www.billboard.com/music/chart-beat/2022-us-year-end-music-report-luminate-top-album-bad-bunny-un-verano-sin-ti-1235196736/Bad Bunny’s ‘Un Verano Sin Ti’ Is Luminate’s Top Album of 2022 in U.S.By Keith Caulfield
1/11/2022
According to Luminate's Year-End U.S. Report, album consumption increased 9%, 43% of all albums sold were vinyl LPs & yearly on-demand audio streams surpassed 1 trillion for the first time.
Bad Bunny’s Un Verano Sin Ti wrapped 2022 as the most popular album of the year in the U.S., according to music data tracking firm Luminate. Lil Nas X and Jack Harlow’s “Industry Baby” was the year’s top song by on-demand streams, while Harry Styles’ “As It Was” ruled as both the top-streamed song by on-demand audio streams and the most-heard song on the radio. Meanwhile, total music consumption in the U.S. — as measured in equivalent album units — grew by 9.2% in 2022. (View the U.S. 2022 Luminate Year-End Music Report.)
See the year’s top 10 albums chart, along with other year-end rankings and overall volume numbers, below.
But first, the fine print:
Equivalent album units – for album titles and chart rankings cited below (but not industry volume numbers) – comprise traditional album sales, track equivalent albums (TEA) and streaming equivalent albums (SEA). Each unit equals one album sale, or 10 individual tracks sold from an album, or 3,750 ad-supported on-demand official audio and video streams generated by songs from an album, or 1,250 paid/subscription on-demand official audio and video streams generated by songs from an album. Album titles and album chart rankings by equivalent album units do not include user-generated content (UGC) streams, but UGC streams are included in Luminate’s industry volume numbers. (UGC streams are not factored into any of Billboard’s weekly charts.)
For the sake of clarity, equivalent album units do not include listening to music on broadcast radio or digital radio broadcasts. All numbers cited in this story are rounded, and for the U.S. only.
Luminate’s equivalent album unit totals include SEA and TEA for an album’s songs registered before an album’s release, but during the tracking period. For example, Harry Styles’ Harry’s House album unit total includes SEA and TEA for its song “As It Was” from April 1, 2022 (its release day) through May 19, 2022, before the album was released on May 20, 2022.
Luminate began tracking music sales in 1991 when the company was known as SoundScan. Luminate’s sales, streaming and airplay data is used to compile Billboard’s weekly charts. Luminate’s 2022 tracking year ran from Dec. 31, 2021, through Dec. 29, 2022.
Luminate is an independently operated company owned by PME TopCo, a PMC subsidiary and joint venture between Penske Media Corporation and Eldridge. Billboard is an independently operated company owned by PME Holdings, a subsidiary of PME TopCo.
Highlights from Luminate’s 2022 year-end data:Music consumption in the U.S., as measured by equivalent album units, grew by 9.2%
Bad Bunny’s Un Verano Sin Ti is the first Latin album, all-Spanish-language title, and non-English-language effort to be Luminate’s year-end No. 1 album, since the firm began tracking data in 1991.
Children’s music and Latin music had the largest growth among Luminate’s core genres in the U.S., rising 30% and 28.2%, respectively.
Overall U.S. on-demand song streams (audio and video combined) increased 12.2% to 1.268 trillion.
Yearly U.S. on-demand audio streams surpassed 1 trillion for the first time.
29% of all on-demand audio streams in the U.S. in 2022 were R&B/hip-hop songs.
U.S. vinyl album sales outsold CDs for the second year in a row & vinyl sales grew for a 17th consecutive year.
43% of all albums sold in 2022 in the U.S. – across all formats, physical & digital combined – were vinyl LPs.
Taylor Swift sold more vinyl albums than any act in 2022 in the U.S., accounting for 1 of every 25 vinyl LPs sold nationwide.
