20 Years of Spotify: Taylor Swift, Bad Bunny, and The Weeknd Named The Greatest Stars

23 Apr 2026

To celebrate its 20th anniversary, Spotify has for the first time published official lists of the most-streamed artists, albums, tracks, podcasts, and audiobooks in the service's history. These rankings provide a definitive look at how global listening habits have evolved over the past twenty years.

The title of the most-streamed artist of all time was claimed by Taylor Swift, who managed to edge out giants like Bad Bunny and Drake. The top five also includes The Weeknd and Ariana Grande, followed by Ed Sheeran, Justin Bieber, Billie Eilish, Eminem, and Kanye West. Rounding out the top twenty are heavy hitters like Travis Scott, BTS, Post Malone, Bruno Mars, J Balvin, Rihanna, Coldplay, Kendrick Lamar, Future, and Juice WRLD.

In the album rankings, the top spot went to Un Verano Sin Ti by Bad Bunny, followed by The Weeknd’s Starboy and Ed Sheeran’s ÷ (Deluxe). Other entries in the top ten include Olivia Rodrigo’s SOUR, The Weeknd’s After Hours, SZA’s SOS, Post Malone’s Hollywood's Bleeding, Taylor Swift’s Lover, Arctic Monkeys’ AM, and Billie Eilish’s WHEN WE ALL FALL ASLEEP, WHERE DO WE GO?.

The absolute most-streamed song in Spotify history is "Blinding Lights" by The Weeknd, cementing its status as the platform's biggest hit to date.

Following the leader in the tracks category are Ed Sheeran’s "Shape of You" and "Sweater Weather" by The Neighbourhood. The top ten also features "Starboy" by The Weeknd ft. Daft Punk, Harry Styles’ "As It Was," Lewis Capaldi’s "Someone You Loved," Post Malone & Swae Lee’s "Sunflower," Drake’s "One Dance," Ed Sheeran’s "Perfect," and "STAY" by The Kid LAROI and Justin Bieber.

Among podcasts, The Joe Rogan Experience remains the undisputed leader. Second place goes to Germany’s Gemischtes Hack, followed by the true-crime hit Crime Junkie. Other top-tier entries include Armchair Expert with Dax Shepard, The Daily, and Relatos de la Noche.

In the audiobooks category for Premium subscribers, Sarah J. Maas leads the pack, with three of her books from the A Court of Thorns and Roses series landing in the top twenty. Second place belongs to J.R.R. Tolkien’s The Fellowship of the Ring, while Rebecca Yarros’s Fourth Wing takes third.