Billboard Christmas Holiday charts

On November 24, 1958, the magazine published Deejay's Favorite Christmas Disks. Described as the records played most frequently by disk jockeys each Christmas season, according to a survey made by The Billboard, the section consisted of 3 top 10 lists charting the top Holiday Singles, LP Albums and for the only time on Billboard's Christmas/Holiday surveys, EP Albums. Bing Crosby's "White Christmas" was the #1 single, Percy Faith's 1954 Music of Christmas[7] was the #1 LP and Pat Boone's 1957 Merry Christmas[8] was the #1 EP. [9] A Holiday survey would not be published again until the annual Christmas Records section is launched in 1963.

Seven holiday singles charted on the first year of Billboard's Hot 100 in 1958 including the debut of "The Chipmunk Song (Christmas Don't Be Late)" (Hot 100 #1 for 4 weeks)[10] and Harry Simeone's "Little Drummer Boy" (Hot 100 #13).[11] Bobby Helms' "Jingle Bell Rock" returned to the charts at #35. Eight holiday albums charted on Billboard's Best-Selling LP's survey in 1958 including the debut of Johnny Mathis' Merry Christmas that peaked at #3 on December 27.[12] Mitch Miller & The Gang's first holiday album Christmas Sing Along with Mitch peaked at #1 on January 8, 1959. Bing Crosby's "White Christmas" made its first Hot 100 appearance in 1959 at #59. Perry Como debuted his second Christmas album Season's Greetings from Perry Como on The Billboard's TOP LP'S on January 8, 1960 peaking at #22.[13]

The 1960 Hot 100 had 10 holiday singles including the debut of an annual charting of Brenda Lee's standard "Rockin' Around The Christmas Tree" (Hot 100 #14)[14] and the return of Nat King Cole's "The Christmas Song (Merry Christmas To You)" (Deejay's Favorite Christmas Disks #2, Hot 100 #80).[15] Bing Crosby's "Silent Night" (Deejay's Favorite Christmas Disks #8, Hot 100 #54) also returned in 1960 and the flip side "Adeste Fidelis" (Hot 100 #45) also from his 1945 Merry Christmas album made its first charting.[16] Bobby Helms returned to the Hot 100 at #36 in 1960 with the start of an annual charting of "Jingle Bell Rock". Harry Simeone's "Little Drummer Boy" and "The Chipmunk Song" re-charted the Hot 100 every year after their initial release just as Christmas Sing Along with Mitch and Johnny Mathis' Merry Christmas album had on Billboard's Best-Selling LPs chart. Bing Crosby's "White Christmas" returned to the Hot 100 in 1961 at #12[17] and in 1962 at #38.

Billboard's TOP LP's charted 21 holiday albums in 1962. Mitch Miller's Gang peaked at #1 again with their latest Christmas album Holiday Sing Along with Mitch.[18] Bing Crosby returned with Merry Christmas (Deejay's Favorite Christmas Disks #3, Top Mono LP's #46) and debuted his latest I Wish You a Merry Christmas (Top Mono LP's #50).[19] The 1962 Hot 100 had 12 seasonal singles including new releases like The 4 Seasons' "Santa Claus Is Coming To Town" (Hot 100 #23) and re-charting holiday standards like Nat King Cole's "The Christmas Song" (Hot 100 #65). Billboard debuted their first annual Christmas Records charts the following year.

Beginning with the issue dated November 30, 1963, Billboard magazine no longer charted Christmas albums or singles on its existing music charts. For the next 10 years, these titles could only be found in their new annual best-selling Christmas Records section (retitled Billboard Top Christmas Sellers in 1965[20] and then Billboard Best Bets for Christmas in 1966[21] through 1973).[upper-alpha 1] The 5-position survey ranking of top-selling Christmas Singles[lower-alpha 1] and Christmas LP's[lower-alpha 2] ran for 3–5 weeks each holiday season expanding in size as sales activity increased.[23]

The Andy Williams Christmas Album was the first number one album and his version of "White Christmas" from the same album was the first number one single, both peaking at No. 1 for the 5 week entirety of the section run in 1963.[24] The chart size increased each holiday season until peaking at 38 singles and 117 LPS in 1967.[25] Beginning in 1971, the Best Bets for Christmas only ran 2–3 weeks a year and listed significantly less titles with the singles chart only having 3 positions on December 18 of that year.[26]