Total U.S. album sales for the year (physical and digital download purchases combined) fell by 8.2%
Swift’s latest album Midnights sold 1.8 million in traditional album sales in the U.S. in 2022 – the biggest-selling album of any year since 2017, when Swift’s Reputation sold 1.9 million. Further, an album by Swift has been the year’s top seller in three of the last four years: Midnights in 2022, Folklore in 2020 and Lover in 2019.
U.S. digital track sales declined for the 10th consecutive year, falling 25% in 2022. And for the first time since 2004, no song sold more than 500,000 downloads in a calendar year. From 2005-21, there was at least one song that sold a half-million downloads in each year, and from 2006-21, at least one song sold 1 million each year.
Un Verano Sin Ti debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard 200 chart dated May 21, 2022, and spent 13 nonconsecutive weeks atop the list. That marked the most weeks at No. 1 for any album since Drake’s Views also logged 13 frames at No. 1 in 2016. All 22 new songs on Bad Bunny’s album charted on the Billboard Hot 100 chart simultaneously, with the set launching four top 10-charting hits.
Un Verano Sin Ti was a streaming powerhouse, with 97% of its total activity in 2022 coming from on-demand streams of its 23 songs. Its tracks generated 4.649 billion on-demand streams in the U.S. in 2022 – easily making it the most-streamed album of the year (equaling 3.314 million in SEA units). The album sold just 70,000 in traditional album sales (CD and digital album download purchases – it was not available in any other format at retail). In terms of straight album sales – Un Verano Sin Ti was the No. 121st biggest-selling album of the year. And, Un Verano Sin Ti’s tracks sold just 148,000 downloads in 2022 – equaling 15,000 in TEA units.
Un Verano Sin Ti is the first Latin album, all-Spanish-language title, and non-English-language effort to be Luminate’s year-end No. 1 album, since the firm began tracking data in 1991.
2022 is the seventh consecutive year a solo male artist has Luminate’s top album by equivalent album units, following Morgan Wallen’s Dangerous: The Double Album (2021), Lil Baby’s My Turn (2020), Post Malone’s Hollywood’s Bleeding (2019), Drake’s Scorpion (2018), Ed Sheeran’s ÷ (Divide) (2017) and Drake’s Views (2016). The last time an album not by a solo male was tops for the year was in 2015, when Adele’s 25 ruled.
TOP 10 ALBUMS OF 2022 IN U.S., BY TOTAL EQUIVALENT ALBUM UNITS1. Bad Bunny, Un Verano Sin Ti (3.400 million)
2. Taylor Swift, Midnights (3.294 million)
3. Morgan Wallen, Dangerous: The Double Album (2.405 million)
4. Harry Styles, Harry’s House (2.204 million)
5. The Weeknd, The Highlights (1.879 million)
6. Soundtrack, Encanto (1.839 million)
7. Future, I Never Liked You (1.460 million)
8. Olivia Rodrigo, Sour (1.438 million)
9. Lil Durk, 7220 (1.357 million)
10. Drake, Certified Lover Boy (1.317 million)
Source: Luminate, for the tracking period Dec. 31, 2021, through Dec. 29, 2022. UGC streams are not included in this chart, but are included in Luminate’s on-demand streaming charts (below).
The second-biggest album of 2022 by equivalent album units is Taylor Swift’s Midnights, with 3.294 million units earned in just 10 weeks (the album was released on Oct. 21, 2022). Unlike the streaming-powered Un Verano Sin Ti, the Midnights album saw its success distributed more evenly across streaming, album purchases and track sales.
Midnights was by far the top-selling album of 2022, with 1.818 million copies sold – the biggest-selling album of a calendar year since 2017, when Swift’s own Reputation was tops (1.903 million). Midnights’ songs generated 1.854 million on-demand official streams last year, equating to 1.407 million SEA units. And, in terms of tracks sold from the album, Midnights’ collected songs sold 680,000 – resulting in 68,000 TEA units for the set. The album’s “Anti-Hero” is also 2022’s top-selling digital song, with 436,000 sold.
