# List of best-selling singles of the 1900s in the United Kingdom

This is a list based on estimated sales between 1952 (the first charts) and the end of 1999. Availability of sales figures, particularly in earlier decades, means that there is a great deal of uncertainty over the accuracy of these estimates.
Singles are a type of music release defined by the British organisation the Official Charts Company (OCC) as having fewer than four tracks and not lasting longer than 25 minutes. Sales of singles in the United Kingdom have been monitored since 1952, when Percy Dickins of NME contacted a sample of 20 shops to asking what their 10 best-selling singles for that week had been. Dickins compiled the results into a Top 12 hit parade, which eventually became the UK Singles Chart. On 16 November 2002, Channel 4 broadcast a television programme to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the chart, which counted down the biggest-selling singles up to that point. The song at number one was "Candle in the Wind 1997" / "Something About the Way You Look Tonight" by Elton John, a charity single released to commemorate the death of Diana, Princess of Wales. The artist that appeared the most on the chart was The Beatles, who had released five of the biggest-selling singles of the century.
The top 69 entries in this list had sold 1 million copies by the end of 1999, although subsequently "Three Lions" and "3 Lions '98" by Baddiel & Skinner & The Lightning Seeds—which were both certified Platinum—had their sales combined, meaning that most commentators record there as having been 70 million sellers before 2000.

