# Academy Award for Best Actress

The Academy Award for Best Actress is an award presented annually by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS). It has been awarded since the 1st Academy Awards to an actress who has delivered an outstanding performance in a leading role in a film released that year. The award is traditionally presented by the previous year's Best Actor winner. However, in recent years, it has shifted towards being presented by previous years' Best Actress winners instead.
The Best Actress award has been presented 97 times, to 80 different actresses. The first winner was Janet Gaynor for her roles in 7th Heaven (1927), Street Angel (1928), and Sunrise: A Song of Two Humans (1927). The most recent winner is Mikey Madison for her role in Anora (2024). The record for most wins is four, held by Katharine Hepburn. Frances McDormand has won thrice, while thirteen other actresses have won the award twice. Meryl Streep has received the most nominations in this category—seventeen—and has won twice. Deborah Kerr holds the record in this category for most nominations (six) without a win—albeit in 1993, she was an Honorary Oscar recipient. At the 41st Academy Awards in 1969, Barbra Streisand and Katharine Hepburn received the same number of votes and thus tied for Best Actress (the only time this has occurred). Italian actress Sophia Loren became the first actor, in any category, to win for a foreign language performance in Two Women (1960). For the 97th Academy Awards, Karla Sofía Gascón became the first openly transgender person to receive a nomination in any acting category for Emilia Pérez (2024). Elliot Page was nominated for his role in Juno (2007) prior to his transition.

## Nominations process

Nominees are currently determined by single transferable vote within the actors branch of AMPAS; winners are selected by a plurality vote from the entire eligible voting members of the Academy.
In the first three years of the awards, actors and actresses were nominated as the best individuals in their categories. At that time, all of their work during the qualifying period (as many as three films, in some cases) was listed after the award. Despite this, at the 3rd Academy Awards, held in 1930, only one film was cited in each winner's award regardless of how many they were eligible to be considered for during that span. The current system, in which an actress is nominated for a specific performance in a single film, was introduced for the 4th Academy Awards. Starting with the 9th Academy Awards, held in 1937, the category was limited to a maximum five nominations per year.

## Winners and nominees

In the following table, the years are listed as per Academy convention, and generally correspond to the year of film release in Los Angeles County; the ceremonies are always held the following year. For the first five ceremonies, the eligibility period spanned twelve months, from August 1 to July 31. For the 6th ceremony held in 1934, the eligibility period lasted from August 1, 1932, to December 31, 1933. Since the 7th ceremony held in 1935, the period of eligibility became the full previous calendar year from January 1 to December 31.
Table key :
| ‡ | Indicates the winner |
| † | Indicates a posthumous nominee |

### 1920s

| Year | Actress | Role(s) | Film |
| 1927/28 (1st) | Janet Gaynor ‡ | Diane | 7th Heaven |
| 1927/28 (1st) | Janet Gaynor ‡ | Angela | Street Angel |
| 1927/28 (1st) | Janet Gaynor ‡ | The Wife | Sunrise: A Song of Two Humans |
| 1927/28 (1st) | Louise Dresser | Mrs. Pleznik | A Ship Comes In |
| 1927/28 (1st) | Gloria Swanson | Sadie Thompson | Sadie Thompson |
| 1928/29 (2nd) | Mary Pickford ‡ | Norma Besant | Coquette |
| 1928/29 (2nd) | Ruth Chatterton | Jacqueline Floriot | Madame X |
| 1928/29 (2nd) | Betty Compson | Carrie | The Barker |
| 1928/29 (2nd) | Jeanne Eagels † | Leslie Crosbie | The Letter |
| 1928/29 (2nd) | Corinne Griffith | Emma Hamilton | The Divine Lady |
| 1928/29 (2nd) | Bessie Love | Hank Mahoney | The Broadway Melody |