Morgan Wallen’s Dangerous: The Double Album is 2022’s No. 3-biggest album by units (2.405 million). It was 2021’s top album. Harry Styles’ Harry’s House (2.203 million) and The Weeknd’s hits compilation The Highlights (1.879 million) round out Luminate’s top five albums of 2022.
TOTAL ALBUM CONSUMPTION INCREASES 9.2%: Equivalent album units increased by 9.2% in 2022, to 974.9 million (up from 893.1 million in 2021). There were 19 albums that earned at least 1 million equivalent album units in 2022 – down from 26 in 2021.
R&B/HIP-HOP LEADS, LATIN and CHILDRENS MUSIC GAINS: R&B/hip-hop music continues to have the largest share of total album consumption, with 261.7 million units earned in 2022 – accounting for 26.8% of total volume (973.9) last year across all of Luminate’s core genres measured. R&B/hip-hop consumption increased 5.7% in 2022 over its volume in 2021 (247.5 million). (R&B/hip-hop is an umbrella genre for Luminate that contains most titles categorized as either R&B and/or rap.)
2022’s second-largest genre, by total album consumption, was rock with 194.7 million units (up 9% from 178.7 million in 2021). Pop music was third, with 123.7 million (up 6.2% from 116.5 million) and country music was fourth, with 75.7 million (up 4.8% from 72.2 million). The Latin genre rounded out the top five with 61.7 million units (up 28.2%) from 48.2 million in 2021.
Latin music had the second-largest percentage gain among Luminate’s core genres, in terms of total album consumption in 2022, rising 28.2%. Notably, Bad Bunny holds the top four Latin albums of 2022 by units earned: Un Verano Sin Ti (3.398 million units), YHLQMDLG (802,000), El Ultimo Tour del Mundo (577,000) and X 100PRE (386,000). Rauw Alejandro’s Vice Versa is 2022’s No. 5 biggest Latin album, with 375,000 units. (Those five albums, in order, are also the five total Latin albums among the year-end all-genre top 200 albums, ranking at Nos. 1, 40, 83, 179 and 186, respectively.)
2022’s second-largest gain among Luminate’s core genres was children’s music, which increased 30% to 13.4 million units in 2022 (up from 10.3 million in 2021). The genre was got a big boost from the massive success of the soundtrack to the Disney animated film Encanto, which finished the year as the No. 6 album overall with 1.839 million units. The set topped the weekly Billboard 200 chart for nine nonconsecutive weeks – the most weeks at No. 1 for any soundtrack since Disney’s own Frozen ruled for 13 nonconsecutive frames in 2014. The Encanto album – which boasts the No. 1 Billboard Hot 100 hit “We Don’t Talk About Bruno” – also racked up 24 nonconsecutive weeks at No. 1 on Billboard’s Kid Albums chart (which ranks the most popular children’s albums of the week).
TAYLOR SWIFT’S ‘MIDNIGHTS’ IS 2022’s TOP-SELLING ALBUM: Taylor Swift’s latest studio album Midnights was a monster sales success in the U.S., closing 2022 as the top-selling album of the year with 1.818 million copies sold across all formats (physical and digital combined: CD, vinyl LP, cassette, digital download album). (See the top 10-selling albums of 2022, below.)
With 1.818 million sold in 2022, Midnights is the biggest-selling album of any year since 2017, when Swift’s Reputation sold 1.903 million. Further, an album by Swift has been the year’s top-seller in three of the last four years: Midnights in 2022, Folklore in 2020 and Lover in 2019. (The top-selling album in 2021 was Adele’s 30, with 1.464 million sold.)
Midnights’ sales were bolstered by an array of available versions and variants of the album, including four standard CD editions (each with different cover art, both clean and explicit), four vinyl LP editions (each with a different cover and colored vinyl), a cassette tape and multiple digital iterations (including a “3am Edition” of the set with seven bonus tracks). Target stores also carried an exclusive “Lavender” edition of the album on CD and colored-vinyl, with the CD boasting three bonus tracks.
