Michael Jackson, Madonna, Prince, Guns N’ Roses, Bon Jovi, Queen, Phil Collins… All these artists and many others have had an enormous impact on the music of the 80s, and have sung some of the biggest hits of this period. Do you know which song is the biggest for each artist I mentioned above, and which one dominates this decade?
The songs ranked here have been released from January 1, 1980 up to December 31, 1989. All figures are given in EAS (equivalent album sales). They include audio and video streams, downloads, ringtones but also a weighted share of the album they helped to sell.
Please keep in mind that some artists who released big hits this decade have not been studied so far, e.g. Journey, The Police, Tracy Chapman, or Lionel Richie. All figures reflect the value as collected at the time of the artist’s respective articles (CSPC article or Streaming Masters). You can check the list of artists that have been tracked at this link.
A lot of lists like this one are available inside the Data Collector, so feel free to read them to gauge how your favorite artist charts on them.
Biggest Songs of the 1980s (CSPC)
1. 1982 – Michael Jackson – Billie Jean [Thriller] – 41,890,000
2. 1982 – Michael Jackson – Beat It [Thriller] – 27,160,000
3. 1981 – Phil Collins – In the Air Tonight [Face Value] – 25,090,000
4. 1986 – Bon Jovi – Livin’ on a Prayer [Slippery When Wet] – 23,460,000
5. 1982 – Michael Jackson – Thriller [Thriller] – 23,430,000
6. 1987 – U2 – With Or Without You [The Joshua Tree] – 23,430,000
7. 1981 – Queen & David Bowie – Under Pressure [Hot Space] – 23,110,000
8. 1980 – AC/DC – Back in Black [Back in Black] – 21,680,000
9. 1980 – Queen – Another One Bites the Dust [The Game] – 20,770,000
10. 1984 – Bryan Adams – Summer of ’69 [Reckless] – 20,670,000
11. 1987 – Whitney Houston – I Wanna Dance with Somebody (Who Loves Me) [Whitney] – 19,630,000
12. 1989 – Phil Collins – Another Day in Paradise […But Seriously] – 19,230,000
13. 1987 – Guns N’ Roses – Sweet Child O’ Mine [Appetite for Destruction] – 19,070,000
14. 1980 – AC/DC – You Shook Me All Night Long [Back in Black] – 18,560,000
15. 1989 – Madonna – Like A Prayer [Like A Prayer] – 18,550,000
16. 1983 – U2 – Sunday Bloody Sunday [War] – 16,800,000
17. 1986 – Bon Jovi – You Give Love a Bad Name [Slippery When Wet] – 16,520,000
18. 1984 – Prince and the Revolutions – Purple Rain [Purple Rain] – 15,570,000
19. 1984 – Madonna – Like A Virgin [Like A Virgin] – 15,210,000
20. 1985 – Dire Straits – Money for Nothing [Brothers in Arms] – 14,860,000
21. 1984 – Bruce Springsteen – Born in the U.S.A. [Born in the U.S.A.] – 14,800,000
22. 1987 – Michael Jackson – Man in the Mirror [Bad] – 14,390,000
23. 1982 – Phil Collins – You Can’t Hurry Love [Hello, I Must Be Going!] – 14,310,000
24. 1986 – Madonna – La Isla Bonita [True Blue] – 14,160,000
25. 1983 – Billy Joel – Uptown Girl [An Innocent Man] – 13,940,000
26. 1981 – The Rolling Stones – Start Me Up [Tattoo You] – 13,690,000
27. 1984 – Bruce Springsteen – Dancing in the Dark [Born in the U.S.A.] – 13,530,000
28. 1980 – Barbra Streisand – Woman in Love [Guilty] – 13,440,000
29. 1987 – U2 – I Still Haven’t Found What I’m Looking For [The Joshua Tree] – 13,420,000
30. 1984 – George Michael – Careless Whisper [Make It Big] – 13,110,000
31. 1985 – Dire Straits – Walk of Life [Brothers in Arms] – 12,880,000
32. 1987 – Michael Jackson – Smooth Criminal [Bad] – 12,800,000
33. 1984 – Queen – I Want to Break Free [The Works] – 12,620,000
34. 1984 – Madonna – Material Girl [Like A Virgin] – 12,550,000
35. 1987 – Michael Jackson – The Way You Make Me Feel [Bad] – 12,100,000
36. 1987 – George Michael – Faith [Faith] – 11,890,000
37. 1989 – Garth Brooks – The Dance [Garth Brooks] – 11,580,000
38. 1987 – Guns N’ Roses – Welcome to the Jungle [Appetite for Destruction] – 11,530,000
39. 1985 – Whitney Houston – How Will I Know [Whitney Houston] – 11,350,000
40. 1987 – Bill Medley & Jennifer Warnes – (I’ve Had) The Time Of My Life [Dirty Dancing] – 11,270,000
41. 1988 – Metallica – One […And Justice For All] – 11,210,000
42. 1987 – Guns N’ Roses – Paradise City [Appetite for Destruction] – 11,050,000