## Singles

| No. | Artist | Single | Year | Sales |
| 1 | Elton John | "Candle in the Wind '97 | 1997 | 4,860,000 |
| 2 | Band Aid | "Do They Know It's Christmas?" | 1984 | 3,550,000 |
| 3 | Queen | "Bohemian Rhapsody" | 1975 | 2,130,000 |
| 4 | Wings | "Mull of Kintyre" / "Girls' School" | 1977 | 2,050,000 |
| 5 | Boney M | "Rivers of Babylon" / "Brown Girl in the Ring" | 1978 | 1,985,000 |
| 6 | John Travolta & Olivia Newton-John | "You're the One That I Want" | 1978 | 1,975,000 |
| 7 | Frankie Goes to Hollywood | "Relax" | 1983 | 1,910,000 |
| 8 | The Beatles | "She Loves You" | 1963 | 1,890,000 |
| 9 | Robson & Jerome | "Unchained Melody" | 1995 | 1,840,000 |
| 10 | Boney M | "Mary's Boy Child" / "Oh My Lord" | 1978 | 1,790,000 |
| 11 | Wet Wet Wet | "Love Is All Around" | 1994 | 1,780,000 |
| 12 | Stevie Wonder | "I Just Called to Say I Love You" | 1984 | 1,775,000 |
| 13 | The Beatles | "I Want to Hold Your Hand" | 1963 | 1,750,000 |
| 14 | Aqua | "Barbie Girl" | 1997 | 1,720,000 |
| 15 | Cher | "Believe" | 1998 | 1,670,000 |
| 16 | Various artists | "Perfect Day" | 1997 | 1,540,000 |
| 17 | Bryan Adams | "(Everything I Do) I Do It for You" | 1991 | 1,520,000 |
| 18 | Ken Dodd | "Tears" | 1965 | 1,521,000 |
| 19 | The Beatles | "Can't Buy Me Love" | 1964 | 1,520,000 |
| 20 | John Travolta & Olivia Newton-John | "Summer Nights" | 1978 | 1,515,000 |
| 21 | Frankie Goes to Hollywood | "Two Tribes" | 1984 | 1,510,000 |
| 22 | Britney Spears | "Baby One More Time" | 1999 | 1,450,000 |
| 23 | Human League | "Don't You Want Me" | 1981 | 1,430,000 |
| 24 | John Lennon | "Imagine" | 1975 | 1,426,000 |
| 25 | Wham! | "Last Christmas" / "Everything She Wants" | 1984 | 1,420,000 |
| 26 | The Beatles | "I Feel Fine" | 1964 | 1,410,000 |
| 27 | Puff Daddy featuring Faith Evans | "I'll Be Missing You" | 1997 | 1,400,000 |
| 28 | Culture Club | "Karma Chameleon" | 1983 | 1,405,000 |
| 29 | Seekers | "The Carnival is Over" | 1965 | 1,400,000 |
| 30 | Bill Haley & His Comets | "Rock Around the Clock" | 1955 | 1,392,000 |
| 31 | The Beatles | "Day Tripper" | 1965 | 1,385,000 |
| 32 | Village People | "Y.M.C.A." | 1978 | 1,380,000 |
| 33 | George Michael | "Careless Whisper" | 1984 | 1,360,000 |
| 34 | Engelbert Humperdinck | "Release Me" | 1967 | 1,365,000 |
| 35 | Whitney Houston | "I Will Always Love You" | 1992 | 1,355,000 |
| 36 | Jennifer Rush | "The Power of Love" | 1985 | 1,321,530 |
| 37 | Celine Dion | "My Heart Will Go On" | 1998 | 1,312,551 |
| 38 | Spice Girls | "Wannabe" | 1996 | 1,269,841 |
| 39 | Fugees | "Killing Me Softly" | 1996 | 1,268,157 |
| 40 | All Saints | "Never Ever" | 1997 | 1,254,604 |
| 41 | Coolio featuring L.V. | "Gangsta's Paradise" | 1995 | 1,240,000 |
| 42 | Paul Anka | "Diana" | 1957 | 1,240,000 |
| 43 | Celine Dion | "Think Twice" | 1994 | 1,234,982 |
| 44 | Elvis Presley | "It's Now or Never" | 1960 | 1,210,000 |
| 45 | Tom Jones | "Green Green Grass of Home" | 1966 | 1,205,000 |
| 46 | Dexy's Midnight Runners | "Come On Eileen" | 1982 | 1,201,000 |
| 47 | Blondie | "Heart of Glass" | 1979 | 1,180,000 |
| 48 | Harry Belafonte | "Mary's Boy Child" | 1957 | 1,175,000 |
| 49 | Engelbert Humperdinck | "The Last Waltz" | 1967 | 1,160,000 |
| 50 | Art Garfunkel | "Bright Eyes" | 1979 | 1,155,000 |
| 51 | Steps | "Heartbeat / Tragedy" | 1998 | 1,150,285 |
| 52 | David Soul | "Don't Give Up on Us" | 1976 | 1,145,000 |
| 53 | Gary Glitter | "I Love You Love Me Love" | 1973 | 1,140,000 |
| 54 | Soft Cell | "Tainted Love" | 1981 | 1,135,000 |
| 55 | Acker Bilk | "Stranger on the Shore" | 1961 | 1,130,000 |
| 56 | Run D.M.C vs. Jason Nevins | "It's Like That" | 1998 | 1,110,000 |
| 57 | Teletubbies | "Teletubbies Say Eh-Oh!" | 1997 | 1,107,235 |
| 58 | Babylon Zoo | "Spaceman" | 1996 | 1,098,880 |
| 59 | Frank Ifield | "I Remember You" | 1962 | 1,096,000 |
| 60 | Robson & Jerome | "I Believe" / "Up on the Roof" | 1995 | 1,093,972 |
| 61 | Whigfield | "Saturday Night" | 1994 | 1,090,000 |
| 62 | Boyzone | "No Matter What" | 1998 | 1,070,000 |
| 63 | Spice Girls | "2 Become 1" | 1996 | 1,070,000 |
| 64 | Cliff Richard & The Shadows | "The Young Ones" | 1962 | 1,052,000 |
| 65 | Michael Jackson | "Earth Song" | 1995 | 1,038,821 |
| 66 | Slade | "Merry Xmas Everybody" | 1973 | 1,006,500 |
| 67 | Brotherhood of Man | "Save Your Kisses for Me" | 1976 | 1,006,200 |
| 68 | Simon Park Orchestra | "Eye Level" | 1972 | 1,005,500 |
| 69 | New Order | "Blue Monday" | 1983 | 1,001,000 |
| 70 | Little Jimmy Osmond | "Long Haired Lover from Liverpool" | 1972 | 998,000 |
| 71 | Pink Floyd | "Another Brick in the Wall (Part 2)" | 1979 | 995,000 |
| 72 | Julie Covington | "Don't Cry for Me Argentina" | 1976 | 993,000 |
| 73 | Survivor | "Eye of the Tiger" | 1982 | 990,000 |
| 74 | The New Seekers | "I'd Like to Teach the World to Sing" | 1971 | 990,000 |
| 75 | Dawn | "Tie a Yellow Ribbon Round the Old Oak Tree" | 1973 | 988,000 |
| 76 | Adam & the Ants | "Stand and Deliver" | 1981 | 985,000 |
| 77 | Showaddywaddy | "Under the Moon of Love" | 1976 | 985,000 |
| 78 | Natalie Imbruglia | "Torn" | 1997 | 982,000 |
| 79 | Kylie Minogue & Jason Donovan | "Especially for You" | 1988 | 982,000 |
| 80 | Ian Dury & The Blockheads | "Hit Me With Your Rhythm Stick" | 1978 | 979,100 |
| 81 | The Archies | "Sugar, Sugar" | 1969 | 979,000 |
| 82 | Tight Fit | "The Lion Sleeps Tonight" | 1982 | 978,000 |
| 83 | Cliff Richard | "Bachelor Boy" / "The Next Time" | 1962 | 976,000 |
| 84 | Irene Cara | "Fame" | 1982 | 975,000 |
| 85 | Ray Parker Jr. | "Ghostbusters" | 1984 | 974,000 |
| 86 | Billy Joel | "Uptown Girl" | 1983 | 974,000 |
| 87 | Black Box | "Ride On Time" | 1989 | 973,000 |
| 88 | The Tornados | "Telstar" | 1962 | 967,000 |
| 89 | Oasis | "Wonderwall" | 1995 | 966,940 |
| 90 | The Pipes and Drums and Military Band of the Royal Scots Dragoon Guards | "Amazing Grace" | 1972 | 962,000 |
| 91 | Take That | "Back for Good" | 1995 | 959,000 |
| 92 | Eiffel 65 | "Blue (Da Ba Dee)" | 1999 | 956,000 |
| 93 | Rod Stewart | "Sailing" | 1975 | 955,000 |
| 94 | Pussycat | "Mississippi" | 1976 | 947,000 |