To further enhance sales, Swift’s official webstore sold signed copies of the four standard CD albums and vinyl LPs during a pre-order window before the album launched. As previously reported when the album debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard 200, some superfans may have been motivated to purchase all four variants of the album on either CD or vinyl, as the back covers of the albums fit together like a puzzle to display a clock face (a literal reference to Midnights). Swift shared the news through her social media in mid-September, saying: “If you put all the back covers together, she’s a clock. It’s a clock… It makes a clock.” (Swift’s official webstore previously sold hardware to hold the four CDs or the four vinyl LPs together as a wall clock.)
The idea of assembling multiple versions of an album’s back cover (or cover) together to reveal a larger complete image isn’t unique to Swift, as other acts (frequently in the K-pop world) have employed a similar marketing idea.
And, It’s not unusual for many artists to offer collectible variants of a physical album package – from multiple color vinyl editions to collectible CD editions and beyond. (Swift herself has done it for previous releases.) In 2022, acts ranging from Ghost, Ozzy Osbourne and Red Hot Chili Peppers to BLACKPINK, Madonna and Harry Styles all leaned in to the practice of offering multiple iterations of a physical album where usually the only difference is in packaging or the color of a vinyl LP.
Midnights was the only album to sell a million copies in the U.S. in 2022. It’s the fifth year in a row where just one album surpassed 1 million in U.S. sales. In 2021, Adele’s 30 was the only million-seller (1.464 million); in 2020, Swift’s Folklore was tops (1.276 million); in 2019, Swift’s Lover was the lone million-seller (1.085 million), and in 2018 the soundtrack to The Greatest Showman ruled with 1.489 million.
Swift is the only act to have the top-selling album of the year at least six times since Luminate began tracking sales in 1991. (Swift also had the top-seller in 2020, 2019, 2017, 2014 and 2009.)
All but two of the year’s top 10-selling albums were aided by their availability on vinyl LP. Of the top 10, BTS’ Proof and TOMORROW X TOGETHER’s Minisode 2: Thursday’s Child were the only titles not available on vinyl (the two K-pop projects were only available as digital download albums and on CD). It’s typical for many K-pop albums to bypass a release on vinyl LP in the U.S.
TOP 10 SELLING ALBUMS OF 2022 IN U.S. (PHYSICAL & DIGITAL SALES COMBINED)1. Taylor Swift, Midnights (1.818 million)
2. Harry Styles, Harry’s House (757,000)
3. BTS, Proof (422,000)
4. Olivia Rodrigo, Sour (354,000)
5. Beyoncé, Renaissance (335,000)
6. Fleetwood Mac, Rumours (310,000)
7. Adele, 30 (296,000)
8. Kendrick Lamar, good kid, m.A.A.d city (278,000)
9. Michael Jackson, Thriller (236,000)
10. TOMORROW X TOGETHER, Minisode 2: Thursday’s Child (229,000)
Source: Luminate, for the tracking period Dec. 31, 2021, through Dec. 29, 2022.
Taylor Swift sold the most albums in total among all artists in 2022, with 2.928 million sold across her entire catalog and via all formats (physical and digital combined). Harry Styles was the No. 2 biggest-seller with albums, as he sold 1.068 million in 2022.
U.S. ALBUM SALES DECLINE BY 8.2%: Total U.S. album sales fell by 8.2% in 2022 to 100.09 million (down from 108.98 million in 2021). In 2021, album sales posted their first yearly gain in a decade, when sales increased by 6.3%, thanks partly to the release of her hot-selling 30 in that year (2021’s top-selling album). Album sales have declined in every year from 2012-20, and again in 2022, as fans increasingly adopt streaming services as a means to consume music.
Physical album sales (CD, vinyl LP, cassette, etc.) declined by 3.5% to 79.89 million (down from 82.79 million in 2021).
VINYL CONTINUES TO OUTSELL CDS: For the second year in a row, and only the second year since Luminate began tracking music sales in 1991, vinyl albums outsold CD albums. Vinyl continues to be the leading format for album purchases for the second straight year.