Bing Crosby's Merry Christmas (LPs #2) spent 39 weeks on the LP survey from 1963-1973, more than any other album at the time. Harry Simeone's album The Little Drummer Boy (LPs #1)[27] and Nat King Cole's album The Christmas Song (LPs #1) tie at second, both charting 35 weeks between 1963 and 1973. Crosby's Merry Christmas, Cole's The Christmas Song and Johnny Mathis' Merry Christmas (LPs #2) spent more than 25 weeks in the top 10. The Andy Williams Christmas Album spent the most time on top of the chart at 9 inconsecutive weeks between 1963 and 1965. Andy Williams follow up, Merry Christmas spent 3 inconsecutive weeks at number one from 1966-1969.[28][29] Barbara Streisand's 1967 A Christmas Album topped the second most with 6 weeks[30] and Harry Simeone's The Little Drummer Boy album comes in 3rd with 4 weeks at number one on the Best Bets For Christmas album chart.[31][32]

Harry Simeone's "The Little Drummer Boy" single peaked at #1 for 10 weeks between 1964-1968, the most of any title on Billboard's Christmas 45 rpm single surveys. His hit and 1960's "Please Come Home For Christmas" by Charles Brown (45's #1) spent more time than any other single in the top 10 of the Best Bets for Christmas survey at 33 weeks. Both, along with Bing Crosby's "White Christmas" (45's #1), Bobby Helms' "Jingle Bell Rock" (45's #1) and Elvis Presley's "Blue Christmas" (45's #1) spent more than 30 weeks each on the Christmas singles survey between 1963 and 1973. Andy William's "White Christmas" and 1967's "Snoopy's Christmas" by The Royal Guardsmen topped the chart 5 times each tying both for the second most weeks at #1 on Billboard's Christmas Singles chart.

The Carpenters "Merry Christmas, Darling" was #1 on the singles chart the most during the 1970s with 3 weeks.[33] Second is the Jackson 5's "Santa Claus Is Comin' to Town' which topped the survey twice that decade.[34] Both debuted on the Best Bets For Christmas in 1970.[35] The Jackson 5 Christmas Album topped the album chart the most in the 70's with 3 weeks.[36] 1971's A Partridge Family Christmas Card[37] and Elvis Sings The Wonderful World of Christmas[38] tie for second with each peaking at #1 for 2 weeks.

Titles on these Christmas surveys did not appear on Billboard's other charts until 1973 when "Please Daddy" by John Denver (Hot 100 #69,[39] Hot Country Singles #69)[40] and "If We Make It Through December" by Merle Haggard (Hot 100 #28,[41] Hot Country Singles #1)[42] both peaked at #7[43][44] on the Best Selling Christmas Singles chart as well as appearing on the Hot 100 and Hot Country Singles chart.[upper-alpha 2] Holiday albums only charted the Best Bets for Christmas that year. Many singles and albums have re-charted over the years, but hundreds of titles only appeared in these best-seller sections that are unavailable on Billboard's website. The charts are extensively researched in Joel Whitburn's Christmas in the Charts 1920-2004 that contain statistics on every Christmas single and album that charted all of Billboard's music surveys.[46]

Christmas music surveys were not published after the December 22, 1973 Best Bets For Christmas until the section continues in 1983 retitled Christmas Hits. Billboard sporadically provided a section entitled New Christmas Selections from 1974 until 1976 that alphabetically listed titles of holiday record albums and singles. From 1974 until 1982, the magazine reverted back to only charting seasonal hits on their weekly popular music surveys such as the Eagles' 1978 cover of "Please Come Home For Christmas" (Hot 100 #18)[47] and Dan Fogelberg's 1980 "Same Old Lang Syne" (Hot 100 #9,[48] Adult Contemporary #8)[49] as well as LPs and tapes like John Denver's 1975 Rocky Mountain Christmas (Top LPs & Tapes #14)[50] and Kenny Rogers' 1981 Christmas (Top LPs & Tapes #34,[51] Top Country LPs #10).[52]

