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Rather than Spotify’s monthly listeners, we take a look at the top Spotify songs of all time from artists’ catalogues, as of January 2025.

Streaming has become an integral part of how we consume music, and Spotify stands out as one of the leading platforms. Here’s a rundown of the most-streamed artists, highlighting their enduring popularity and impact across the globe.

Streaming has taken the music industry by storm, now making up an impressive 67% of worldwide recorded music sales. Leading this digital revolution are familiar names to every music lover, turning the industry on its head and setting new standards for how we enjoy tunes.

Monthly listeners are a great way to see which artists are currently popular on the streaming service, whereas this all-time streams list is a useful way to see the most popular artists in the last decade. We’ve also compiled more Spotify top tens such as the most-followed artists on Spotify in 2025, the most-streamed female artists by monthly listeners, most-streamed songs of all time, and the most-streamed songs in a single day – who are the common Spotify top artists that reappear across the lists?

Understanding Spotify Metrics: Total Playcounts vs. Monthly Listeners

When evaluating an artist’s popularity on Spotify, it’s crucial to differentiate between two key metrics: total playcounts and monthly listeners. These metrics, while often conflated, provide distinct insights into an artist’s reach and success.

Total Playcounts

• Cumulative Success: Total playcounts reflect the overall number of times an artist’s tracks have been streamed. This metric captures the artist’s long-term impact and sustained popularity on the platform.
• Hidden Figures: Unlike monthly listener data, Spotify does not publicly disclose total playcounts, which means the full extent of an artist’s cumulative success remains somewhat obscured to the general audience.

Monthly Listeners

• Current Popularity Snapshot: Monthly listeners represent the number of unique users who have listened to an artist in a given month. This provides a snapshot of current popularity, indicating how often an artist is being discovered and played.
• Limitation in Depth: While useful for gauging contemporary appeal, monthly listener counts do not reveal the complete history of an artist’s engagement or success over time.

The Popularity Index

• Recent Trends: Spotify employs a popularity index to rank artists based on recent streaming activity. However, this data isn’t directly shared with the public, leaving only a partial view of an artist’s real-time influence.

Conclusion: Both metrics play vital roles but serve different analytical purposes. Total playcounts underscore an artist’s long-term endurance and lasting appeal, while monthly listeners offer a lens into their immediate popularity. Understanding this distinction is key to accurately gauging an artist’s impact in the ever-evolving music landscape.

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Understanding “Lead” and “Featured” Streams and Their Impact on Artist Rankings

An artist’s all-time streams aren’t shared by Spotify with the public so this data comes from ChartMasters, updated daily. ChartMasters explain their methodology. Their data is “based on streams from tracks available inside their personal page’s sections Albums, Singles and Compilations. They are combined together and defined as ‘Lead streams’.” Appears on streams such as featured tracks are not counted towards lead streams or the ranking, but this number is listed. ChartMasters admit the full list of 1,000 artists may not be 100% accurate, but state the top of their list is thorough.

When discussing artist rankings on streaming platforms, it’s essential to distinguish between “lead” and “featured” streams as they play distinct roles in an artist’s standing.

Lead Streams

“Lead streams” refer to the plays counted from tracks under an artist’s primary sections, such as Albums, Singles, and Compilations on their personal page. These streams measure the performance of songs where the artist is the main performer, providing a clearer view of their core impact and popularity.

• Significance: Only lead streams contribute to significant milestones, like the total number of streams and availability of tracks. These are used to assess an artist’s primary impact in the streaming landscape, determining their rank among peers.

Featured Streams

On the other hand, “featured streams” come from the “Appears On” section. These tracks involve instances where the artist collaborates or makes a guest appearance.

• Influence: While featured streams showcase collaborations and versatility, they do not influence the main ranking or milestone achievements. They serve more as a reflection of the artist’s wider network within the industry rather than their direct influence.

By focusing solely on lead streams for rankings, listeners and industry experts gain a more accurate and undiluted view of an artist’s popularity and success based on their principal discography. Featured streams, though valuable, highlight partnership rather than individual merit.

Taylor Swift has approximately 964 million feature streams, Drake has over 25.3 billion, Bad Bunny has around 9.25 billion, The Weeknd has about 7.21 billion, and Ed Sheeran has approximately 4.12 billion feature streams.

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Notable Streaming Milestones on Spotify

Streaming music has transformed the industry, and with it, groundbreaking milestones have been achieved. In 2015, electronic dance music sensation Kygo set the stage by being the first artist to cross 1 billion streams within a year, marking a significant moment in digital music consumption.