Vinyl was the dominant format for album purchases in the U.S. up until the early 1980s. After that, cassettes took hold until the early 1990s, when the CD format blossomed and remained king until 2021.
43.46 million vinyl albums were sold in 2022 (up 4.2% from 41.72 million in 2021). 2022 was the 17th consecutive year vinyl album sales grew in the U.S., and the largest year for vinyl album sales since Luminate began tracking data in 1991. Plus, vinyl LP sales posted their single-largest sales week of the Luminate era when 2.232 million vinyl albums were sold in the week ending Dec. 22.
The top-selling vinyl album of 2022 is Swift’s Midnights, with 945,000 copies sold across all of its vinyl variants and editions (see top 10 list, below). Midnights has the largest yearly sales total for a vinyl album since Luminate began tracking sales in 1991. The set also posted the single-largest sales week for a vinyl LP in Luminate history, when it launched with 575,000 copies in its first week.
Eight of the year-end top 10-selling vinyl albums saw their sales enhanced by their availability across multiple variants (including assorted color-vinyl editions). Among the top 10 vinyl sellers, just Tyler, the Creator’s Call Me If You Get Lost (No. 6) and Igor (No. 8) were only available in one iteration each.
TOP 10 SELLING VINYL ALBUMS OF 2022 IN U.S.1. Taylor Swift, Midnights (945,000)
2. Harry Styles, Harry’s House (480,000)
3. Olivia Rodrigo, Sour (263,000)
4. Kendrick Lamar, good kid, m.A.A.d city (254,000)
5. Fleetwood Mac, Rumours (243,000)
6. Tyler, the Creator, Call Me If You Get Lost (211,000)
7. Taylor Swift, Folklore (174,000)
8. Tyler, the Creator, Igor (172,000)
9. Michael Jackson, Thriller (168,000)
10. The Beatles, Abbey Road (160,000)
Source: Luminate, for the tracking period Dec. 31, 2021, through Dec. 29, 2022.
Swift sold the most vinyl albums among all acts in 2022 in the U.S., with 1.695 million sold across her entire catalog. (She sold more vinyl LPs last year than the next two biggest-sellers on vinyl combined: Styles with 719,000 and The Beatles with 553,000.) Swift loomed so large on vinyl in 2022, one out of every 25 vinyl LPs sold last year in the U.S. was a Swift album (1.695 million of 43.46 million).
Vinyl album sales comprised 43.4% of all album sales in the U.S. in 2022 (43.46 million of 100.09 million). Vinyl LPs accounted for 54.4% of all physical album sold last year (43.46 million of 79.89 million). Both sums are Luminate-era records for vinyl’s share of the album sales market in the U.S.
In 2022 there were a total of 88 albums that sold at least 50,000 copies on vinyl – up from 87 in 2021. To compare, only 56 albums on the CD format sold at least 50,000 copies in 2022 (down from 67 in 2021).
CD SALES FALL, K-POP & COLLECTIBLE SETS BOLSTER TOP-SELLERS: 35.87 million CD albums were sold in 2022 (down 11.6% from 40.59 million in 2021), making it the second-most popular format among consumers who bought albums.
The top-selling album on the CD format in 2022 was Midnights with 640,000 copies sold. Swift sold the most CD albums last year, with 923,000 copies sold across her entire catalog of titles. BTS was the No. 2-seller on CD, with 917,000 copies sold.
Notably, of the year’s top 10-selling CD albums (see list, below), seven are K-pop titles (Nos. 2, 3, 5, 6, 7, 8 and 10). K-pop titles sell particularly well on the CD format, as many releases in the genre are issued in collectible CD editions, each usually housed in elaborate packaging with branded paper goods contained inside (sometimes with randomized elements).
There are three non-K-pop titles in the year-end top 10 CD albums ranking: Midnights (No. 1), Harry’s House (No. 4) and Beyoncé’s Renaissance (No. 9). Midnights’ CD sales were bolstered by its availability in multiple collectible editions with different cover art, while Harry’s House was issued in zine-CD and casebook CD editions. All three titles were also available in deluxe boxed sets containing branded T-shirts.