After 9 years, Billboard began publishing the best-selling Christmas Album and Single chart survey section again under the title Christmas Hits on December 17, 1983. The top 10 charts ran for two weeks each holiday season for the next 3 years[53] then returned in 1987 as a 30 position album only chart. Unlike the Best Bets For Christmas, Christmas Hits would often also chart Billboard's other music surveys such as Kenny Rogers & Dolly Parton's 1984 Once Upon A Christmas (Top 200 Albums #31, Top Country Albums #12)[54] and 1985's Alabama Christmas (Top 200 Albums #75, Top Country Albums #8)[55] which both peaked at #1 on the Christmas Hits album survey.[56]

Kenny Roger's 1981 Christmas was number one on the album chart for the first two weeks of the Christmas Hits survey. A Very Special Christmas spent the most weeks at the top of the album chart during the 1980s with 3 consecutive weeks starting December 12, 1987.[57][58] Barbra Streisand's A Christmas Album (Christmas Hits #2) and 1978's Christmas Portrait by The Carpenters (Christmas Hits #2) charted all 13 weeks of the Christmas Hits album chart. Kenny Rogers and Dolly Parton's Once Upon a Christmas, Nat King Cole's The Christmas Song (Christmas Hits #5) and 1984's Mannheim Steamroller Christmas (Christmas Hits #2) tie for second most times on the chart during the eighties with 11 weeks each.[59] Bing Crosby's Merry Christmas, Nat King Cole's The Christmas Song and Elvis's Christmas Album spent more than 40 weeks each on the Best Bets for Christmas and Christmas Hits surveys, more weeks than other LP during the entire holiday album chart run at the time.[60][61]

Bing Crosby's "White Christmas" returned to the top of the singles chart for the first week of the Christmas Hits survey. His hit has charted the most with 37 total weeks during the entire Christmas singles survey run. Bobby Helms comes in second with "Jingle Bell Rock" charting a total of 36 weeks. Harry Simeone's "Little Drummer Boy", Charles Brown's "Please Come Home For Christmas", Nat King Cole's "The Christmas Song" and Elvis Presley's "Blue Christmas " also charted over 30 weeks during the entirety of the Christmas singles survey. All 6 of these records peaked at #1 over the duration of Billboard's Christmas singles charts.

Elmo 'N Patsy's "Grandma Got Run Over By A Reindeer" spent the most weeks at top of the Christmas Hits singles chart during the 1980s with 3 consecutive weeks starting December 24, 1983.[62] It was also the only single that crossed over charting the Hot Country Singles chart at #92 in 1984. Band Aid's "Do They Know It's Christmas?" (Hot 100 #13) reached number 6 on Billboard's Hot Singles Sales chart in 1984 and had sold an estimated 2.5 million copies in the U.S. by January 1985,[63] but did not appear on Billboard's Christmas Hits best selling singles survey.[upper-alpha 3]

Bruce Springsteen's "Santa Claus is Comin' To Town" had peaked at #1 when Billboard published their last Christmas Hits single survey on December 28, 1985.[65] An alphabetical listing of Christmas singles would be featured in the magazine's "Reviews and Previews" section, but a seasonal album chart would be the only Christmas survey published until the introduction of Holiday Songs in 2001. For the next 25 years, best-sellers like 1989's "This One's For The Children" by New Kids On The Block (Hot 100 #7,[66] Adult Contemporary #7,[67] Hot Black Singles #55)[68] and 1993's "Let It Snow" by Boyz II Men Featuring Brian McKnight (Hot 100 #32,[69] Hot R&B Singles #17)[70] were only surveyed on the weekly charts until Billboard began surveying best selling Christmas songs in 2010 on the Holiday Digital Song Sales chart and also on the Holiday 100 beginning the following year.

The Deejay's Favorite Christmas Disks, Christmas Records, Top Christmas Sellers. Best Bets For Christmas and Christmas Hits single surveys ran 53 weeks and charted 134 titles from 1958 until 1985. These are Billboard's top ranking Christmas 45 rpm record singles.[71][72][73][74][75][76][77]

After no holiday charts were published in 1986, the Christmas Hits section resumed December 12, 1987 with a 30-position album survey, but Billboard stopped publishing a singles sales chart.[168] Only alternate weeks of the survey were available in print[169] with alternating weeks available via the Billboard Information Network. The various artist collection A Very Special Christmas topped the survey for the first 3 weeks of its return. Billboard published the chart for 2 consecutive weeks in 1987, then in 1988 began to run the survey every other week 2-3 times a holiday season.

