List of million-selling singles in the United Kingdom

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"(We're Gonna) Rock Around the Clock" by Bill Haley & His Comets was the first single to sell 1 million copies in the UK.

A million-selling single is regarded by the Official Charts Company (OCC) as one that has sold at least 1 million copies since the start of the UK Singles Chart in November 1952. As well as a traditional purchase of a physical record, a sale can represent one permanent digital download of a track (physical singles usually consist of two songs, although both are only included in sales figures for double A sides or where both receive a high level of interest and airplay). Both British Phonographic Industry (BPI)-certified awards (Silver, Gold and Platinum) and the weekly charts now include audio streaming at 100 streams of a song to one sales unit (from 30 June 2014),[1] but these are not included in the sales figures published by the OCC.[2] Certified awards can also include shipments (sales to trade).[3][4][5] The OCC and Music Week regularly announce when a record becomes a million seller.[6][7][8]

As of February 2016, 164 singles have sold 1 million copies in the UK.[2] Of these, 107 were originally released in the 20th century (70 of them selling 1 million before the year 2000)[7] and the remaining 57 were released between 2000 and 2014. The most recently released single to become a million-seller is "Uptown Funk" by Mark Ronson featuring Bruno Mars,[9] which was released in December 2014 and passed a million sales ten weeks later in February 2015. Bing Crosby's "White Christmas is the earliest release: originally 1942, although only sales from 1952 onwards are counted. The year in which the most million-sellers were released is 2011, with ten;[9] a record 36 releases from the 1990s have sold 1 million copies (26 of them achieving it during the decade), and the 2010s have so far seen 35 new million-sellers.[10] Only two million sellers have failed to reach the top 5 on the UK Singles Chart: Snow Patrol's "Chasing Cars" and Journey's "Don't Stop Believin'", both of which peaked at number 6.[2]

History

In 1959, British periodical Disc introduced an initiative to present a Gold record to singles that sold more than 1 million units.[11] Information about when a record was classified Gold by Disc is "not well documented", and the awards relied on record companies correctly compiling and supplying sales information.[11] This led to errors, such as The Shadows' instrumental "Apache" and The Archies' "Sugar, Sugar" incorrectly being awarded a gold disc in January 1970.[nb 1] Such inaccuracies led to the instigation of an official classification system.[11] In April 1973, the British Phonographic Industry (BPI) began classifying singles and albums by the number of units sold. The highest threshold is "Platinum record" and was then awarded to singles that sold more than 1 million units.[12] For singles released after 1 January 1989, the number of sales required to qualify for Platinum, Gold and Silver records was dropped to 600,000 units (Platinum), 400,000 units (Gold) and 200,000 units (Silver).[12][13] In February 1987, the BPI introduced multi-Platinum awards so that if a single sold 1,200,000 units it was classified as double Platinum, 1,800,000 units as triple Platinum, etc.[13]

Digital downloads have been counted towards singles sales from 2004 onwards.[14] Additionally, audio streaming has been included in the official chart and BPI awards since 30 June 2014, at a rate of 100 streams representing one unit sale,[1] however the OCC still compiles a 'sales' (only) chart and still quotes these traditional sales figures in its features and articles.[15]

In 1963, The Beatles' song "She Loves You" became the best-selling single of all time in the UK.[16] This record was broken in 1977 when Paul McCartney's new band Wings surpassed it with "Mull of Kintyre", which also became the first song to sell 2 million copies in the UK.[17] In 1984, Band Aid released the charity-record "Do They Know It's Christmas?" in response to the famine in Ethiopia; it sold 1 million copies in the first week and soon became the best-selling single.[18][19] This record was broken in 1997, following the death of Diana, Princess of Wales, when Elton John released "Candle in the Wind 1997", a re-write of the Marilyn Monroe tribute released in 1973. Selling more than 650,000 copies on its first day on sale and more than 1.5 million in its first week, it quickly became the UK's best-selling single.[18][20][21] It was classified by the BPI as 9× Platinum (5.4 million) in October 1997, but more recent estimates suggest sales of 4.93 million.[22]

Million-selling singles

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See also: List of best-selling singles in the United Kingdom, List of most streamed songs in the United Kingdom, List of Platinum singles in the United Kingdom awarded before 2000, and List of Platinum singles in the United Kingdom awarded since 2000