### 1930s

| Year | Actress | Role(s) | Film |
| 1929/30 (3rd) | Norma Shearer ‡ | Jerry Bernard Martin | The Divorcee |
| 1929/30 (3rd) | Nancy Carroll | Hallie Hobart | The Devil's Holiday |
| 1929/30 (3rd) | Ruth Chatterton | Sarah Storm | Sarah and Son |
| 1929/30 (3rd) | Greta Garbo | Anna Christie | Anna Christie |
| 1929/30 (3rd) | Greta Garbo | Madame Rita Cavallini | Romance |
| 1929/30 (3rd) | Norma Shearer | Lucia Marlett | Their Own Desire |
| 1929/30 (3rd) | Gloria Swanson | Marion Donnell | The Trespasser |
| 1930/31 (4th) | Marie Dressler ‡ | Min Divot | Min and Bill |
| 1930/31 (4th) | Marlene Dietrich | Mademoiselle Amy Jolly | Morocco |
| 1930/31 (4th) | Irene Dunne | Sabra Cravat | Cimarron |
| 1930/31 (4th) | Ann Harding | Linda Seton | Holiday |
| 1930/31 (4th) | Norma Shearer | Jan Ashe | A Free Soul |
| 1931/32 (5th) | Helen Hayes ‡ | Madelon Claudet | The Sin of Madelon Claudet |
| 1931/32 (5th) | Marie Dressler | Emma Thatcher Smith | Emma |
| 1931/32 (5th) | Lynn Fontanne | The Actress | The Guardsman |
| 1932/33 (6th) | Katharine Hepburn ‡ | Eva Lovelace | Morning Glory |
| 1932/33 (6th) | May Robson | Apple Annie | Lady for a Day |
| 1932/33 (6th) | Diana Wynyard | Jane Marryot | Cavalcade |
| 1934 (7th) | Claudette Colbert ‡ | Ellie Andrews | It Happened One Night |
| 1934 (7th) | Bette Davis (Write-in) | Mildred Rogers | Of Human Bondage |
| 1934 (7th) | Grace Moore | Mary Barrett | One Night of Love |
| 1934 (7th) | Norma Shearer | Elizabeth Barrett | The Barretts of Wimpole Street |
| 1935 (8th) | Bette Davis ‡ | Joyce Heath | Dangerous |
| 1935 (8th) | Elisabeth Bergner | Gemma Jones | Escape Me Never |
| 1935 (8th) | Claudette Colbert | Jane Everest | Private Worlds |
| 1935 (8th) | Katharine Hepburn | Alice Adams | Alice Adams |
| 1935 (8th) | Miriam Hopkins | Becky Sharp | Becky Sharp |
| 1935 (8th) | Merle Oberon | Kitty Vane | The Dark Angel |
| 1936 (9th) | Luise Rainer ‡ | Anna Held | The Great Ziegfeld |
| 1936 (9th) | Irene Dunne | Theodora Lynn / Caroline Adams | Theodora Goes Wild |
| 1936 (9th) | Gladys George | Carrie Snyder | Valiant Is the Word for Carrie |
| 1936 (9th) | Carole Lombard | Irene Bullock | My Man Godfrey |
| 1936 (9th) | Norma Shearer | Juliet Capulet | Romeo and Juliet |
| 1937 (10th) | Luise Rainer ‡ | O-Lan | The Good Earth |
| 1937 (10th) | Irene Dunne | Lucy Warriner | The Awful Truth |
| 1937 (10th) | Greta Garbo | Marguerite Gautier | Camille |
| 1937 (10th) | Janet Gaynor | Esther Victoria Blodgett / Vicki Lester | A Star Is Born |
| 1937 (10th) | Barbara Stanwyck | Stella Martin Dallas | Stella Dallas |
| 1938 (11th) | Bette Davis ‡ | Julie Marsden | Jezebel |
| 1938 (11th) | Fay Bainter | Hannah Parmalee | White Banners |
| 1938 (11th) | Wendy Hiller | Eliza Doolittle | Pygmalion |
| 1938 (11th) | Norma Shearer | Marie Antoinette | Marie Antoinette |
| 1938 (11th) | Margaret Sullavan | Patricia "Pat" Hollmann | Three Comrades |
| 1939 (12th) | Vivien Leigh ‡ | Scarlett O'Hara | Gone with the Wind |
| 1939 (12th) | Bette Davis | Judith Traherne | Dark Victory |
| 1939 (12th) | Irene Dunne | Terry McKay | Love Affair |
| 1939 (12th) | Greta Garbo | Nina Yakushova "Ninotchka" Ivanoff | Ninotchka |
| 1939 (12th) | Greer Garson | Katherine Bridges | Goodbye, Mr. Chips |

