Hot 100: 14
[in-text-ad-2]
21. Andy Williams, “Happy Holiday / The Holiday Season”
> Entered Hot 100: Dec. 14, 2019
> Peak position on Hot 100: #18 (for 1 week)
> Total weeks on Hot 100: 13
20. Ariana Grande, “Santa Tell Me”
> Entered Hot 100: Dec. 13, 2014
> Peak position on Hot 100: #17 (for 1 week)
> Total weeks on Hot 100: 15
[in-text-ad]
19. David Seville and the Chipmunks, “Alvin’s Harmonica”
> Entered Hot 100: Feb. 16, 1959
> Peak position on Hot 100: #3 (for 2 weeks)
> Total weeks on Hot 100: 15
18. New Kids on the Block, “This One’s for the Children”
> Entered Hot 100: Nov.. 11, 1989
> Peak position on Hot 100: #7 (for 2 weeks)
> Total weeks on Hot 100: 16
17. Darlene Love, “Christmas (Baby Please Come Home)”
> Entered Hot 100: Dec. 29, 2018
> Peak position on Hot 100: #16 (for 1 week)
> Total weeks on Hot 100: 14
[in-text-ad-2]
16. The Chipmunks featuring David Seville, “The Chipmunk Song”
> Entered Hot 100: Dec. 1, 1958
> Peak position on Hot 100: #1 (for 4 weeks)
> Total weeks on Hot 100: 13
15. Perry Como, “It’s Beginning To Look a Lot Like Christmas”
> Entered Hot 100: Dec. 29, 2018
> Peak position on Hot 100: #12 (for 1 week)
> Total weeks on Hot 100: 15
[in-text-ad]
14. Kelly Clarkson, “Underneath the Tree”
> Entered Hot 100: Dec. 21, 2013
> Peak position on Hot 100: #12 (for 1 week)
> Total weeks on Hot 100: 18
13. Gene Autry, “Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer”
> Entered Hot 100: Dec. 15, 2018
> Peak position on Hot 100: #16 (for 2 weeks)
> Total weeks on Hot 100: 19
12. The Ronettes, “Sleigh Ride”
> Entered Hot 100: Dec. 22, 2018
> Peak position on Hot 100: #10 (for 1 week)
> Total weeks on Hot 100: 19
[in-text-ad-2]
11. The Harry Simeone Chorale, “The Little Drummer Boy”
> Entered Hot 100: Dec. 22, 1958
> Peak position on Hot 100: #13 (for 1 week)
> Total weeks on Hot 100: 28
10. Dean Martin, “Let It Snow, Let It Snow, Let It Snow”
> Entered Hot 100: Dec. 15, 2018
> Peak position on Hot 100: #8 (for 1 week)
> Total weeks on Hot 100: 22
[in-text-ad]
9. Bing Crosby, “White Christmas”
> Entered Hot 100: Dec. 22, 1958
> Peak position on Hot 100: #12 (for 1 week)
> Total weeks on Hot 100: 27
8. José Feliciano, “Feliz Navidad”
> Entered Hot 100: Jan. 7, 2017
> Peak position on Hot 100: #6 (for 1 week)
> Total weeks on Hot 100: 22
7. Wham!, “Last Christmas”
> Entered Hot 100: Jan. 7, 2017
> Peak position on Hot 100: #7 (for 1 week)
> Total weeks on Hot 100: 27
[in-text-ad-2]
6. Nat King Cole, “The Christmas Song (Merry Christmas to You)”
> Entered Hot 100: Dec. 12, 1960
> Peak position on Hot 100: #11 (for 3 weeks)
> Total weeks on Hot 100: 34
5. Burl Ives, “A Holly Jolly Christmas”
> Entered Hot 100: Jan. 7, 2017
> Peak position on Hot 100: #4 (for 4 weeks)
> Total weeks on Hot 100: 28
[in-text-ad]
4. Andy Williams, “It’s The Most Wonderful Time of the Year”
> Entered Hot 100: Jan. 7, 2017
> Peak position on Hot 100: #5 (for 1 week)
> Total weeks on Hot 100: 29
3. Bobby Helms, “Jingle Bell Rock”
> Entered Hot 100: Dec. 22, 1958
> Peak position on Hot 100: #3 (for 4 weeks)
> Total weeks on Hot 100: 45
2. Brenda Lee, “Rockin’ Around the Christmas Tree”
> Entered Hot 100: Dec. 12, 1960
> Peak position on Hot 100: #2 (for 6 weeks)
> Total weeks on Hot 100: 48
[in-text-ad-2]
1. Mariah Carey, “All I Want for Christmas Is You”
> Entered Hot 100: Jan. 8, 2000
> Peak position on Hot 100: #1 (for 9 weeks)
> Total weeks on Hot 100: 54
Thank you for reading! Have some feedback for us?
Contact the 24/7 Wall St. editorial team.
Latest from 24/7
