The 17 Most Popular Christmas Songs in America (Listen Now)
Harriet Ashdown·Published
The day after Thanksgiving it starts again: Mariah Carey in every store, Brenda Lee on the radio, and Bing Crosby dreaming of snow in the background.
But which Christmas songs do Americans really love most? We went through the Billboard charts, streaming records and polls. The result is the 17 most popular Christmas songs in America, from pop classics to carols.
You can listen to every song right here, without leaving the page.
And if the one song that is only about your family is still missing at the end: that exists too. We turn your names and memories into your own Christmas song, more on that right after No. 1.
How we made this list: No single source compares every Christmas song. So we combined three kinds of data. First, Billboard's Holiday 100 (the final chart of the 2025 season) and its all-time holiday ranking. Second, Hot 100 peaks and RIAA certifications. Third, a YouGov poll in which 1,200 Americans named their favorite Christmas song. Places 1 to 12 follow the chart data. The carols at the end are more of an editorial judgment of how widely a song is loved. All sources are listed at the end of the article.
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1. All I Want for Christmas Is You
Mariah Carey199422 weeks at No. 1
Mariah Carey wrote it with Walter Afanasieff in the summer of 1994. It took 25 years to reach No. 1 on the Hot 100, in December 2019.7 Since then it returns to the top every season: by January 2026 it had spent a record 22 weeks at No. 1, and in the week of December 19 to 25, 2025 it was streamed 70.6 million times in the US alone.4
On Billboard's Holiday 100 it has been No. 1 in 71 of 79 chart weeks.1 In 2021 it became the first holiday song certified Diamond by the RIAA.7 In the YouGov poll it tied for first place, named by 13 percent of Americans as their favorite.5
2. Rockin' Around the Christmas Tree
Brenda Lee1958No. 1 in 2023
Brenda Lee was 13 when she recorded the Johnny Marks song. Back then it only reached No. 14.8 65 years later, in December 2023, it topped the Hot 100 for three weeks.3 It is No. 2 on Billboard's all-time holiday chart2 and certified 7 times Platinum.8 Real tree or artificial: our Christmas tree statistics show what most homes are rocking around.
3. Jingle Bell Rock
Bobby Helms1957No. 2 on the Hot 100
A country singer, a rock'n'roll beat and sleigh bells: in 1957 that was new. Almost 70 years later the song reached its highest Hot 100 position yet, No. 2 in the chart dated December 27, 2025.3 Billboard ranks it third among the greatest holiday songs of all time.2 It is also the unofficial anthem of every office holiday party.
4. Last Christmas
Wham!19849x Platinum
George Michael wrote it in February 1984 and played every instrument himself.10 In America the song took decades to grow: it reached its highest Hot 100 position ever, No. 2, in December 2025.3 That same month the RIAA certified it 9 times Platinum.10
5. The Christmas Song (Merry Christmas to You)
Nat King Cole1946No. 6 on the Hot 100
"Chestnuts roasting on an open fire" was written in July 1945, during a heat wave, by Mel Tormé and Bob Wells.11 Nat King Cole's recording is in the Grammy Hall of Fame,11 and in December 2025 it reached No. 6 on the Hot 100, the oldest song in the top 10.3
6. A Holly Jolly Christmas
Burl Ives1964All-time No. 5
Another Johnny Marks song. Burl Ives sang it as Sam the Snowman in the 1964 TV special "Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer", and the slower single from that year is the version radio still plays.12 It reached No. 4 on the Hot 100 in January 20203 and is fifth on Billboard's all-time holiday chart.2
7. Santa Tell Me
Ariana Grande20144x Platinum
The newest song in our top ten. It reached No. 5 on the Hot 100 in January 2025,3 the first holiday song released in the 21st century to make the top five, and is certified 4 times Platinum.13 On the final Holiday 100 of the 2025 season it was No. 5.1
8. It's the Most Wonderful Time of the Year
Andy Williams1963No. 5 on the Hot 100
Eddie Pola and George Wyle wrote it for Andy Williams' first Christmas album in 1963.14 It reached No. 5 on the Hot 100 in January 2021.3 Thanks to this song, Williams' span of Hot 100 top-10 hits now covers more than 66 years.4
9. Feliz Navidad
José Feliciano1970Grammy Hall of Fame
Recorded in about ten minutes at RCA's studio in Los Angeles, and it did not appear on any Billboard chart until January 1998, almost 28 years after release.15 In January 2021 it reached No. 6 on the Hot 100,3 and Billboard ranks it sixth among the greatest holiday songs.2
10. White Christmas
Bing Crosby1942Best-selling single ever
Irving Berlin wrote it for the film "Holiday Inn", where it won the Oscar for Best Original Song. Crosby recorded it on May 29, 1942, in about 18 minutes, and with an estimated 50 million copies it is the best-selling single in the world.16 Ten percent of Americans still call it their favorite.5 Whether you will get one this year: our white Christmas statistics have the odds.