The following list is restricted to sales data since the inception of a UK chart in 1952. Sales figures from the OCC are on the date given in the reference. The OCC differentiates 'chart sales' (which include streaming) from 'sales' (which are downloads and physical purchases), and uses traditional sales to define a million-seller: these are the figures quoted below.[1]

Artist Single (two songs separated by / denotes a double A-side) Date released[nb 2] Date certified
Platinum		 Date sold
1 million
[nb 3]		 Copies sold[nb 4] Order in which songs reached
1 million
Bing Crosby "White Christmas" 1942[24] N/A 2010–12 1,020,000[25] 117
Bill Haley & His Comets "(We're Gonna) Rock Around the Clock" December 1954[26] N/A 1955[27] 1,430,000[25] 1[27]
Paul Anka "Diana" August 1957[28] N/A 1957 1,250,000[25]
Harry Belafonte "Mary's Boy Child" October 1957[29] N/A 1957 1,190,000[30]
Elvis Presley "It's Now or Never" October 1960[29] N/A 1960 1,260,000[25]
Acker Bilk "Stranger on the Shore" November 1961[28] N/A 1961 1,160,000[25]
Cliff Richard and The Shadows "The Young Ones" January 1962[28] N/A 1962 1,060,000[25]
Frank Ifield "I Remember You" June 1962[28] N/A 1962 1,100,000[25]
The Beatles "She Loves You" August 1963[31] N/A 1963 1,920,000[32]
The Beatles "I Want to Hold Your Hand" November 1963[31] N/A 1963 1,780,000[32]
The Beatles "Can't Buy Me Love" March 1964[31] N/A 1964 1,540,000[32]
The Beatles "I Feel Fine" November 1964[31] N/A 1964 1,420,000[32]
The Righteous Brothers "Unchained Melody" July 1965
October 1990 (re-issue)		 1 November 1990 2004–10[33] 1,050,000[25]
Ken Dodd "Tears" August 1965[28] N/A 1965 1,520,000[25]
The Seekers "The Carnival Is Over" October 1965[28] N/A 1965 1,420,000[25]
The Beatles "Day Tripper" / "We Can Work It Out" December 1965[31] N/A 1965 1,410,000[32]
Tom Jones "Green, Green Grass of Home" November 1966[34] N/A 1966 1,240,000[25]
Engelbert Humperdinck "Release Me" May 1967[35] N/A 1967 1,380,000[25]
Engelbert Humperdinck "The Last Waltz" November 1967[35] N/A 1967 1,170,000[25]
The Beatles "Hey Jude" August 1968 N/A 2010–12 1,120,000[36] 116
The Archies "Sugar, Sugar" October 1969[29] N/A 2004–10[nb 1] 1,020,000[25]
The New Seekers "I'd Like to Teach the World to Sing (In Perfect Harmony)" December 1971[39] N/A 2004–10[40] 1,010,000[25]
Simon Park Orchestra "Eye Level" November 1972 1 January 1978 1978 1,010,000[25]
Little Jimmy Osmond "Long Haired Lover from Liverpool" November 1972[41] N/A 2004–10[42] 1,000,000[25]
Tony Orlando and Dawn "Tie a Yellow Ribbon Round the Ole Oak Tree" February 1973 N/A 2010–12 1,000,000[25] 118
Gary Glitter "I Love You Love Me Love" November 1973 1 January 1974 1973 1,140,000[25]
Slade "Merry Xmas Everybody" December 1973 1 December 1980 1980 1,230,000[25]
Rod Stewart "Sailing" September 1975 N/A[nb 5] 2010–12 1,030,000[25] 120
Queen "Bohemian Rhapsody"
"Bohemian Rhapsody" / "These Are the Days of Our Lives"		 October 1975
November 1991		 1 January 1976
1 December 1991		 1975[nb 6] 2,440,000[43]
John Lennon "Imagine" October 1975 1 February 1981 1981 1,640,000[25]
Showaddywaddy "Under the Moon of Love" November 1975 N/A[nb 5] 2010–12 1,000,000[25] 121
Brotherhood of Man "Save Your Kisses for Me" March 1976 1 May 1976 1976 1,020,000[25]
Elton John and Kiki Dee "Don't Go Breaking My Heart" June 1976 N/A[nb 5] 2013[25] 1,000,000[25] 134[25]
ABBA "Dancing Queen" August 1976 N/A[nb 5] 2004–10[38] 1,070,000[25]
Julie Covington "Don't Cry for Me Argentina" November 1976 N/A[nb 5] 2004–10[45] 1,010,000[25]