### 1940s

| Year | Actress | Role(s) | Film |
| 1940 (13th) | Ginger Rogers ‡ | Kitty Foyle | Kitty Foyle |
| 1940 (13th) | Bette Davis | Leslie Crosbie | The Letter |
| 1940 (13th) | Joan Fontaine | The Second Mrs. de Winter | Rebecca |
| 1940 (13th) | Katharine Hepburn | Tracy Lord | The Philadelphia Story |
| 1940 (13th) | Martha Scott | Emily Webb | Our Town |
| 1941 (14th) | Joan Fontaine ‡ | Lina McLaidlaw Aysgarth | Suspicion |
| 1941 (14th) | Bette Davis | Regina Giddens | The Little Foxes |
| 1941 (14th) | Olivia de Havilland | Emmy Brown | Hold Back the Dawn |
| 1941 (14th) | Greer Garson | Edna Gladney | Blossoms in the Dust |
| 1941 (14th) | Barbara Stanwyck | Katherine "Sugarpuss" O'Shea | Ball of Fire |
| 1942 (15th) | Greer Garson ‡ | Kay Miniver | Mrs. Miniver |
| 1942 (15th) | Bette Davis | Charlotte Vale | Now, Voyager |
| 1942 (15th) | Katharine Hepburn | Tess Harding | Woman of the Year |
| 1942 (15th) | Rosalind Russell | Ruth Sherwood | My Sister Eileen |
| 1942 (15th) | Teresa Wright | Eleanor Twitchell Gehrig | The Pride of the Yankees |
| 1943 (16th) | Jennifer Jones ‡ | Bernadette Soubirous | The Song of Bernadette |
| 1943 (16th) | Jean Arthur | Constance "Connie" Milligan | The More the Merrier |
| 1943 (16th) | Ingrid Bergman | María | For Whom the Bell Tolls |
| 1943 (16th) | Joan Fontaine | Tessa Sanger | The Constant Nymph |
| 1943 (16th) | Greer Garson | Marie Curie | Madame Curie |
| 1944 (17th) | Ingrid Bergman ‡ | Paula Alquist Anton | Gaslight |
| 1944 (17th) | Claudette Colbert | Anne Hilton | Since You Went Away |
| 1944 (17th) | Bette Davis | Fanny Trellis | Mr. Skeffington |
| 1944 (17th) | Greer Garson | Susie "Sparrow" Parkington | Mrs. Parkington |
| 1944 (17th) | Barbara Stanwyck | Phyllis Dietrichson | Double Indemnity |
| 1945 (18th) | Joan Crawford ‡ | Mildred Pierce Beragon | Mildred Pierce |
| 1945 (18th) | Ingrid Bergman | Mary Benedict | The Bells of St. Mary's |
| 1945 (18th) | Greer Garson | Mary Rafferty | The Valley of Decision |
| 1945 (18th) | Jennifer Jones | Singleton / Victoria Morland | Love Letters |
| 1945 (18th) | Gene Tierney | Ellen Berent Harland | Leave Her to Heaven |
| 1946 (19th) | Olivia de Havilland ‡ | Josephine "Jody" Norris | To Each His Own |
| 1946 (19th) | Celia Johnson | Laura Jesson | Brief Encounter |
| 1946 (19th) | Jennifer Jones | Pearl Chavez | Duel in the Sun |
| 1946 (19th) | Rosalind Russell | Elizabeth Kenny | Sister Kenny |
| 1946 (19th) | Jane Wyman | Orry Baxter | The Yearling |
| 1947 (20th) | Loretta Young ‡ | Katie Holstrom | The Farmer's Daughter |
| 1947 (20th) | Joan Crawford | Louise Howell | Possessed |
| 1947 (20th) | Susan Hayward | Angelica Evans Conway | Smash-Up, the Story of a Woman |
| 1947 (20th) | Dorothy McGuire | Kathy Lacy | Gentleman's Agreement |
| 1947 (20th) | Rosalind Russell | Lavinia Mannon | Mourning Becomes Electra |
| 1948 (21st) | Jane Wyman ‡ | Belinda McDonald | Johnny Belinda |
| 1948 (21st) | Ingrid Bergman | Joan of Arc | Joan of Arc |
| 1948 (21st) | Olivia de Havilland | Virginia Stuart Cunningham | The Snake Pit |
| 1948 (21st) | Irene Dunne | Martha Hanson | I Remember Mama |
| 1948 (21st) | Barbara Stanwyck | Leona Stevenson | Sorry, Wrong Number |
| 1949 (22nd) | Olivia de Havilland ‡ | Catherine Sloper | The Heiress |
| 1949 (22nd) | Jeanne Crain | Patricia "Pinky" Johnson | Pinky |
| 1949 (22nd) | Susan Hayward | Eloise Winters | My Foolish Heart |
| 1949 (22nd) | Deborah Kerr | Evelyn Boult | Edward, My Son |
| 1949 (22nd) | Loretta Young | Margaret | Come to the Stable |