43. 1987 – Fleetwood Mac – Everywhere [Tango In The Night] – 10,930,000
44. 1985 – Phil Collins – Sussudio [No Jacket Required] – 10,760,000
45. 1984 – Wham! – Wake Me Up Before You Go-Go [Make It Big] – 10,670,000
46. 1986 – Paul Simon – You Can Call Me Al [Graceland] – 10,070,000
47. 1985 – Dire Straits – Brothers in Arms [Brothers in Arms] – 9,600,000
48. 1984 – Bryan Adams – Heaven [Reckless] – 9,590,000
49. 1984 – Prince and the Revolutions – When Doves Cry [Purple Rain] – 9,510,000
50. 1983 – Irene Cara – Flashdance… What a Feeling [Flashdance / What a Feelin’] – 9,420,000
51. 1988 – Enya – Orinoco Flow [Watermark] – 9,340,000
52. 1983 – Madonna – Holiday [Madonna] – 9,310,000
53. 1984 – Phil Collins – One More Night [No Jacket Required] – 9,190,000
54. 1986 – Metallica – Master Of Puppets [Master Of Puppets] – 9,140,000
55. 1981 – AC/DC – For Those About to Rock (We Salute You) [For Those About to Rock We Salute You] – 9,120,000
56. 1988 – Guns N’ Roses – Patience [GNR Lies] – 8,920,000
57. 1986 – Bon Jovi – Wanted Dead or Alive [Slippery When Wet] – 8,910,000
58. 1980 – Bob Marley – Could You Be Loved [Uprising] – 8,870,000
59. 1984 – Madonna – Into The Groove [Like A Virgin] – 8,860,000
60. 1980 – AC/DC – Hells Bells [Back in Black] – 8,720,000
61. 1986 – Prince and the Revolutions – Kiss [Parade] – 8,660,000
62. 1989 – Billy Joel – We Didn’t Start the Fire [Storm Front] – 8,610,000
63. 1983 – Michael Sembello – Maniac [Flashdance / Bossa Nova Hotel] – 8,470,000
64. 1986 – Madonna – Papa Don’t Preach [True Blue] – 8,460,000
65. 1983 – David Bowie – Let’s Dance [Let’s Dance] – 8,290,000
66. 1980 – ABBA – The Winner Takes It All [Super Trouper] – 8,230,000
67. 1989 – Elton John – Sacrifice [Sleeping with the Past] – 8,160,000
68. 1980 – Billy Joel – It’s Still Rock and Roll to Me [Glass Houses] – 8,150,000
69. 1989 – Cher – If I Could Turn Back Time [Heart of Stone] – 7,950,000
70. 1984 – Bruce Springsteen – I’m on Fire [Born in the U.S.A.] – 7,920,000
71. 1987 – Michael Jackson – Bad [Bad] – 7,880,000
72. 1980 – Bruce Springsteen – The River [The River] – 7,850,000
73. 1989 – Garth Brooks – If Tomorrow Never Comes [Garth Brooks] – 7,850,000
74. 1984 – U2 – Pride (in The Name Of Love) [The Unforgettable Fire] – 7,740,000
75. 1985 – Whitney Houston – Greatest Love of All [Whitney Houston] – 7,730,000
76. 1980 – John Lennon – Woman [Double Fantasy] – 7,720,000
77. 1980 – Dire Straits – Romeo and Juliet [Making Movies] – 7,410,000
78. 1982 – Michael Jackson – P.Y.T. (Pretty Young Thing) [Thriller] – 7,230,000
79. 1984 – Wham! – Last Christmas [Music from the Edge of Heaven] – 6,920,000
80. 1983 – U2 – New Year’s Day [War] – 6,440,000
81. 1986 – Madonna – Live To Tell [True Blue] – 6,440,000
82. 1987 – Eric Carmen – Hungry Eyes [Dirty Dancing] – 6,400,000
83. 1980 – Queen – Crazy Little Thing Called Love [The Game] – 6,380,000
84. 1983 – Bob Marley – Buffalo Soldier [Confrontation] – 6,320,000
85. 1982 – Michael Jackson – Wanna Be Startin’ Somethin’ [Thriller] – 6,140,000
86. 1983 – Elton John – I’m Still Standing [Too Low for Zero] – 6,060,000
87. 1980 – Barbra Streisand & Barry Gibb – Guilty [Guilty] – 6,040,000
88. 1985 – Prince and the Revolutions – Raspberry Beret [Around the World in a Day] – 6,020,000
89. 1980 – AC/DC – Shoot to Thrill [Back in Black] – 5,990,000
90. 1987 – Aerosmith – Dude (Looks Like a Lady) [Permanent Vacation] – 5,880,000
91. 1988 – Bon Jovi – I’ll Be There for You [New Jersey] – 5,730,000
92. 1987 – Pink Floyd – Learning to Fly [A Momentary Lapse of Reason] – 5,550,000
93. 1989 – Queen – I Want It All [The Miracle] – 5,500,000
94. 1984 – Metallica – For Whom the Bell Tolls [Ride The Lightning] – 5,490,000
95. 1988 – Bon Jovi – Bad Medicine [New Jersey] – 5,450,000
96. 1988 – Enya – Watermark [Watermark] – 5,420,000
97. 1984 – Prince and the Revolutions – Let’s Go Crazy [Purple Rain] – 5,390,000
98. 1980 – Bob Marley – Redemption Song [Uprising] – 5,350,000
99. 1984 – Phil Collins – Against All Odds (Take a Look at Me Now) [Against All Odds Soundtrack] – 5,340,000
100. 1985 – Whitney Houston – Saving All My Love for You [Whitney Houston] – 5,320,000
MJ just owned the solo game ..
