Top Songs of 2016

The musical landscape of 2016

Streaming playlists became major discovery channels, hip-hop grew more dominant, and international sounds moved more easily into the North American mainstream.

Justin Bieber appears 2 times in the Top 20, making the artist one of the clearest recurring presences in this year’s list.

What to listen for

Listen for shorter arrangements, rhythmic vocal delivery and production choices designed to create an immediate identity.

This list contains 17 different credited artists. The number gives a quick indication of whether the year was concentrated among repeat hitmakers or spread across a wider field.

Billboard Year-End Top 20 songs of 2016

Build a 2016 playlist

Start with “Love Yourself” by Justin Bieber, then alternate familiar high-ranking records with contrasting selections from the lower half of the list.

Open the playlist builder

How this page should be used

Year-End charts summarize performance across an extended chart year. They are not simply a list of songs that reached number one, and historical methodology has changed. Treat this page as a guided listening resource and compact chart-history reference rather than a mathematical comparison with other eras.