The most wonderful time of the year is here! And since time immemorial, popular artists have released Christmas tracks that capture the season’s festive cheer, providing us with soundtracks for our holiday celebrations. But not all Christmas songs are created equal, with some resonating with the public more than others, garnering millions of streams and eventually becoming perennial favorites. But what are the most streamed Christmas songs of all time?

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Data from Nicki Swift reveals that there’s been a 300% increase in Google search demand for ‘Soulful Christmas songs‘ in the past 30 days and a 190% increase for ‘Christmas music playlist.’ Interestingly, ‘Kelce Brothers Christmas song’ has been the most-searched-for “Christmas song” over the past month, along with ‘All I Want for Christmas Is You,’ ‘Feliz Navidad,’ ‘Jingle Bells,’ ‘Last Christmas,’ and  ‘All I Want For Christmas Is You (SuperFestive!)’. 

But which holiday tunes are the most streamed Christmas songs of all time and the ones that bring in the most cash at Christmas? 

With this in mind, a new study by Nicki Swift has looked into Billboard’s list of the top 100 best Christmas songs and analyzed each song using Spotify data to compile the total number of streams and identify and rank the most streamed Christmas songs in Spotify history. As for the earnings, we considered Spotify’s average payment to artists, which reportedly ranges from $0.003 to $0.005 per stream. We then crunched the number, choosing to go the conservative route and take the $0.003 per stream figure to determine the highest-earning Christmas songs of all time.

Mariah Carey’s “All I Want For Christmas Is You” is the #1 most streamed (and highest-earning) song of all time

Of course, Mariah Carey’s iconic “All I Want For Christmas Is You” takes the crown as the most streamed and highest-earning Christmas song ever, with a whopping 1.5 billion streams and estimated earnings of $4.7 million on Spotify alone. When the holiday season rolls around, Carey’s “All I Want For Christmas Is You” remains supreme, dominating the charts, so it’s no surprise that she takes the top spot on this ranking. Carey, a longtime Christmas fanatic, penned the tune to create a classic piece. “My goal was to do something timeless, so it didn’t feel like the ’90s, which is when I wrote it,” she told “Good Morning America.” And timeless it is!

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Wham!’s “Last Christmas” is the #2 most streamed (and highest-earning) Christmas song

Wham!’s “Last Christmas” takes the second spot on our list with a massive 1.2 billion streams on Spotify and estimated earnings of $3.8 million. The song achieved immediate success from the get-go but was overshadowed by “Do They Know It’s Christmas,” which one-half of the duo, George Michael, was coincidentally also a part of. Despite this, Michael considered it a number-one hit in its own right. In 2021, five years after his demise, the song finally claimed its rightful spot atop the charts.

Brenda Lee’s “Rockin’ Around the Christmas Tree” is the 3rd most streamed (and highest-earning) holiday song

Rounding out the list is Brenda Lee’s “Rockin’ Around the Christmas Tree,” collecting an impressive stream count of 950 million and estimated earnings of $2.8 million. Ironically, Lee’s Christmas hit, which she recorded when she was just 13, had been a flop when it was first released in 1950. “It certainly wasn’t what it became,” the singer told “Q with Tom Power.” Surprisingly, its breakthrough came decades later when “Home Alone” hit the theaters. Lee recalled, “I got a phone call, and they said, ‘Brenda, have you seen the movie ‘Home Alone?’ Your song is all over it.’ And that’s really where ‘Rockin” got a big, big boost.”

Other Christmas classics that made the list

At the 4th, 5th, and 6th spots in the list are “Santa Tell Me” by Ariana Grande, “It’s Beginning to Look a Lot Like Christmas” by Michael Bublé, “Jingle Bell Rock” by Bobby Helms, garnering 913 million streams and $2.7 million in earnings, 880 million streams and $2.6 million in earnings, and 827 million streams and $2.4 million in earnings, and respectively. 

Securing the 7th, 8th, and 9th positions are Andy Williams’ “It’s the Most Wonderful Time of the Year, Justin Bieber’s “Mistletoe,” and “José Feliciano’s “Feliz Navidad.” These highly-streamed Christmas anthems garnered 729 million streams and $2 million in earnings, 680 million and $2 million in earnings, and 567 million streams and $1.7 million in earnings, respectively. 

Taking the 10th spot is Kelly Clarkson’s “Underneath the Tree” with 542 million streams and $1.6 million in earnings.