11. It's Beginning to Look a Lot Like Christmas
Michael Bublé2011All-time No. 14
Meredith Willson wrote it in 1951 and Perry Como had the first hit with it,17 but today it is Michael Bublé's song. His version was No. 13 on the final Holiday 100 of 2025 and is 14th on the all-time chart.12 Spotify names him the most popular holiday artist of all.6
12. Let It Snow! Let It Snow! Let It Snow!
Dean Martin1959No. 7 on the Hot 100
Like "The Christmas Song", it was written in a Hollywood heat wave in July 1945, by Sammy Cahn and Jule Styne. Dean Martin's version is certified 2 times Platinum18 and reached No. 7 on the Hot 100 in January 2024.3
13. Silent Night
Carol1818Tied for No. 1 with Mariah
The carol has no place in the streaming charts, yet it tied with Mariah Carey as America's favorite: 13 percent each, and 16 percent among baby boomers.5 It was first sung on Christmas Eve 1818 in Oberndorf near Salzburg, has been translated into about 300 languages and was recognized by UNESCO as intangible cultural heritage in 2011.19 Our recording is the Temptations' soul version from 1980.
14. O Holy Night
Carol184712 percent favorite
Placide Cappeau wrote the French poem in 1847, and Adolphe Adam set it to music. A 1906 violin performance by Reginald Fessenden is often called the first piece of music ever broadcast on radio.20 12 percent of Americans name it their favorite.5 We picked Josh Groban's 2007 recording.
15. Jingle Bells
Frank Sinatra1857Played in space
James Lord Pierpont published it in 1857 as "The One Horse Open Sleigh". On December 16, 1965, the Gemini 6 astronauts played it on a harmonica and bells as a prank on Mission Control, which makes it one of the first songs performed in space.21 Frank Sinatra's swing version is the one on the Holiday 100.1
16. Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer
Gene Autry1949All-time No. 12
The reindeer was invented in 1939 for a Montgomery Ward department store booklet. Johnny Marks turned the story into a song, and Gene Autry's recording sold 1.75 million copies in its first Christmas season.22 Billboard ranks it 12th among the greatest holiday songs.2 For many American kids it is the first Christmas song they know by heart.
17. Carol of the Bells
CarolUkraineHome Alone
It began as "Shchedryk", a Ukrainian New Year song arranged by Mykola Leontovych and first performed in 1916. Peter Wilhousky wrote the English words in 1936.23 Seven percent of Americans name it their favorite,5 and many of them know it from John Williams' score for "Home Alone" (1990), which is the version we play here.
Song number 18 on the list: your own
The whole country knows the 17 songs above. A song featuring Grandma Linda, the tree that did not fit through the door and the road trip with the flat tire is one only your family knows. That is exactly what makes it the moment on Christmas morning people still talk about in January. You need neither a guitar nor a talent for rhyming. A few keywords are enough, and a few minutes later the song is ready. Make your own Christmas song here.
For more numbers about the holidays, from trees to travel, see our overview of Christmas statistics.
Frequently asked questions
What is the most popular Christmas song in America?
By any chart measure, Mariah Carey's "All I Want for Christmas Is You". By January 2026 it had spent a record 22 weeks at No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 and 71 weeks at No. 1 on the Holiday 100. In YouGov's poll it tied with "Silent Night" at 13 percent as Americans' favorite.
What is the oldest Christmas song on the charts?
Of the songs that reached the Hot 100 top 10 in the 2025 season, Nat King Cole's "The Christmas Song" is the oldest, written in 1945 and first recorded by Cole in 1946.
What is America's favorite Christmas carol?
"Silent Night", named by 13 percent of Americans in YouGov's poll, followed by "O Holy Night" at 12 percent and "Carol of the Bells" at 7 percent.
Can I get a personalized Christmas song made?
Yes. You answer a few questions about the people the song is for and get a sung Christmas song with their names and your own memories. You see the lyrics right away, and the sung version is ready a few minutes later.
Harriet Ashdown looks after our blog. She has loved the countdown to Christmas since she was a child, starts on the mince pies far too early every year and writes here about everything to do with advent calendars.
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Harriet Ashdown
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Published