David Soul "Don't Give Up on Us" December 1976 1 February 1977 1976 1,160,000[25]
Donna Summer "I Feel Love" July 1977 N/A 2012[46] 1,070,000[25] 115
Wings "Mull of Kintyre" / "Girls' School" November 1977 1 December 1977
Multi-Platinum
  • 2×: 1 November 1986
 1978 2,080,000[30]
Boney M. "Rivers of Babylon" / "Brown Girl in the Ring"dagger April 1978 1 May 1978 1978 2,020,000[25]
John Travolta and Olivia Newton-John "You're the One That I Want" May 1978 1 July 1978 1978 2,050,000[43]
John Travolta and Olivia Newton-John "Summer Nights" September 1978 1 October 1978 1979 1,600,000[25]
Gloria Gaynor "I Will Survive" October 1978 N/A[nb 5] 2010–12 1,030,000[25] 119
Boney M. "Mary's Boy Child – Oh My Lord" November 1978 1 December 1978 1978 1,870,000[30]
Village People "Y.M.C.A." November 1978 1 January 1979 1979 1,470,000[25]
Ian Dury and The Blockheads "Hit Me with Your Rhythm Stick" November 1978 N/A[nb 5] 2004–10[7] 1,110,000[25]
Blondie "Heart of Glass January 1979 1 February 1979 1979 1,300,000[36]
Art Garfunkel "Bright Eyes" January 1979 1 May 1979 1979 1,200,000[25]
Pink Floyd "Another Brick in the Wall (Part II)" November 1979 1 January 1980 2004–10 1,100,000[25]
Adam and the Ants "Stand and Deliver" May 1981 N/A[nb 5] 2004–10[7] 1,040,000[25]
Soft Cell "Tainted Love" July 1981 N/A[nb 5] 1981 1,290,000[25]
The Human League "Don't You Want Me" November 1981 1 January 1982 1982 1,560,000[25]
Journey "Don't Stop Believin'" December 1981 22 July 2013 2014[47] 1,011,500[48] 151[47]
Tight Fit "The Lion Sleeps Tonight" January 1982 N/A[nb 5] 2010–12 1,010,000[25] 122
Dexy's Midnight Runners and the Emerald Express "Come On Eileen" June 1982 1 September 1982 1982 1,330,000[25]
Irene Cara "Fame" June 1982 N/A[nb 5] 2004–10[38] 1,050,000[25]
Survivor "Eye of the Tiger" July 1982 1 December 2014 2004–10[38] 1,460,000[25]
New Order "Blue Monday" March 1983 N/A[nb 7] 1,210,000[36]
UB40 "Red Red Wine" August 1983 N/A 2014[47] 1,000,000[47] 150[47]
Culture Club "Karma Chameleon" September 1983 1 October 1983 1983 1,490,000[25]
Billy Joel "Uptown Girl" September 1983 N/A[nb 5] 2004–10[50] 1,030,000[25]
Frankie Goes to Hollywood "Relax" October 1983 1 March 1984 1984 2,030,000[25]
Frankie Goes to Hollywood "Two Tribes" June 1984 1 June 1984 1984 1,600,000[25]
George Michael "Careless Whisper" July 1984 1 September 1984 1984 1,460,000[51]
Stevie Wonder "I Just Called to Say I Love You" August 1984 1 September 1984 1984 1,840,000[25]
Ray Parker, Jr. "Ghostbusters" August 1984 N/A[nb 5] 2004–10[38] 1,110,000[25]
Band Aid "Do They Know It's Christmas?" November 1984 1 December 1984 1984 3,780,000[30]
Wham! "Last Christmas" / "Everything She Wants" December 1984 1 January 1985 1985 1,780,000[30]
Jennifer Rush "The Power of Love" May 1985 1 November 1985 1985 1,400,000[25]
The Pogues featuring Kirsty MacColl "Fairytale of New York" December 1987 22 July 2013 2012[52] 1,180,000[30] 126[52]
Kylie Minogue and Jason Donovan "Especially for You" November 1988 N/A[nb 5] 2014[53] 1,000,000[53] 154[53]
Black Box "Ride On Time" August 1989 1 October 1989 2004–10[54] 1,060,000[25]
Bryan Adams "(Everything I Do) I Do It for You" June 1991 1 August 1991
Multi-Platinum
  • 2×: 1 September 1991
 1991 1,820,000[55]
Whitney Houston "I Will Always Love You" October 1992 1 December 1992
Multi-Platinum
  • 2×: 1 January 1993
 1993 1,620,000[55]
Wet Wet Wet "Love Is All Around" May 1994 1 June 1994
Multi-Platinum
  • 2×: 1 August 1994
 1994 1,880,000[55]
Whigfield "Saturday Night" September 1994 1 September 1994 1994 1,180,000[36]