### 1950s

| Year | Actress | Role(s) | Film |
| 1950 (23rd) | Judy Holliday ‡ | Emma "Billie" Dawn | Born Yesterday |
| 1950 (23rd) | Anne Baxter | Eve Harrington | All About Eve |
| 1950 (23rd) | Bette Davis | Margo Channing | All About Eve |
| 1950 (23rd) | Eleanor Parker | Marie Allen | Caged |
| 1950 (23rd) | Gloria Swanson | Norma Desmond | Sunset Boulevard |
| 1951 (24th) | Vivien Leigh ‡ | Blanche DuBois | A Streetcar Named Desire |
| 1951 (24th) | Katharine Hepburn | Rose Sayer | The African Queen |
| 1951 (24th) | Eleanor Parker | Mary McLeod | Detective Story |
| 1951 (24th) | Shelley Winters | Alice Tripp | A Place in the Sun |
| 1951 (24th) | Jane Wyman | Louise Mason | The Blue Veil |
| 1952 (25th) | Shirley Booth ‡ | Lola Delaney | Come Back, Little Sheba |
| 1952 (25th) | Joan Crawford | Myra Hudson | Sudden Fear |
| 1952 (25th) | Bette Davis | Margaret Elliot | The Star |
| 1952 (25th) | Julie Harris | Frances "Frankie" Addams | The Member of the Wedding |
| 1952 (25th) | Susan Hayward | Jane Froman | With a Song in My Heart |
| 1953 (26th) | Audrey Hepburn ‡ | Princess Ann | Roman Holiday |
| 1953 (26th) | Leslie Caron | Lili Daurier | Lili |
| 1953 (26th) | Ava Gardner | Eloise "Honey Bear" Kelly | Mogambo |
| 1953 (26th) | Deborah Kerr | Karen Holmes | From Here to Eternity |
| 1953 (26th) | Maggie McNamara | Patty O'Neill | The Moon Is Blue |
| 1954 (27th) | Grace Kelly ‡ | Georgie Elgin | The Country Girl |
| 1954 (27th) | Dorothy Dandridge | Carmen Jones | Carmen Jones |
| 1954 (27th) | Judy Garland | Esther Victoria Blodgett / Vicki Lester | A Star Is Born |
| 1954 (27th) | Audrey Hepburn | Sabrina Fairchild | Sabrina |
| 1954 (27th) | Jane Wyman | Helen Phillips | Magnificent Obsession |
| 1955 (28th) | Anna Magnani ‡ | Serafina Delle Rose | The Rose Tattoo |
| 1955 (28th) | Susan Hayward | Lillian Roth | I'll Cry Tomorrow |
| 1955 (28th) | Katharine Hepburn | Jane Hudson | Summertime |
| 1955 (28th) | Jennifer Jones | Han Suyin | Love is a Many-Splendored Thing |
| 1955 (28th) | Eleanor Parker | Marjorie Lawrence | Interrupted Melody |
| 1956 (29th) | Ingrid Bergman ‡ | Anna Koreff / Anastasia | Anastasia |
| 1956 (29th) | Carroll Baker | Baby Doll Meighan | Baby Doll |
| 1956 (29th) | Katharine Hepburn | Lizzie Curry | The Rainmaker |
| 1956 (29th) | Nancy Kelly | Christine Penmark | The Bad Seed |
| 1956 (29th) | Deborah Kerr | Anna Leonowens | The King and I |
| 1957 (30th) | Joanne Woodward ‡ | Eve White / Eve Black / Jane | The Three Faces of Eve |
| 1957 (30th) | Deborah Kerr | Angela | Heaven Knows, Mr. Allison |
| 1957 (30th) | Anna Magnani | Gioia | Wild Is the Wind |
| 1957 (30th) | Elizabeth Taylor | Susanna Drake | Raintree County |
| 1957 (30th) | Lana Turner | Constance MacKenzie | Peyton Place |
| 1958 (31st) | Susan Hayward ‡ | Barbara Graham | I Want to Live! |
| 1958 (31st) | Deborah Kerr | Sibyl Railton-Bell | Separate Tables |
| 1958 (31st) | Shirley MacLaine | Ginnie Moorehead | Some Came Running |
| 1958 (31st) | Rosalind Russell | Mame Dennis | Auntie Mame |
| 1958 (31st) | Elizabeth Taylor | Margaret "Maggie the Cat" Pollitt | Cat on a Hot Tin Roof |
| 1959 (32nd) | Simone Signoret ‡ | Alice Aisgill | Room at the Top |
| 1959 (32nd) | Doris Day | Jan Morrow | Pillow Talk |
| 1959 (32nd) | Audrey Hepburn | Gabrielle van der Mal | The Nun's Story |
| 1959 (32nd) | Katharine Hepburn | Violet Venable | Suddenly, Last Summer |
| 1959 (32nd) | Elizabeth Taylor | Catherine Holly | Suddenly, Last Summer |