TOP 10 SELLING CD ALBUMS OF 2022 IN U.S.1. Taylor Swift, Midnights (640,000)
2. BTS, Proof (413,000)
3. TOMORROW X TOGETHER, Minisode 2: Thursday’s Child (227,000)
4. Harry Styles, Harry’s House (219,000)
5. Stray Kids, ODDINARY (204,000)
6. TWICE, Between 1&2 (199,000)
7. Stray Kids, MAXIDENT (177,000)
8. ENHYPEN, Manifesto: Day 1 (173,000)
9. Beyoncé, Renaissance (163,000)
10. NCT 127, 2 Baddies (148,000)
Source: Luminate, for the tracking period Dec. 31, 2021, through Dec. 29, 2022.
Digital album sales were the third-most popular format in 2022 for album purchases, and the category declined by 22.9% in 2022 to 20.2 million (down from 26.17 million in 2021). The top-selling digital album of 2022 was Midnights, with 219,000 sold. Swift was also the top-selling act across digital albums in 2022, with 292,000 download albums sold across her catalog in total. Beyoncé was the second-best selling act in digital album sales in 2022, with 69,000 copies sold.
CASSETTE TAPES SPIN BIG GAIN: In 2022, sales of albums on cassette tape in the U.S. increased by 28% to 440,000 (up from 343,000 in 2021). That’s a robust figure for a format that was mostly non-existent a few years ago, when yearly cassette sales numbered just 74,000 in 2015. Now a niche offering marketed to superfans, cassettes were once the leading format for album purchases in the U.S., from the early 1980s until the early 1990s.
The top-selling album on cassette in 2022 was the soundtrack to Guardians of the Galaxy, Vol. 2, with 17,000 copies sold. Two more Guardians-related titles dot the top 10 (at Nos. 3 and 6). As actual cassette mixtapes feature prominently in the Guardians’ storyline, it makes sense that a real-world cassette album offering, mirroring those seen in the films and series, could be a solid seller. (The three Guardians tapes that rank in the year-end top 10 have sold, combined, more than 238,000 since their release a number of years ago.)
TOP 10 SELLING CASSETTE ALBUMS OF 2022 IN U.S.1. Soundtrack, Guardians of the Galaxy, Vol. 2: Awesome Mix Vol. 2 (17,000)
2. Taylor Swift, Midnights (14,000)
3. Soundtrack, Guardians of the Galaxy: Awesome Mix Vol. 1 (13,000)
4. Harry Styles, Harry’s House (11,000)
5. Billie Eilish, Happier Than Ever (8,000)
6. Soundtrack, Guardians of the Galaxy: Cosmic Mix, Vol. 1 (8,000)
7. Nirvana, Bleach (7,000)
8. Bo Burnham, Inside (The Songs) (5,000)
9. Bad Bunny, YHLQMDLG (5,000)
10. Ghost, Impera (5,000)
Source: Luminate, for the tracking period Dec. 31, 2021, through Dec. 29, 2022.
TOTAL STREAMING INCREASES BY 12.2%: Total U.S. on-demand song streams (audio and video combined, inclusive of UGC streams) grew 12.2% to 1.268 trillion in 2022 (up from 1.130 trillion in 2021). Yearly on-demand audio streams (inclusive of UGC) bolted past the 1 trillion mark for the first time, rising 12.2% to 1.108 trillion in 2022 (up from 988.15 billion in 2021).
The R&B/hip-hop genre accounted for the most on-demand streams (audio and video combined, inclusive of UGC) in 2022, among Luminate’s core genres, with 28.6% of the year’s volume (362.77 billion of 1.268 trillion). In 2021, R&B/hip-hop represented a leading 30.1% of volume.