Celine Dion "Think Twice" October 1994 1 January 1995 1994 1,320,000[25]
Mariah Carey "All I Want for Christmas Is You" December 1994 19 December 2013
Multi-Platinum
  • 2×: 11 December 2015
 2013[56] 1,000,000[56] 142[56]
Robson & Jerome "Unchained Melody" / "White Cliffs of Dover" May 1995 May 1995
Multi-Platinum
  • 2×: May 1995
 1995 1,860,000[55]
Take That "Back for Good" March 1995 1 April 1995 2004–10[7] 1,080,000[25]
Peter Andre featuring Bubbler Ranx "Mysterious Girl" September 1995 1 August 1996 2013[25] 1,030,000[36] 135[25]
Coolio featuring L.V. "Gangsta's Paradise" October 1995 1 November 1995
Multi-Platinum
  • 2×: 2 May 2014
 1995 1,540,000[36]
Robson & Jerome "I Believe" / "Up on the Roof" October 1995 1 November 1995 1995 1,120,000[25]
Oasis "Wonderwall" October 1995 1 January 1996
Multi-Platinum
  • 2×: 2 July 2013
 2004–10[57] 1,320,000[25]
Michael Jackson "Earth Song" November 1995 1 December 1995 1995 1,170,000[25]
Babylon Zoo "Spaceman" January 1996 1 January 1996 1996 1,150,000[25]
Baddiel & Skinner & The Lightning Seeds "Three Lions"
"3 Lions '98"		 June 1996
June 1998		 1 July 1996
3 July 1998		 1998[nb 8] 1,566,000[58]
Fugees "Killing Me Softly June 1996 1 June 1996
Multi-Platinum
  • 2×: 1 August 1996
 1996 1,380,000[25]
Spice Girls "Wannabe" July 1996 1 August 1996
Multi-Platinum
  • 2×: 22 July 2013
 1996 1,360,000[36]
Spice Girls "2 Become 1" December 1996 1 December 1996 1996 1,120,000[59]
No Doubt "Don't Speak" February 1997 22 July 2013 2015[60] 1,007,000[61] 163[60]
Puff Daddy featuring Faith Evans "I'll Be Missing You" June 1997 1 July 1997
Multi-Platinum
  • 2×: 1 August 1997
 1997 1,580,000[25]
Elton John "Candle in the Wind 1997" /
"Something About the Way You Look Tonight"		 September 1997 1 September 1997
Multi-Platinum
  • 2×: 1 September 1997
  • 3×: 1 September 1997
  • 4×: 1 September 1997
  • 5×: 1 September 1997
  • 6×: 1 September 1997
  • 7×: 1 October 1997
  • 8×: 1 October 1997
  • 9×: 1 October 1997
 1997 4,930,000[22]
Aqua "Barbie Girl" October 1997 7 November 1997
Multi-Platinum
  • 2×: 5 December 1997
  • 3×: 22 July 2013
 1997 1,830,000[36]
Natalie Imbruglia "Torn" October 1997 12 December 1997
Multi-Platinum
  • 2×: 25 September 2015
 2004–10[62] 1,190,000[63]
Various artists "Perfect Day" November 1997 21 November 1997
Multi-Platinum
  • 2×: 9 January 1998
 1997 1,550,000[25]
All Saints "Never Ever" November 1997 5 December 1997
Multi-Platinum
  • 2×: 30 January 1998
 1998 1,350,000[64]
Teletubbies "Teletubbies say "Eh-oh!"" December 1997 12 December 1997
Multi-Platinum
  • 2×: 19 December 1997
 1997 1,110,000[25]
Robbie Williams "Angels" December 1997 6 February 1998
Multi-Platinum
  • 2×: 4 December 1998
 2009–10 1,200,000[55]
Celine Dion "My Heart Will Go On" February 1998 27 February 1998
Multi-Platinum
  • 2×: 24 April 1998
 1998 1,560,000[36]
Run–D.M.C. vs Jason Nevins "It's Like That" March 1998 27 March 1998
Multi-Platinum
  • 2×: 22 July 2013
 1998 1,260,000[25]
Boyzone "No Matter What" August 1998 7 August 1998 1998 1,130,000[25]
Aerosmith "I Don't Want to Miss a Thing" September 1998 22 July 2013
Multi-Platinum
  • 2×: 11 December 2015
 2012[65] 1,070,000[25] 113[65]
Cher "Believe" October 1998 30 October 1998
Multi-Platinum
  • 2×: 8 January 1999
  • 3×: 1 August 2014
 1998 1,800,000[36]
Steps "Heartbeat" / "Tragedy" November 1998 8 January 1999 1999 1,190,000[25]
Britney Spears "...Baby One More Time" February 1999 19 February 1999
Multi-Platinum
  • 2×: 26 March 1999
 1999 1,540,000[66]
Lou Bega "Mambo No. 5 (A Little Bit of ...)" August 1999 September 1999 2014[67] 1,000,000[67] 155[67]