### 1960s

| Year | Actress | Role(s) | Film |
| 1960 (33rd) | Elizabeth Taylor ‡ | Gloria Wandrous | BUtterfield 8 |
| 1960 (33rd) | Greer Garson | Eleanor Roosevelt | Sunrise at Campobello |
| 1960 (33rd) | Deborah Kerr | Ida Carmody | The Sundowners |
| 1960 (33rd) | Shirley MacLaine | Fran Kubelik | The Apartment |
| 1960 (33rd) | Melina Mercouri | Ilya | Never on Sunday |
| 1961 (34th) | Sophia Loren ‡ | Cesira | Two Women |
| 1961 (34th) | Audrey Hepburn | Holly Golightly / Lula Mae Barnes | Breakfast at Tiffany's |
| 1961 (34th) | Piper Laurie | Sarah Packard | The Hustler |
| 1961 (34th) | Geraldine Page | Alma Winemiller | Summer and Smoke |
| 1961 (34th) | Natalie Wood | Wilma Dean "Deanie" Loomis | Splendor in the Grass |
| 1962 (35th) | Anne Bancroft ‡ | Annie Sullivan | The Miracle Worker |
| 1962 (35th) | Bette Davis | Baby Jane Hudson | What Ever Happened to Baby Jane? |
| 1962 (35th) | Katharine Hepburn | Mary Cavan Tyrone | Long Day's Journey into Night |
| 1962 (35th) | Geraldine Page | Alexandra Del Lago | Sweet Bird of Youth |
| 1962 (35th) | Lee Remick | Kirsten Arnesen Clay | Days of Wine and Roses |
| 1963 (36th) | Patricia Neal ‡ | Alma Brown | Hud |
| 1963 (36th) | Leslie Caron | Jane Fossett | The L-Shaped Room |
| 1963 (36th) | Shirley MacLaine | Irma La Douce | Irma la Douce |
| 1963 (36th) | Rachel Roberts | Margaret Hammond | This Sporting Life |
| 1963 (36th) | Natalie Wood | Angie Rossini | Love with the Proper Stranger |
| 1964 (37th) | Julie Andrews ‡ | Mary Poppins | Mary Poppins |
| 1964 (37th) | Anne Bancroft | Jo Armitage | The Pumpkin Eater |
| 1964 (37th) | Sophia Loren | Filumena Marturano | Marriage Italian Style |
| 1964 (37th) | Debbie Reynolds | Molly Brown | The Unsinkable Molly Brown |
| 1964 (37th) | Kim Stanley | Myra Savage | Séance on a Wet Afternoon |
| 1965 (38th) | Julie Christie ‡ | Diana Scott | Darling |
| 1965 (38th) | Julie Andrews | Maria von Trapp | The Sound of Music |
| 1965 (38th) | Samantha Eggar | Miranda Grey | The Collector |
| 1965 (38th) | Elizabeth Hartman | Selina D'Arcy | A Patch of Blue |
| 1965 (38th) | Simone Signoret | La Condesa | Ship of Fools |
| 1966 (39th) | Elizabeth Taylor ‡ | Martha | Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf? |
| 1966 (39th) | Anouk Aimée | Anne Gauthier | A Man and a Woman |
| 1966 (39th) | Ida Kamińska | Rozalie Lautmann | The Shop on Main Street |
| 1966 (39th) | Lynn Redgrave | Georgina "Georgy" Parkin | Georgy Girl |
| 1966 (39th) | Vanessa Redgrave | Leonie Delt | Morgan! |
| 1967 (40th) | Katharine Hepburn ‡ | Christina Drayton | Guess Who's Coming to Dinner |
| 1967 (40th) | Anne Bancroft | Mrs. Robinson | The Graduate |
| 1967 (40th) | Faye Dunaway | Bonnie Parker | Bonnie and Clyde |
| 1967 (40th) | Edith Evans | Maggie Ross | The Whisperers |
| 1967 (40th) | Audrey Hepburn | Susy Hendrix | Wait Until Dark |
| 1968 (41st) | Katharine Hepburn ‡ (TIE) | Eleanor of Aquitaine | The Lion in Winter |
| 1968 (41st) | Barbra Streisand ‡ (TIE) | Fanny Brice | Funny Girl |
| 1968 (41st) | Patricia Neal | Nettie Cleary | The Subject Was Roses |
| 1968 (41st) | Vanessa Redgrave | Isadora Duncan | Isadora |
| 1968 (41st) | Joanne Woodward | Rachel Cameron | Rachel, Rachel |
| 1969 (42nd) | Maggie Smith ‡ | Jean Brodie | The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie |
| 1969 (42nd) | Geneviève Bujold | Anne Boleyn | Anne of the Thousand Days |
| 1969 (42nd) | Jane Fonda | Gloria Beatty | They Shoot Horses, Don't They? |
| 1969 (42nd) | Liza Minnelli | Mary Ann "Pookie" Adams | The Sterile Cuckoo |
| 1969 (42nd) | Jean Simmons | Mary Wilson | The Happy Ending |

