Topping the Billboard 200 albums chart or the Billboard Hot 100 songs chart marks a milestone achievement for any artist.
Topping both tallies reflects that an act can boast mass appeal with a full collection of music along with the ability to translate that reach to hit singles.
Who has the most combined No. 1s on the Billboard 200 and Hot 100?
With the most No. 1s on each ranking (through charts dated Nov. 11, 2023), The Beatles, thus, claim the most leaders on the lists combined: 39, via 20 No. 1s on the Hot 100 and 19 on the Billboard 200. The Fab Four first topped the charts in February 1964, thanks to “I Want to Hold Your Hand” and parent album Meet the Beatles, respectively. Their run of Billboard 200 No. 1s stretches through their retrospective 1 in 2000-01.
Drake leads all soloists and ranks second overall with 26 combined Billboard 200 and Hot 100 No. 1s, an equal 13 on each chart. He added his latest leaders with For All the Dogs and the set’s “First Person Shooter” (featuring J. Cole) in October.
Pacing women artists, Mariah Carey has posted 25 No. 1s on the charts. She has 19 leaders, the most among soloists, on the Hot 100, and six on the Billboard 200.
Taylor Swift follows with 24 No. 1s: 13 on the Billboard 200 – her total swelled on the Nov. 11 chart with the launch of 1989 (Taylor’s Version) – and 11 on the Hot 100, likewise a new total thanks to the coronation of the album’s “Is It Over Now? (Taylor’s Version) [From the Vault].” Swift is the only woman, and has joined The Beatles and Drake among all acts, with double-digit No. 1s on both rankings.
Rounding out the top five, Madonna has earned 21 No. 1s on the Billboard 200 and Hot 100 combined, with 12 on the latter and nine on the former.
(Notably, Paul McCartney accounts for a whopping 56 combined Billboard 200 and Hot 100 No. 1s, with The Beatles’ 39 augmented by 17 more by McCartney solo, including his…
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