The rock genre had the second-largest share of on-demand song streams (audio and video combined, inclusive of UGC) in 2022, with 16.7% of the volume (210.71 billion of 1.268 trillion). Pop was third with 13.1% (166.65 billion of 1.268 trillion). Latin overtook country as the fourth-largest genre in on-demand streams, with 7.8% of the volume (99.08 billion of 1.268 trillion), while country was in fifth place with 7.3% (92.52 billion of 1.268 trillion). In 2021, Latin had 77.37 billion streams versus country’s 84.26 billion, when they were in fifth and fourth place, respectively.
In terms of year-over-year growth in total on-demand streams (audio and video combined, inclusive of UGC) among Luminate’s core genres, children’s music had the largest percentage increase in 2022, rising 35.5% (to 17.02 billion, up from 12.56 billion in 2021). World music (an umbrella genre which includes, among its many sounds and styles, most K-pop music), had the second-biggest percentage increase, climbing 28.5% (to 26.98 billion, up from 21.01 billion in 2021). Latin had the third-largest gain, spiking 28.1% (to 99.08 billion, up from 77.37 billion in 2021).
Looking just at on-demand audio streams for 2022 (inclusive of UGC), R&B/hip-hop led the way with 28.7% of volume (318.02 billion of 1.108 trillion). Rock (17.1%; 190.82 billion of 1.108 trillion), pop (12.5%; 138.97 billion of 1.108 trillion), country (7.8%; 85.91 billion of 1.108 trillion) and Latin (7.3%; 80.35 billion of 1.108 trillion) were Nos. 2-5 for the year, as they were in 2021.
The genres that saw the largest percentage growth in year-over-year on-demand audio streams (inclusive of UGC) were Latin music (up 31.5% to 80.35 billion; up from 61.12 billion in 2021), children’s music (up 30.6% to 14.43 billion; up from 11.05 billion in 2021) and world music (up 27.5% to 21.8 billion; up from 17.09 billion in 2021).
Note: UGC streams are included in Luminate’s industry streaming on-demand volume numbers and its year-end streaming song charts. UGC streams are not factored into any of Billboard’s weekly charts.
‘BABY’ & STYLES LEAD STREAMS: Lil Nas X and Jack Harlow’s co-billed smash “Industry Baby” was the most-streamed song of 2022 in the U.S., with 877.25 million on-demand audio and video streams combined (inclusive of UGC). “Industry Baby” garnered a sizable number of streams via user-generated video content. The most-streamed song by on-demand audio streams (inclusive of UGC) was Harry Styles’ “As It Was,” with 609.67 million clicks.
The most-streamed song of 2021 was Dua Lipa’s “Levitating,” with 804.71 million on-demand audio and video streams (inclusive of UGC), and it was also the top song by on-demand audio streams (inclusive of UGC) with 626.56 million.
See the top 10 most-streamed songs, below.
TOP 10 MOST STREAMED SONGS OF 2022 IN U.S., ON-DEMAND (AUDIO & VIDEO COMBINED)1. Lil Nas X & Jack Harlow, “Industry Baby” (877.25 million)
2. Harry Styles, “As It Was” (763.45 million)
3. Glass Animals, “Heat Waves” (758.07 million)
4. Carolina Gaitán, Mauro Castillo, Adassa, Rhenzy Feliz, Diane Guerrero, Stephanie Beatriz & Encanto Cast, “We Don’t Talk About Bruno” (684.90 million)
5. Imagine Dragons X JID, “Enemy” (627.61 million)
6. The Kid LAROI & Justin Bieber, “Stay” (622.39 million)
7. Kodak Black, “Super Gremlin” (609.88 million)
8. Future featuring Drake & Tems, “Wait for U” (602.69 million)
9. Bad Bunny & Chencho Corleone, “Me Porto Bonito” (565.38 million)
10. Bad Bunny, “Titi Me Pregunto” (551.57 million)
Source: Luminate, for the tracking period Dec. 31, 2021, through Dec. 29, 2022. Includes UGC streams.