Eiffel 65 "Blue (Da Ba Dee)" September 1999 8 October 1999 2000-02 1,080,000[25]
Bob the Builder "Can We Fix It?" December 2000 15 December 2000 2001 1,020,000[25]
Atomic Kitten "Whole Again" February 2001 2 March 2001 2013[25] 1,000,000[25] 131[25]
Shaggy featuring Rikrok "It Wasn't Me" February 2001 2 March 2001
Multi-Platinum
  • 2×: 22 July 2013
 2001[68] 1,372,000[69]
Hear'Say "Pure and Simple" March 2001 30 March 2001
Multi-Platinum
  • 2×: 30 March 2001
 2001[68] 1,090,000[25]
Kylie Minogue "Can't Get You Out of My Head" September 2001 28 September 2001
Multi-Platinum
  • 2×: 28 August 2015
 2002[70] 1,170,000[71]
Enrique Iglesias "Hero" January 2002 15 March 2002 2015[72] 1,010,000[72] 159[72]
Will Young "Evergreen" / "Anything Is Possible" February 2002 1 March 2002
Multi-Platinum
  • 2×: 1 March 2002
  • 3×: 1 March 2002
 2002[73] 1,780,000[55]
Gareth Gates "Unchained Melody" March 2002 22 March 2002
Multi-Platinum
  • 2×: 22 March 2002
 2002 1,340,000[55]
Eminem "Lose Yourself" December 2002 22 July 2013
Multi-Platinum
  • 2×: 22 April 2016
 2015[60] 1,000,000[60] 162[60]
Band Aid 20 "Do They Know It's Christmas?" November 2004 17 December 2004
Multi-Platinum
  • 2×: 17 December 2004
 2004 1,182,000[74]
Tony Christie featuring Peter Kay "(Is This the Way to) Amarillo" March 2005 8 April 2005
Multi-Platinum
  • 2×: 22 July 2013
 2005 1,320,000[25]
Shayne Ward "That's My Goal" December 2005 13 January 2006 2006[75] 1,110,000[76]
Gnarls Barkley "Crazy" April 2006 26 May 2006
Multi-Platinum
  • 2×: 15 April 2016
 2010–11[7][77] 1,060,000[25] 104[77]
Snow Patrol "Chasing Cars" July 2006 22 July 2013
Multi-Platinum
  • 2×: 8 January 2016
 2013[78] 1,067,000[69] 139[78]
Leona Lewis "Bleeding Love" October 2007 18 January 2008 2010[79] 1,060,000[25] 103[79]
Take That "Rule the World" October 2007 22 July 2013 2014[47] 1,030,000[36] 152[47]
Kings of Leon "Sex on Fire" September 2008 22 July 2013
Multi-Platinum
  • 2×: 22 July 2013
 2010[8] 1,250,000[25] 101[8]
Kings of Leon "Use Somebody" October 2008 22 July 2013 2013[80] 1,000,000[25] 133[25]
Alexandra Burke "Hallelujah" December 2008 16 January 2009
Multi-Platinum
  • 2×: 22 July 2013
 2009[6] 1,291,000[76]
Lady Gaga "Poker Face" April 2009 7 January 2010 2010[8] 1,120,000[25] 102[8]
The Black Eyed Peas "I Gotta Feeling" July 2009 7 January 2010
Multi-Platinum
  • 2×: 22 July 2013
 2010[7] 1,436,000[81] 100[7]
Cheryl Cole "Fight for This Love" October 2009 14 May 2010 2012[82] 1,000,000[82] 125[82]
Lady Gaga "Bad Romance" October 2009 20 August 2013 2013[83] 1,030,000[36] 138[83]
Eminem featuring Rihanna "Love the Way You Lie" July 2010 22 July 2013
Multi-Platinum
  • 2×: 25 July 2014
 2011[84] 1,220,000[85] 107[84]
Bruno Mars "Just the Way You Are (Amazing)" September 2010 2 August 2011
Multi-Platinum
  • 2×: 9 August 2013
 2011[77] 1,300,000[69] 106[77]
Rihanna "Only Girl (In the World)" October 2010 7 January 2011
Multi-Platinum
  • 2×: 1 January 2016
 2011[86] 1,150,000[85] 108[86]
Katy Perry "Firework" November 2010 11 March 2011 2014[43] 1,050,000[36] 147[43]
Matt Cardle "When We Collide" December 2010 22 July 2013 2012[87] 1,010,000[25] 123[87]
Adele "Rolling in the Deep" January 2011 24 June 2011
Multi-Platinum
  • 2×: 22 April 2016
 2014[88] 1,000,000[88] 144[88]
Adele "Someone like You" January 2011 1 April 2011
Multi-Platinum
  • 2×: 22 July 2013
 2011[77] 1,584,000[89] 105[77]
Jessie J featuring B.o.B "Price Tag" January 2011 13 May 2011
Multi-Platinum
  • 2×: 4 July 2014
 2012[90] 1,240,000[36] 111[90]