Queen about to overtake Madonna overall, once updated.
The top three biggest sellers here are MJ, Queen then Madonna. These three are also in the overall top Five.
Can anybody who has experienced the music phenomenon of the 80s tell me how huge Phil Collins and his band Genesis was? That despite MJ and Madonna dominion, was Phil more ubiquitous than them overall due to being a member of Genesis? Like you hear more songs from Phil and Genesis combined on tvs or radios? Is it safe to say Phil was actually more popular than Madonna in the 80s?
Best-selling artists of the 80s
Michael Jackson – 181,729,000
Madonna – 131,613,000
Phil Collins estimation: – 117,538,000 + Genesis (estimation: 25,000,000) = 142,538,000
From a UK perspective, Phil Collins was vastly more popular, more well known etc than Genesis. Genesis were certainly successful in the UK in the 80’s but it was only really with The Invisible Touch that they became a sort of household name in the UK, Collins was from the off. I knew about Collins from his first single in 1981, probably from seeing it on Top of The Pops , Genesis I didn’t become aware of until IT in 1986. While there’s no denying how successful his music was in the UK in the 80′, he was never critically… Read more »
I don’t think it makes sense to base his popularity on both Genesis and his solo career. Genesis is a band depending on Collins and other band members while his solo career is, well, a solo career. So when judging his success, I think it makes more sense to judge it solely on his solo achievements.
I think it does make sense, as it’s showing how successful he was in total. More recent artists all receive sales and streams towards their own totals, when they feature on someone elses track, often for just performing a few lines or a rap. I think it’s only fair to look at Collins overall success, as he certainly contributed to the success and popularity of Genesis, to a far greater extent (Drummer, Singer, Co-Writer, Face of the band), than a lot of these featuring artists have, to the music they gain sales for.
Then we should add all the sales of The Jackson 5/The Jacksons to Michael Jackson’s total, given without him the band would have never gained popularity. MJ was the lead singer for every song, and wrote a lot of the material.
I am not suggesting we actually add them together for these kind of lists/articles, I am just saying IMO it does make sense to look at how successful guys like McCartney, Collins, Jackson etc have been across their full careers.
Thank you for the reply. I really don’ think Phil can become more popular than MJ in the 80s but how competitive was he against Madonna? Was the competition between them really close or not at all? Was “In The Air Tonight” @ #3 a really huge song in the 80s?
Has Phil been put beside and recognized along with MJ and Madonna on different forms of media as the Big Three of the 80s?
RLAAMJR, I think Madonna was more popular than Phil. Per this wesbite, she was the second most successful artist of the 80s.
https://chartmasters.org/2018/02/most-successful-artists-by-decade/#comment-32640
Nick,
Not sure why he’s not in the top 10 in the 80s rankings. But based on his 80s result he should be no 3 and not that far away from Madonna. My parents told me that his music was everywhere in the 80s. But I guess Madonna was probably bigger because she definitely received press coverage like crazy. Album sales wise, they probably in the same league.
Maybe you can ask your parents who was bigger between the two. Please??? 🙂
Rlaamjr,
Their results speak for themselves.
Madonna was way bigger, trust me (in sales, media exposure, cultural impact, chart positions, concert sales).
Madonna definitely sold more albums than Phil Colins during the 80’s. In Europe one just have to look at her eurochart records. I mean, True Blue was #01 for 37 weeks – the most any other album in history selling more than 8 millions in less than 1 year. Phill only had 4 album and 23 single releases during the 80’s despite having released singles since 1980 and albums since 1981. From those singles, only 9 were certified silver, gold or platinum in at least 1 country. His best selling album was released in 1985 and his worldwide sales are… Read more »
Phill Collins was popular during the 80’s and early 90’s and was also appealing for a more adult public. My Grandma could buy a Phil record too. He was was appealing to older people too. Michael and Madonna were more appealing to younger people (yet my parents always enjoyed them as well). Phil was more played at AC radio stations. Michael Jackson and Madonna were much more popular and famous and much more played in all kinds of radios during the 80’s (at least in South European countries – I live in Portugal but traveled often to other European countries… Read more »