List of best-selling singles on:
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[Amazon]
This is a
This is a compendium
A compendium (plural: compendia or compendiums) is a comprehensive collection of information and analysis pertaining to a body of knowledge. A compendium may concisely summarize a larger work. In most cases, the body of knowledge will concern a sp ...
of the best-selling music singles. The criterion for inclusion is to sell at least ten million copies worldwide. The singles listed here were cited by reliable sources from various media, such as digital journalism, newspapers, magazines, and books.
According to ''Guinness World Records
''Guinness World Records'', known from its inception in 1955 until 1999 as ''The Guinness Book of Records'' and in previous United States editions as ''The Guinness Book of World Records'', is a reference book published annually, listing world ...
'', Irving Berlin
Irving Berlin (born Israel Beilin; yi, ישראל ביילין; May 11, 1888 – September 22, 1989) was a Russian-American composer, songwriter and lyricist. His music forms a large part of the Great American Songbook.
Born in Imperial Russ ...
's " White Christmas" (1942) as performed by Bing Crosby is the best-selling single worldwide, with estimated sales of over 50 million copies. The song, recognized as "the best-selling single of all time", was released before the pop/ rock singles-chart era and "was listed as the world's best-selling single in the first-ever ''Guinness Book of Records'' (published in 1955) and—remarkably—still retains the title more than 50 years later". ''Guinness World Records'' also states that double A-side charity single "Candle in the Wind 1997
"Candle in the Wind 1997", also known as "Goodbye England's Rose" and "Candle in the Wind '97", is a song by English musician Elton John and songwriter Bernie Taupin, a re-written and re-recorded version of their 1973 song "Candle in the Wind". ...
"/"Something About the Way You Look Tonight
"Something About the Way You Look Tonight" is a song by English musician Elton John, taken from his 25th studio album, '' The Big Picture''. It was written by John and Bernie Taupin, and produced by Chris Thomas. It was released as the album' ...
" (1997) by Elton John (rewritten as a tribute to Diana, Princess of Wales, rather than Marilyn Monroe
Marilyn Monroe (; born Norma Jeane Mortenson; 1 June 1926 4 August 1962) was an American actress. Famous for playing comedic " blonde bombshell" characters, she became one of the most popular sex symbols of the 1950s and early 1960s, as wel ...
in the original 1973 version), is "the biggest-selling single since UK and US singles charts began in the 1950s, having accumulated worldwide sales of 33 million copies". This makes it the second-best-selling physical single of all time.
Two best-selling singles lists are displayed here relating first to physical singles (mainly CD and vinyl
Vinyl may refer to:
Chemistry
* Polyvinyl chloride (PVC), a particular vinyl polymer
* Vinyl cation, a type of carbocation
* Vinyl group, a broad class of organic molecules in chemistry
* Vinyl polymer, a group of polymers derived from vinyl ...
singles) and second to digital singles (digitally downloaded tracks which first became available to purchase in the early 2000s).
Best-selling physical singles
15million physical copies or more
10–14.9million copies
Best-selling digital singles
15million digital copies or more
10–14.99million copies
See also
* List of best-selling music artists *List of best-selling albums
This is a list of the world's best-selling albums of recorded music. To appear on the list, the figure must have been published by a reliable source and the album must have sold at least 20 million copies. This list can contain any types of al ...
*List of best-selling albums of the 21st century
This is a list of the best-selling albums of the 21st century to date based on IFPI certification and Nielsen SoundScan sales tracking. The criteria are that the album must have been published (including self-publishing by the artist), and the a ...
*List of highest-certified music artists in the United States
This is the list of the highest-certified music artists in the United States based on certifications of albums and digital singles (but not physical singles) by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA). RIAA certifications are base ...
: This lists the top 100 certified music artists (albums), and the top 50 certified music artists (digital singles).
* IFPI Global Recording Artist of the Year
Notes
*a. Sales figure includes 'equivalent track streams'.References
Bibliography
* * * {{IFPI Global Year-End