The album-only Christmas Hits section was retitled Top Christmas Albums in 1990. Barry Manilow's Because It's Christmas was the #1 album for the first 2 weeks under the survey's new name.[170] Billboard began running the chart 5 consecutive weeks each holiday season in 1991, but all weeks are still not available in print.[171] In 1992, Billboard increased the survey to 7 weeks and started compiling the Top Christmas Albums chart using actual sales figures (SoundScan).[172] After a 6-week run in 1993, Billboard increased the survey size to 40 positions and began publishing the chart 7–10 weeks a year starting with the 1994 holiday season.[173]

Kenny G's Miracles: The Holiday Album topped the Christmas Albums chart for 17 weeks starting December 12, 1994, the most of any album during the 1990s. Kenny G also spent 5 more weeks at #1 in the nineties with his Faith: A Holiday Album from 1999. Celine Dion's These Are Special Times spent the second most weeks at the top during the 90's with 9 weeks at number one starting November 21, 1998. The album made its tenth week at #1 on October 29, 2016.[174]

Christina Aguilera's My Kind of Christmas topped the chart when Billboard renames the survey Top Holiday Albums on November 25, 2000.[173] They increased the chart size to 50 positions in 2002[175] and expanded the survey run to 11 weeks in 2006.[176] On October 20, 2007, Billboard begins publishing the Top Holiday Albums chart online in October for 14–15 weeks each holiday season.[177] Josh Groban's Noël started a 12-week consecutive run at number one on October 27, 2007. It topped the chart 6 more weeks in 2008 making it the top charting Holiday Album of the first decade of the century. Now That's What I Call Christmas! was the second top charting album of the 2000's with 14 inconsecutive weeks at number one from 2000-2003.[178]

On November 11, 2011, Michael Bublé's Christmas went to #1 for its first week. To date, it has spent 44 total weeks at #1 on the Top Holiday Albums, the most of any album on the entire Christmas album survey.[179] Pentatonix has spent 41 weeks at #1 on with 4 different albums during the past decade with 2014's That's Christmas to Me (18 weeks), 2016's A Pentatonix Christmas (18 weeks), 2018's Christmas Is Here! (2 weeks) and 2019's The Best of Pentatonix Christmas (3 weeks).[180] Billboard reduced the Top Holiday Album chart run to 12 weeks in 2022.[181]

In the mid-1990's, holiday songs with no commercial single availability had begun appearing more often on Billboard's airplay charts. New songs like 1995's "Christmas Eve (Sarajevo 12/24)" by the Trans-Siberian Orchestra (Adult Contemporary #34,[238] Adult Top 40 #25,[239] Hot 100 Airplay #49)[240] and "The Chanukah Song" by Adam Sandler (Adult Contemporary #35, Adult Top 40 #32, Hot 100 Airplay #10,[241] Mainstream Rock #20,[242] Modern Rock Tracks #25[243]) would re-chart annually each Christmas season along with older titles such as 1984's "Last Christmas" by Wham! (Adult Contemporary #22,[244] Adult Top 40 #40,[245] Hot 100 Airplay #58)[246] and 1979's "Wonderful Christmastime" by Paul McCartney (Adult Contemporary #29, Adult Top 40 #32)[247] The Hot Country Singles & Tracks and Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Airplay survey were also charting new songs like Jeff Foxworthy's "Redneck 12 Days of Christmas" (Hot Country Singles & Tracks #18)[248] and earlier classics such as The Temptations' "Silent Night" (Hot R&B Airplay #16).[249]

Billboard introduced the 25-position Holiday Songs survey online December 8, 2001. The top 15 has occasionally appeared in the print magazine.[250] The chart differed from the discontinued best-selling Christmas singles survey(s) by ranking songs based solely on radio airplay detections as measured by Nielsen BDS of Adult Contemporary and a few Adult Top 40 stations, most of which switch to all or nearly all Christmas music around Thanksgiving.[251] The first number one Holiday Song was 1977's "Celebrate Me Home" by Kenny Loggins.[251] The initial chart had a 3-week run, then expanded to 6 weeks in 2002. Billboard increased the survey to 30 positions and ran the chart 6–9 weeks each holiday season starting in 2006.[252]