LMFAO featuring Lauren Bennett & GoonRock "Party Rock Anthem" January 2011 22 July 2013
Multi-Platinum
  • 2×: 22 July 2013
 2012[91] 1,190,000[25] 110[91]
Pitbull featuring Ne-Yo, Afrojack and Nayer "Give Me Everything" March 2011 16 September 2011 2014[43] 1,000,000[43] 146[43]
Christina Perri "Jar of Hearts" May 2011 22 July 2013 2016[2] 1,001,400[92] 164[2]
Ed Sheeran "The A Team" June 2011 28 October 2011
Multi-Platinum
  • 2×: 3 July 2015
 2013[25] 1,067,700[93] 132[25]
Maroon 5 featuring Christina Aguilera "Moves like Jagger" August 2011 22 July 2013
Multi-Platinum
  • 2×: 22 July 2013
 2011[94] 1,500,000[69] 109
Rihanna featuring Calvin Harris "We Found Love" September 2011 22 July 2013
Multi-Platinum
  • 2×: 22 July 2013
 2012[95] 1,390,000[85] 112[95]
Gotye featuring Kimbra "Somebody That I Used to Know" December 2011 22 July 2013
Multi-Platinum
  • 2×: 22 July 2013
 2012[46] 1,480,000[69] 114[46]
David Guetta featuring Sia "Titanium" December 2011 10 August 2012
Multi-Platinum
  • 2×: 4 July 2014
 2013[96] 1,100,000[97] 130[96]
fun. featuring Janelle Monáe "We Are Young" April 2012 22 July 2013
Multi-Platinum
  • 2×: 28 August 2015
 2013[98] 1,010,000[25] 128[98]
Carly Rae Jepsen "Call Me Maybe" April 2012 22 July 2013
Multi-Platinum
  • 2×: 22 July 2013
 2012[82] 1,372,000[99] 124[82]
Passenger "Let Her Go" July 2012 28 June 2013
Multi-Platinum
  • 2×: 4 July 2014
 2013[100] 1,120,000[15] 141[100]
Psy "Gangnam Style" August 2012 22 July 2013
Multi-Platinum
  • 2×: 27 December 2013
 2013[101] 1,270,000[36] 129[101]
Rihanna "Diamonds" September 2012 15 February 2013
Multi-Platinum
  • 2×: 19 February 2016
 2014[88] 1,070,000[85] 145[88]
Swedish House Mafia featuring John Martin "Don't You Worry Child" October 2012 22 July 2013 2015[72] 1,000,000[72] 160[72]
James Arthur "Impossible" December 2012 15 February 2013
Multi-Platinum
  • 2×: 22 July 2013
 2013[102] 1,289,000[76] 127[102]
Daft Punk featuring Pharrell Williams "Get Lucky" April 2013 22 July 2013
Multi-Platinum
  • 2×: 23 August 2013
 2013[25] 1,400,000[69] 136[25]
Naughty Boy featuring Sam Smith "La La La" May 2013 22 July 2013
Multi-Platinum
  • 2×: 13 November 2015
 2014[43] 1,040,000[36] 148[43]
Robin Thicke featuring T.I. and Pharrell Williams "Blurred Lines" May 2013 22 July 2013
Multi-Platinum
  • 2×: 9 August 2013
  • 3×: 18 December 2015
 2013[103] 1,630,000[69] 137[103]
OneRepublic "Counting Stars" June 2013 23 November 2013
Multi-Platinum
  • 2×: 12 December 2014
 2014[104] 1,070,000[36] 153[104]
Avicii "Wake Me Up!" July 2013 9 August 2013
Multi-Platinum
  • 2×: 3 January 2014
 2013[78] 1,390,000[69] 140[78]
John Legend "All of Me" August 2013 30 May 2014
Multi-Platinum
  • 2×: 17 October 2014
  • 3×: 25 March 2016
 2015[105] 1,180,000[55] 156[105]
Katy Perry "Roar" September 2013 1 November 2013
Multi-Platinum
  • 2×: 24 July 2015
 2015[106] 1,020,000[106] 157[106]
Pharrell Williams "Happy" November 2013 24 January 2014
Multi-Platinum
  • 2×: 28 March 2014
  • 3×: 18 July 2014
  • 4×: 22 April 2016
 2014[107] 1,813,000[69] 143[107]
Clean Bandit featuring Jess Glynne "Rather Be" January 2014 7 March 2014
Multi-Platinum
  • 2×: 4 July 2014
  • 3×: 21 August 2015
 2014[15] 1,130,000[108] 149[15]
Ed Sheeran "Thinking Out Loud" June 2014 14 November 2014
Multi-Platinum
  • 2×: 30 January 2015
  • 3×: 18 September 2015
 2015[72] 1,010,000[72] 161[72]
Mark Ronson featuring Bruno Mars "Uptown Funk" December 2014 6 January 2015
Multi-Platinum
  • 2×: 13 February 2015
  • 3×: 22 May 2015
 2015[9] 1,470,000[36] 158[9]

