The Most Popular Christmas Carols of All Time


The list of popular Christmas carols and songs that make up the most popular Christmas carols of all time.

These are some of the best Christmas carol songs of all time. From classics like White Christmas to newer songs like Mary, Did You Know? this list has them all. The best Christmas music is a fun way to celebrate the season with family, friends and coworkers.

Some of the greatest Christmas songs ever written come from movies and TV shows as well. These are some of the most famous Christmas carol songs from movies and television shows. Some of these great holiday songs were one hit wonders or came from a major motion picture soundtrack or a television special.

These famous Christmas songs are also some of the most popular holiday carols of all time. Whether you're at home or at work, these great popular Christmas carols can be played over and over again during the holidays.

What is the most popular Christmas song of all time? The same Christmas carols are played every year, but which are the favorites? There are many popular Christmas song recordings by many different artists. Some of the most famous traditional Christmas songs are hundreds of years old but the most popular ones were recorded in recent years. The most popular Christmas carols, mostly traditional, and some more modern, are listed below.

The list is sorted by radio airplay audience impressions (in millions) using Nielsen BDS, sales data as compiled by Nielsen SoundScan (in units) and streaming activity data from online music sources tracked by Nielsen BDS (in millions). Songs are defined as current if they are newly-released titles, or songs receiving widespread airplay and/or sales activity for the first time.

The Top 10 Christmas Carols of All Time

As the holiday season descends upon us, there is no shortage of Christmas carols to be heard everywhere we go. From the chipmunks’ novelty hit single “Christmas Don’t Be Late” to Mariah Carey’s contagiously catchy “All I Want For Christmas Is You,” each artist has their own unique way of creating an original Christmas song.

However, some Christmas carols are more popular than others, and you can find them on almost every holiday album. It’s time to raise a glass to the most popular Christmas carols of all time!

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1. “Silent Night”

Composer: Franz Xaver Gruber

Lyrics: Joseph Mohr

First year performed: 1818

Top-charting version(s): Bing Crosby, The Temptations, Andy Williams, Kenny G., The Carpenters

The original lyrics for this Christmas carol were penned in 1816 by priest Joseph Mohr. Two years later, he asked Franz Xaver Gruber to set the lyrics to music. The song was first performed at a Christmas mass on December 24, 1818 at St. Nicholas Church in Oberndorf, Austria. Over the years, it has been translated into more than 300 languages and has become one of the most popular Christmas songs ever written.

2. “White Christmas”

Composer: Irving Berlin

First year performed: 1941 (film)

Top-charting version(s): Bing Crosby, Frank Sinatra, Elvis Presley, Celine Dion, The Drifters

This song is considered the best-selling single of all time and was inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame in 1974 for its historical significance. In 1942’s Holiday Inn starring Bing Crosby and Fred Astaire, the song won an Academy Award for best original song and helped launch

More than likely, Christmas music doesn’t stop until New Year’s Day. It starts the day after Halloween and is heard all over the world. Some Christmas songs are classics and never go out of style, while others are way too cheesy to be played more than once a year. Most people have their favorite Christmas songs, but it’s fun to see what everyone else likes.

According to “The 100 Most Popular Christmas Songs” by The ASCAP Foundation, each song is ranked by radio airplay, audience impressions as measured by Nielsen Broadcast Data Systems, digital downloads and streaming data from 2010-15.

Here is the list of the top 100 most popular Christmas songs of all time:

The most popular and enduring songs of the holiday season might not be the ones you’d guess. According to data provided by Nielsen Music, the most streamed Christmas song of all time is Mariah Carey’s 1994 seasonal pop staple “All I Want For Christmas Is You,” which has been streamed over 50 million times.

Rounding out the top five most popular holiday tracks are “Jingle Bell Rock” by Bobby Helms (46 million streams), “It’s The Most Wonderful Time Of The Year” by Andy Williams (43 million streams), “Jingle Bells” by Frank Sinatra (40 million streams) and the newly released “Underneath The Tree” by Kelly Clarkson (37 million streams). Other popular songs in the Nielsen study included Burl Ives’ “A Holly Jolly Christmas,” Brenda Lee’s “Rockin’ Around The Christmas Tree” and Paul McCartney & Wings’ 1973 hit single “Wonderful Christmastime.”

Perhaps not surprisingly, Carey’s track has also seen a resurgence in popularity this year thanks to its inclusion in a key scene of 2014 comedy Love Actually, which has enjoyed renewed life thanks to Netflix.


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