Amy Grant has charted the most songs on the Holiday Song survey with nine.[253] Michael Bublé is second with 6 charted songs.[254] 1964's "A Holly Jolly Christmas" by Burl Ives (Holiday Songs #1) and 1963's "It's The Most Wonderful Time Of The Year" by Andy Williams (Holiday Songs #2) have both charted 126 weeks, the most of any songs on the survey. Both Brenda Lee's 1958 "Rockin" Around The Christmas Tree" (Holiday Songs #1) and Gene Autry's 1949 "Rudolph The Red-Nosed Reindeer" (Holiday Songs #2) tie for second most chart appearances with 124 charted weeks each.[255]

The most weeks at the top of the Holiday Songs survey is held by Mariah Carey's 1994 Hot 100 Airplay Christmas classic, "All I Want for Christmas Is You".[256] It has held the number one position for 49 weeks, consecutively since December 30, 2017.[257] Lee's "Rockin' Around The Christmas Tree" has peaked at #1 for a total of 30 weeks and Ives' "A Holly Jolly Christmas"[258] has topped the survey the third most times with 20 inconsecutive weeks.[259] Since December 4, 2010, these three songs and 1971's "Feliz Navidad" by Jose Feliciano have alternated the #1 position on the Holiday Songs chart.[260]

Billboard changed the name of the Holiday Songs survey to Holiday Airplay after the launch of the Holiday 100 in 2011 and run the charts concurrently each holiday season. At over 20 years, the Holiday Airplay chart is their longest running holiday single or song survey and their second longest running holiday survey after the Top Holiday Albums chart.

On December 10, 2011, Billboard expanded the Holiday Song chart to 50 positions, reduced it back to a 5-6 week run and renamed it Holiday Airplay. The newly reconfigured Hot Holiday Songs, like the Hot 100, ranks holiday tracks based on a formula blending airplay, download sales and streaming data as tracked by Nielsen Entertainment.[275] The 50-position chart survey begins to appear in print and Billboard.com in early December for 5–6 weeks each year. On December 14, 2013, Holiday Songs was expanded to 100 positions and renamed the Holiday 100, although only the top 50 remain in print.[276]

Topping the inaugural Hot Holiday Songs ranking was Mariah Carey's "All I Want for Christmas Is You".[277] As of January 7, 2023, this song has been #1 for 57 of the chart's 62 total weeks, consecutively since December 12, 2015.[278] The only songs that have taken the #1 spot away from her on the Holiday 100[279] are Justin Bieber's "Mistletoe" in 2012,[280] Ariana Grande's "Santa Tell Me" in 2015[281][282] and both Pentatonix's "Little Drummer Boy" in 2013[283] and "Mary, Did You Know?" for 2 weeks in 2014.[284][285] Brenda Lee's "Rockin' Around The Christmas Tree" has been holding at #2 for 38 weeks.[286] Michael Bublé, Pentatonix and Bing Crosby have charted the most songs on the Holiday 100 with 15 or more each.[287]

• Best Bets for Christmas 1963–1973
• Christmas Hits 1983–1989
• Holiday Airplay Songs 2001-2010
• Holiday Season Digital Song Sales 2010-2019 & 2020s
• Top Christmas Albums of the 1990s
• Top Holiday Albums of the 2000s, 2010s & 2020s

• Billboard Greatest Christmas Hits CD collection
• Billboard magazine: Charts
• Christmas music
• Hit Christmas singles in the United Kingdom
• Popular Christmas singles in the United States
• U.S. best-selling Christmas albums & singles

• AllMusic: A comprehensive and in-depth resource for finding out more about the albums, bands, musicians and songs you love.
• Discogs: A platform for music discovery and collection
• hip christmas: holiday music that rocks, rolls, swings, and twangs
• Internet Archive: a non-profit library of millions of free books, movies, software, music, websites, and more.
• MusicVF.com: US & UK hits charts
• Records That Made Billboard's Christmas Singles Charts 1963-1985 (45cat.com)
• WorldRadioHistory.Com: A non-profit free online library