daggerAlthough "Brown Girl in the Ring" was listed as the B-side, it received extensive airplay, which caused the single to peak in the charts for a second time.

Artists with the most million-selling singles

Twenty artists have had at least two million-selling singles in the UK (if John Travolta and Olivia Newton-John are counted as one artist), but only three artists have had more than two: The Beatles, who have six; Rihanna, who has four (including one as a featured artist); and Pharrell Williams, who has three (including two as a featured artist).

Artist No. of
million-sellers		 Songs
The Beatles 6 "She Loves You", "I Want to Hold Your Hand", "Can't Buy Me Love", "I Feel Fine",
"Day Tripper" / "We Can Work It Out", "Hey Jude"
Rihanna 4* "Love the Way You Lie", "Only Girl (In the World)", "We Found Love", "Diamonds"
Pharrell Williams 3* "Get Lucky", "Blurred Lines", "Happy"
Adele 2 "Rolling in the Deep", "Someone like You"
Boney M. 2 "Rivers of Babylon" / "Brown Girl in the Ring", "Mary's Boy Child – Oh My Lord"
Bruno Mars 2* "Just the Way You Are (Amazing)", "Uptown Funk"
Celine Dion 2 "My Heart Will Go On", "Think Twice"
Ed Sheeran 2 "The A Team", "Thinking Out Loud"
Elton John 2 "Don't Go Breaking My Heart", "Candle in the Wind 1997"
Eminem 2 "Lose Yourself", "Love the Way You Lie"
Engelbert Humperdinck 2 "Release Me", "The Last Waltz"
Frankie Goes to Hollywood 2 "Relax", "Two Tribes"
John Travolta and Olivia Newton-John 2† "You're the One That I Want", "Summer Nights"
Katy Perry 2 "Firework", "Roar"
Kings of Leon 2 "Sex on Fire", "Use Somebody"
Kylie Minogue 2 "Especially for You", "Can't Get You Out of My Head"
Lady Gaga 2 "Poker Face", "Bad Romance"
Robson & Jerome 2 "I Believe" / "Up on the Roof", "Unchained Melody" / "White Cliffs of Dover"
Spice Girls 2 "Wannabe", "2 Become 1"
Take That 2 "Back for Good", "Rule the World"

* Includes featured performances dagger Duets

Songs with a million combined sales

This list is incomplete; you can help by expanding it.