Fast forwarding to recent years, streaming counts have escalated to staggering figures. Hip-hop giant Drake consistently pushed these boundaries. By April 2020, he reached 30 billion streams. This number swelled to 40 billion by August 2021 and hit an impressive 50 billion by September 2022. As of December 2023, his cumulative streams skyrocketed past 70 billion.

Taylor Swift’s ascent in the streaming realm has been nothing short of spectacular. In a few short years, she progressed from 11.9 billion streams in 2020 to amassing 90 billion by the end of 2024. Her rapid growth saw her capture the title of the most-streamed artist on Spotify as of February 2024, showcasing her widespread appeal.

Representing Latin music’s global impact, Bad Bunny has emerged as a dominant force. His prowess underscores the genre’s ever-expanding global audience. Both Taylor Swift and Bad Bunny have frequently vied for the spot of most popular daily artist on the platform, reflecting their consistent and widespread listener engagement.

These milestones not only highlight individual achievements but also signify broader shifts in how audiences engage with music globally.

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There’s been movement in the top ten most-streamed artists Spotify list since we last checked in October last year, with all of the artists continuing to increase their streams. Unsurprisingly Taylor Swift is still the most-streamed artist of all time. Drake is the most streamed male artist. Post Malone has been knocked off the top ten by Billie Eilish, who also takes the crown as the youngest artist on the list at just 23 years old. Billie Eilish’s new album HIT ME HARD AND SOFT no doubt helped her achieve a spot on the top ten.

When it comes to streaming success, Taylor Swift stands atop the list as the most-streamed artist in history, with almost 100 billion streams. Trailing her impressive record in the streaming world are other popular female artists: Ariana Grande, and Billie Eilish. Together, these musicians dominate the global streaming scene, but it’s Swift who holds the top position.

The most-streamed Latin artist of all time is Bad Bunny. He leads the pack, surpassing other notable stars like J Balvin and Ozuna.

When it comes to streaming numbers, Drake holds the crown as the most-streamed rapper of all time. This Canadian artist has consistently topped charts and dominated playlists worldwide with his dynamic style and relatable lyrics. His global appeal and constant stream of hits have made him a mainstay in listeners’ music libraries.

Rounding out the list of top-streamed rappers are significant figures who have also carved their place in music history. Eminem, known for his complex lyrics and impactful storytelling, remains a favorite. Kanye West brings a unique blend of innovation and controversy that captivates audiences. These artists continue to leave their mark, each contributing uniquely to the hip-hop landscape.

Towering at the top, Taylor Swift leads with over 96 billion streams. As a solo female artist from the United States, her dominance in the pop genre is unrivaled.

Taylor Swift has 14 tracks with over 1 billion streams, 242 tracks over 100 million, 393 over 10 million, and 435 over 1 million.

The notable increase in her streaming success took place between 2020 and late 2024. She was once behind Ariana Grande among female artists, but she has since surpassed her. Her streaming numbers have skyrocketed from 11.9 billion in 2020 to surpassing 90 billion by late 2024.

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This Canadian hip-hop superstar ranks second with more than 82 billion streams. Drake’s ability to produce hit after hit has kept him at the forefront.

Drake has 16, 204, 323, and 326 tracks for the same milestones, respectively.

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With a substantial fan base in the Latin music scene, Bad Bunny from Puerto Rico has racked up over 81 billion streams, making him a leader in Reggaeton.

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Another Canadian export, The Weeknd’s influence in pop music is massive, amassing nearly 68 billion streams.

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Known for his melodic tunes, this English pop artist has gathered over 51 billion streams, demonstrating his widespread appeal.

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Pop sensation Ariana Grande from the United States follows closely with 50 billion streams. Her vocal prowess has captivated audiences globally.

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A legend in the hip-hop genre, Eminem from the United States has achieved 48 billion streams, proving his lasting impact in music.

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With roots in Canada, Justin Bieber has contributed significantly to the pop scene, gathering nearly 47 billion streams.

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Known for his artistic evolution, Kanye West has over 44 billion streams, firmly placing him among the top in hip-hop.

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This American alternative artist boasts over 43 billion streams, a testament to her unique sound and massive fan following.

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Other notable mentions include artists like Post Malone, BTS, and Rihanna, each carving out significant niches in their respective genres with billions of streams.

This list not only highlights the artists’ stream counts but also showcases the diversity of musical styles and cultural backgrounds represented on Spotify. From pop to hip-hop, and reggaeton to alternative, these artists have shaped the global music landscape through their unparalleled reach and artistry.

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