### 1970s

| Year | Actress | Role(s) | Film |
| 1970 (43rd) | Glenda Jackson ‡ | Gudrun Brangwen | Women in Love |
| 1970 (43rd) | Jane Alexander | Eleanor Backman | The Great White Hope |
| 1970 (43rd) | Ali MacGraw | Jennifer Cavalleri-Barrett | Love Story |
| 1970 (43rd) | Sarah Miles | Rosy Ryan | Ryan's Daughter |
| 1970 (43rd) | Carrie Snodgress | Bettina "Tina" Balser | Diary of a Mad Housewife |
| 1971 (44th) | Jane Fonda ‡ | Bree Daniels | Klute |
| 1971 (44th) | Julie Christie | Constance Miller | McCabe & Mrs. Miller |
| 1971 (44th) | Glenda Jackson | Alex Greville | Sunday Bloody Sunday |
| 1971 (44th) | Vanessa Redgrave | Mary, Queen of Scots | Mary, Queen of Scots |
| 1971 (44th) | Janet Suzman | Empress Alexandra of Russia | Nicholas and Alexandra |
| 1972 (45th) | Liza Minnelli ‡ | Sally Bowles | Cabaret |
| 1972 (45th) | Diana Ross | Billie Holiday | Lady Sings the Blues |
| 1972 (45th) | Maggie Smith | Augusta Bertram | Travels with My Aunt |
| 1972 (45th) | Cicely Tyson | Rebecca Morgan | Sounder |
| 1972 (45th) | Liv Ullmann | Kristina Nilsson | The Emigrants |
| 1973 (46th) | Glenda Jackson ‡ | Vickie Allessio | A Touch of Class |
| 1973 (46th) | Ellen Burstyn | Chris MacNeil | The Exorcist |
| 1973 (46th) | Marsha Mason | Maggie Paul | Cinderella Liberty |
| 1973 (46th) | Barbra Streisand | Katie Morosky | The Way We Were |
| 1973 (46th) | Joanne Woodward | Rita Walden | Summer Wishes, Winter Dreams |
| 1974 (47th) | Ellen Burstyn ‡ | Alice Hyatt | Alice Doesn't Live Here Anymore |
| 1974 (47th) | Diahann Carroll | Claudine Price | Claudine |
| 1974 (47th) | Faye Dunaway | Evelyn Cross Mulwray | Chinatown |
| 1974 (47th) | Valerie Perrine | Harriett Jolliff / Honey Bruce | Lenny |
| 1974 (47th) | Gena Rowlands | Mabel Longhetti | A Woman Under the Influence |
| 1975 (48th) | Louise Fletcher ‡ | Nurse Mildred Ratched | One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest |
| 1975 (48th) | Isabelle Adjani | Adèle Hugo / Adèle Lewly | The Story of Adele H. |
| 1975 (48th) | Ann-Margret | Nora Walker | Tommy |
| 1975 (48th) | Glenda Jackson | Hedda Gabler | Hedda |
| 1975 (48th) | Carol Kane | Gitl | Hester Street |
| 1976 (49th) | Faye Dunaway ‡ | Diana Christensen | Network |
| 1976 (49th) | Marie-Christine Barrault | Marthe | Cousin Cousine |
| 1976 (49th) | Talia Shire | Adrian Pennino | Rocky |
| 1976 (49th) | Sissy Spacek | Carrie White | Carrie |
| 1976 (49th) | Liv Ullmann | Jenny Isaksson | Face to Face |
| 1977 (50th) | Diane Keaton ‡ | Annie Hall | Annie Hall |
| 1977 (50th) | Anne Bancroft | Emma Jacklin | The Turning Point |
| 1977 (50th) | Jane Fonda | Lillian Hellman | Julia |
| 1977 (50th) | Shirley MacLaine | Deedee Rodgers | The Turning Point |
| 1977 (50th) | Marsha Mason | Paula McFadden | The Goodbye Girl |
| 1978 (51st) | Jane Fonda ‡ | Sally Hyde | Coming Home |
| 1978 (51st) | Ingrid Bergman | Charlotte Andergast | Autumn Sonata |
| 1978 (51st) | Ellen Burstyn | Doris | Same Time, Next Year |
| 1978 (51st) | Jill Clayburgh | Erica Benton | An Unmarried Woman |
| 1978 (51st) | Geraldine Page | Eve | Interiors |
| 1979 (52nd) | Sally Field ‡ | Norma Rae Webster | Norma Rae |
| 1979 (52nd) | Jill Clayburgh | Marilyn Holmberg | Starting Over |
| 1979 (52nd) | Jane Fonda | Kimberly Wells | The China Syndrome |
| 1979 (52nd) | Marsha Mason | Jennie MacLaine | Chapter Two |
| 1979 (52nd) | Bette Midler | Mary Rose Foster | The Rose |