In addition to those listed above, since the incorporation of streaming into the singles chart in 2014, the following songs have reached a million combined sales when streaming is taken into account (100 streams equivalent to one download or physical sale). Music Week regularly refers to these as million-sellers,[109] but the OCC does not.[110]

Artist Song Date released Date certified
Platinum		 Date reached
1 million		 Combined sales
The Killers "Mr. Brightside" 2003 2013 2015 1,200,000[13]
Adele "Make You Feel My Love" 2008 2011 2015 1,032,266[111]
One Direction "What Makes You Beautiful" 2011 2013 2015 1,050,000[112]
The Lumineers "Ho Hey" 2012 2013 2015 1,035,607[113]
Bastille "Pompeii" 2013 2× 2015 2015 1,300,000[112]
George Ezra "Budapest" 2013 2× 2015 2015 1,320,000+[112]
Mr Probz "Waves" 2014 2× 2015 2015 1,450,000[citation needed]
Sia "Chandelier" 2014 2015 2016 1,003,049[114]
Sam Smith "Stay with Me" 2014 2× 2015 2015 1,420,000[112]
Ella Henderson "Ghost" 2014 2× 2015 2015 1,200,000[13]
Hozier "Take Me to Church" 2014 2× 2015 2015 1,625,000[citation needed]
Meghan Trainor "All About That Bass" 2014 2× 2015 2015 1,200,000[13]
James Bay "Hold Back the River" 2014 2× 2016 2015 1,200,000[13]
OMI "Cheerleader" 2015 2× 2015 2015 1,520,000[115]
Ellie Goulding "Love Me Like You Do" 2015 2× 2016 2015 1,200,000[13]
Major Lazer featuring DJ Snake and MØ "Lean On" 2015 2× 2016 2016 1,259,000[citation needed]
Wiz Khalifa featuring Charlie Puth "See You Again" 2015 2× 2016 2015 1,200,000[13]
Shawn Mendes "Stitches" 2015 2016 2016 1,035,882[116]
Justin Bieber "What Do You Mean?" 2015 2× 2016 2016 1,459,000[citation needed]
Adele "Hello" 2015 2× 2016 2015 1,444,000[115][117]
Justin Bieber "Sorry" 2015 2× 2016 2016 1,614,000[citation needed]
Justin Bieber "Love Yourself" 2015 2× 2016 2016 1,551,000[citation needed]
Lukas Graham "7 Years" 2015 2016 2016 1,015,979[109]

Footnotes

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 "Sugar, Sugar" was erroneously awarded a gold record by Disc having sold approximately 945,000 copies. RCA Records informed Disc that 1 million copies had been shipped, however not all were sold.[37][11] The single went on to sell more than 1 million copies with the introduction of music downloads in 2004.[38]
  2. ↑ Unless explicitly cited, the release dates are given by the BPI.[23]
  3. ↑ General reference, except where explicitly cited
  4. ↑ Sales figures given by the OCC - these do not include streaming
  5. ↑ 5.00 5.01 5.02 5.03 5.04 5.05 5.06 5.07 5.08 5.09 5.10 5.11 5.12 5.13 The record was classified "Gold" (500,000) prior to 1989.[44] Not classified Platinum when the threshold was reduced to 600,000 in 1989, as record was released under the old thresholds.[12]
  6. ↑ "Bohemian Rhapsody" has sold 1 million copies and been certified Platinum both in its original 1975 release and in its 1991 re-release as a double 'A' side following the death of Freddie Mercury
  7. ↑ "Blue Monday" was released in 1983 and re-released in 1988 and 1995. New Order's label, Factory Records, were not a member of the British Phonographic Industry so they never received any sales certifications.[49] However, the record sold more than 1 million units.
  8. ↑ "Three Lions" and "3 Lions '98" were each treated as individual songs and classified Platinum by the BPI. The OCC's list of million-sellers grouped them as the same song, thus making it a million-seller.

References

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    Customise search with the following settings – Search by: "Keyword", By Format: "Single" – then search the required entry.
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