TOP 10 MOST STREAMED SONGS OF 2022 IN U.S., ON DEMAND AUDIO1. Harry Styles, “As It Was” (609.67 million)
2. Glass Animals, “Heat Waves” (528.73 million)
3. Future featuring Drake & Tems, “Wait for U” (507.89 million)
4. Bad Bunny & Chencho Corleone, “Me Porto Bonito” (471.36 million)
5. Kodak Black, “Super Gremlin” (471.15 million)
6. Bad Bunny, “Titi Me Pregunto” (451.12 million)
7. Jack Harlow, “First Class” (433.93 million)
8. Carolina Gaitán, Mauro Castillo, Adassa, Rhenzy Feliz, Diane Guerrero, Stephanie Beatriz & Encanto Cast, “We Don’t Talk About Bruno” (421.80 million)
9. Steve Lacy, “Bad Habit” (421.09 million)
10. Zach Bryan, “Something In the Orange” (406.79 million)
Source: Luminate, for the tracking period Dec. 31, 2021, through Dec. 29, 2022. Includes UGC streams.
DIGITAL TRACK SALES FALL 25%: For the first time since 2004, no song sold more than 500,000 downloads in a calendar year in the U.S. And, 2022 marked the first year since 2005 that no song sold 1 million.
Taylor Swift’s “Anti-Hero” was the year’s top-selling digital song in 2022, with 436,000 paid downloads. And, total digital track sales declined for a 10th consecutive year, falling 25% in 2022 to 151.90 million sold (down from 202.92 million in 2021).
In 2021, the top-selling digital song was BTS’ “Butter,” with 1.89 million sold.
The last time a year closed without a million-selling digital song was 2005, when Weezer’s “Beverly Hills” was the top-seller with 962,000. The last year without a song surpassing 500,000 was 2004, when Hoobastank’s “The Reason” was the top-selling digital song, with 380,000 sold. (2004 was also the first full year of the iTunes Store, which launched mid-2003.)
TOP 10 SELLING DIGITAL SONGS OF 2022 IN U.S.1. Taylor Swift, “Anti-Hero” (436,000)
2. Lizzo, “About Damn Time” (217,000)
3. Latto, “Big Energy” (206,000)
4. Elton John & Dua Lipa, “Cold Heart” (202,000)
5. Kate Bush, “Running Up That Hill (A Deal With God)” (188,000)
6. Harry Styles, “As It Was” (183,000)
7. Nicki Minaj, “Super Freaky Girl” (172,000)
8. Cody Johnson, “Til You Can’t” (145,000)
9. Walker Hayes, “AA” (144,000)
10. Sia, “Unstoppable” (143,000)
Source: Luminate, for the tracking period Dec. 31, 2021 through Dec. 29, 2022.
‘IT WAS’ BIG ON THE RADIO: Harry Styles’ “As It Was” rules 2022 as the biggest song on the radio, as it collected 3.001 billion audience impressions across all monitored radio stations. Audience impressions are measured by cross-referencing plays with Nielsen Audio audience data – i.e., a play of a song on a top-rated New York station at 8 a.m. on a Monday has more listeners (audience) than an overnight weekend play in a smaller city.
TOP 10 RADIO SONGS OF 2022 IN U.S. (BASED ON AUDIENCE IMPRESSIONS)1. Harry Styles, “As It Was” (3.001 billion)
2. Glass Animals, “Heat Waves” (2.789 billion)
3. The Kid LAROI & Justin Bieber, “Stay” (2.779 billion)
4. Lizzo, “About Damn Time” (2.344 billion)
5. Justin Bieber, “Ghost” (2.325 billion)
6. Latto, “Big Energy” (2.205 billion)
7. Lil Nas X, “Thats What I Want” (2.064 billion)
8. Ed Sheeran, “Bad Habits” (2.060 billion)
9. Adele, “Easy On Me” (1.963 billion)
10. Jack Harlow, “First Class” (1.859 billion)
Source: Luminate, for the tracking period Dec. 31, 2021, through Dec. 29, 2022.