### 1980s

| Year | Actress | Role(s) | Film |
| 1980 (53rd) | Sissy Spacek ‡ | Loretta Lynn | Coal Miner's Daughter |
| 1980 (53rd) | Ellen Burstyn | Edna Mae Harper-McCauley | Resurrection |
| 1980 (53rd) | Goldie Hawn | Judy Benjamin | Private Benjamin |
| 1980 (53rd) | Mary Tyler Moore | Beth Jarrett | Ordinary People |
| 1980 (53rd) | Gena Rowlands | Gloria Swenson | Gloria |
| 1981 (54th) | Katharine Hepburn ‡ | Ethel Thayer | On Golden Pond |
| 1981 (54th) | Diane Keaton | Louise Bryant | Reds |
| 1981 (54th) | Marsha Mason | Georgia Hines | Only When I Laugh |
| 1981 (54th) | Susan Sarandon | Sally Matthews | Atlantic City |
| 1981 (54th) | Meryl Streep | Sara Woodruff and Anna | The French Lieutenant's Woman |
| 1982 (55th) | Meryl Streep ‡ | Sophie Zawistowski | Sophie's Choice |
| 1982 (55th) | Julie Andrews | Victor Grazinski / Victoria Grant | Victor/Victoria |
| 1982 (55th) | Jessica Lange | Frances Farmer | Frances |
| 1982 (55th) | Sissy Spacek | Beth Horman | Missing |
| 1982 (55th) | Debra Winger | Paula Pokrifki | An Officer and a Gentleman |
| 1983 (56th) | Shirley MacLaine ‡ | Aurora Greenway | Terms of Endearment |
| 1983 (56th) | Jane Alexander | Carol Wetherly | Testament |
| 1983 (56th) | Meryl Streep | Karen Silkwood | Silkwood |
| 1983 (56th) | Julie Walters | Susan White / Rita | Educating Rita |
| 1983 (56th) | Debra Winger | Emma Greenway Horton | Terms of Endearment |
| 1984 (57th) | Sally Field ‡ | Edna Spalding | Places in the Heart |
| 1984 (57th) | Judy Davis | Adela Quested | A Passage to India |
| 1984 (57th) | Jessica Lange | Jewell Ivy | Country |
| 1984 (57th) | Vanessa Redgrave | Olive Chancellor | The Bostonians |
| 1984 (57th) | Sissy Spacek | Mae Garvey | The River |
| 1985 (58th) | Geraldine Page ‡ | Carrie Watts | The Trip to Bountiful |
| 1985 (58th) | Anne Bancroft | Miriam Ruth / Anna Maria Burchetti | Agnes of God |
| 1985 (58th) | Whoopi Goldberg | Celie Harris-Johnson | The Color Purple |
| 1985 (58th) | Jessica Lange | Patsy Cline | Sweet Dreams |
| 1985 (58th) | Meryl Streep | Karen Blixen | Out of Africa |
| 1986 (59th) | Marlee Matlin ‡ | Sarah Norman | Children of a Lesser God |
| 1986 (59th) | Jane Fonda | Alex Sternbergen / Viveca Van Loren | The Morning After |
| 1986 (59th) | Sissy Spacek | Babe Botrelle / Rebecca MaGrath | Crimes of the Heart |
| 1986 (59th) | Kathleen Turner | Peggy Sue Kelcher-Bodell | Peggy Sue Got Married |
| 1986 (59th) | Sigourney Weaver | Ellen Ripley | Aliens |
| 1987 (60th) | Cher ‡ | Loretta Castorini | Moonstruck |
| 1987 (60th) | Glenn Close | Alex Forrest | Fatal Attraction |
| 1987 (60th) | Holly Hunter | Jane Craig | Broadcast News |
| 1987 (60th) | Sally Kirkland | Anna | Anna |
| 1987 (60th) | Meryl Streep | Helen Archer | Ironweed |
| 1988 (61st) | Jodie Foster ‡ | Sarah Tobias | The Accused |
| 1988 (61st) | Glenn Close | Marquise Isabelle de Merteuil | Dangerous Liaisons |
| 1988 (61st) | Melanie Griffith | Tess McGill | Working Girl |
| 1988 (61st) | Meryl Streep | Lindy Chamberlain | A Cry in the Dark |
| 1988 (61st) | Sigourney Weaver | Dian Fossey | Gorillas in the Mist |
| 1989 (62nd) | Jessica Tandy ‡ | Daisy Werthan | Driving Miss Daisy |
| 1989 (62nd) | Isabelle Adjani | Camille Claudel | Camille Claudel |
| 1989 (62nd) | Pauline Collins | Shirley Valentine-Bradshaw | Shirley Valentine |
| 1989 (62nd) | Jessica Lange | Ann Talbot | Music Box |
| 1989 (62nd) | Michelle Pfeiffer | Susie Diamond | The Fabulous Baker Boys |

