List of best-selling singles

This article is a compendium of the best-selling music singles. The criterion for inclusion on the list is to have sold at least five million copies worldwide. The singles listed here were cited by reliable sources from various media, such as digital journalism, newspapers, magazines, and books.

1942 10-inch 78 rpm release of the single "White Christmas" by Bing Crosby.

1997 7-inch 45 rpm release of "Candle in the Wind 1997"/"Something About the Way You Look Tonight", double A-side single by Elton John.

It is notable that, according to Guinness World Records, Irving Berlin's "White Christmas" (1942) as performed by Bing Crosby is the best-selling single worldwide, with estimated sales of over 50 million copies.[1] The song, recognized as "the best-selling single of all time", was released before the pop/rock singles-chart era and "was listed as the world's best-selling single in the first-ever Guinness Book of Records (published in 1955) and—remarkably—still retains the title more than 50 years later". Guinness World Records also states that double A-side charity single "Candle in the Wind 1997"/"Something About the Way You Look Tonight" (1997) by Elton John (rewritten as a tribute to the late Diana, Princess of Wales, rather than the Marilyn Monroe of the original 1973 version), is "the biggest-selling single since UK and US singles charts began in the 1950s, having accumulated worldwide sales of 33 million copies". This makes it the second-best-selling physical single of all time.[1]

There are three best-selling singles lists displayed here:

1. Best-selling physical singles (mainly CD and vinyl) singles)
2. Best-selling digital singles (digitally downloaded tracks which first became available to purchase in the early 2000s)
3. IFPI best-selling singles worldwide (compiled since 2007, combined all forms)