### 1990s

| Year | Actress | Role(s) | Film |
| 1990 (63rd) | Kathy Bates ‡ | Annie Wilkes | Misery |
| 1990 (63rd) | Anjelica Huston | Lilly Dillon | The Grifters |
| 1990 (63rd) | Julia Roberts | Vivian Ward | Pretty Woman |
| 1990 (63rd) | Meryl Streep | Suzanne Vale | Postcards from the Edge |
| 1990 (63rd) | Joanne Woodward | India Bridge | Mr. & Mrs. Bridge |
| 1991 (64th) | Jodie Foster ‡ | Clarice Starling | The Silence of the Lambs |
| 1991 (64th) | Geena Davis | Thelma Dickinson | Thelma & Louise |
| 1991 (64th) | Laura Dern | Rose | Rambling Rose |
| 1991 (64th) | Bette Midler | Dixie Leonard | For the Boys |
| 1991 (64th) | Susan Sarandon | Louise Sawyer | Thelma & Louise |
| 1992 (65th) | Emma Thompson ‡ | Margaret Schlegel | Howards End |
| 1992 (65th) | Catherine Deneuve | Éliane Devries | Indochine |
| 1992 (65th) | Mary McDonnell | May-Alice Culhane | Passion Fish |
| 1992 (65th) | Michelle Pfeiffer | Louise Irene "Lurene" Hallett | Love Field |
| 1992 (65th) | Susan Sarandon | Michaela Murphy Odone | Lorenzo's Oil |
| 1993 (66th) | Holly Hunter ‡ | Ada McGrath | The Piano |
| 1993 (66th) | Angela Bassett | Anna Mae Bullock / Tina Turner | What's Love Got to Do with It |
| 1993 (66th) | Stockard Channing | Louisa "Ouisa" Kittredge | Six Degrees of Separation |
| 1993 (66th) | Emma Thompson | Sarah "Sally" Kenton | The Remains of the Day |
| 1993 (66th) | Debra Winger | Joy Davidman | Shadowlands |
| 1994 (67th) | Jessica Lange ‡ | Carly Marshall | Blue Sky |
| 1994 (67th) | Jodie Foster | Nell Kellty | Nell |
| 1994 (67th) | Miranda Richardson | Vivienne Haigh-Wood | Tom & Viv |
| 1994 (67th) | Winona Ryder | Josephine "Jo" March | Little Women |
| 1994 (67th) | Susan Sarandon | Regina "Reggie" Love | The Client |
| 1995 (68th) | Susan Sarandon ‡ | Helen Prejean | Dead Man Walking |
| 1995 (68th) | Elisabeth Shue | Sera | Leaving Las Vegas |
| 1995 (68th) | Sharon Stone | Ginger McKenna | Casino |
| 1995 (68th) | Meryl Streep | Francesca Johnson | The Bridges of Madison County |
| 1995 (68th) | Emma Thompson | Elinor Dashwood | Sense and Sensibility |
| 1996 (69th) | Frances McDormand ‡ | Marge Gunderson | Fargo |
| 1996 (69th) | Brenda Blethyn | Cynthia Rose Purley | Secrets & Lies |
| 1996 (69th) | Diane Keaton | Bessie Wakefield | Marvin's Room |
| 1996 (69th) | Kristin Scott Thomas | Katharine Clifton | The English Patient |
| 1996 (69th) | Emily Watson | Bess McNeill | Breaking the Waves |
| 1997 (70th) | Helen Hunt ‡ | Carol Connelly | As Good as It Gets |
| 1997 (70th) | Helena Bonham Carter | Kate Croy | The Wings of the Dove |
| 1997 (70th) | Julie Christie | Phyllis Hart | Afterglow |
| 1997 (70th) | Judi Dench | Queen Victoria | Mrs Brown |
| 1997 (70th) | Kate Winslet | Rose DeWitt Bukater | Titanic |
| 1998 (71st) | Gwyneth Paltrow ‡ | Viola de Lesseps | Shakespeare in Love |
| 1998 (71st) | Cate Blanchett | Queen Elizabeth I | Elizabeth |
| 1998 (71st) | Fernanda Montenegro | Isadora "Dora" Teixeira | Central Station |
| 1998 (71st) | Meryl Streep | Kate Gulden | One True Thing |
| 1998 (71st) | Emily Watson | Jacqueline du Pré | Hilary and Jackie |
| 1999 (72nd) | Hilary Swank ‡ | Brandon Teena | Boys Don't Cry |
| 1999 (72nd) | Annette Bening | Carolyn Burnham | American Beauty |
| 1999 (72nd) | Janet McTeer | Mary Jo Walker | Tumbleweeds |
| 1999 (72nd) | Julianne Moore | Sarah Miles | The End of the Affair |
| 1999 (72nd) | Meryl Streep | Roberta Guaspari | Music of the Heart |

### 2000s

| Year | Actress | Role(s) | Film |
| 2000 (73rd) | Julia Roberts ‡ | Erin Brockovich | Erin Brockovich |
| 2000 (73rd) | Joan Allen | Laine Hanson | The Contender |
| 2000 (73rd) | Juliette Binoche | Vianne Rocher | Chocolat |
| 2000 (73rd) | Ellen Burstyn | Sara Goldfarb | Requiem for a Dream |
| 2000 (73rd) | Laura Linney | Samantha "Sammy" Prescott | You Can Count on Me |
| 2001 (74th) | Halle Berry ‡ | Leticia Musgrove | Monster's Ball |
| 2001 (74th) | Judi Dench | Iris Murdoch | Iris |
| 2001 (74th) | Nicole Kidman | Satine | Moulin Rouge! |
| 2001 (74th) | Sissy Spacek | Ruth Fowler | In the Bedroom |
| 2001 (74th) | Renée Zellweger | Bridget Jones | Bridget Jones's Diary |
| 2002 (75th) | Nicole Kidman ‡ | Virginia Woolf | The Hours |
| 2002 (75th) | Salma Hayek | Frida Kahlo | Frida |
| 2002 (75th) | Diane Lane | Constance "Connie" Sumner | Unfaithful |
| 2002 (75th) | Julianne Moore | Cathy Whitaker | Far from Heaven |
| 2002 (75th) | Renée Zellweger | Roxie Hart | Chicago |
| 2003 (76th) | Charlize Theron ‡ | Aileen Wuornos | Monster |
| 2003 (76th) | Keisha Castle-Hughes | Paikea Apirana | Whale Rider |
| 2003 (76th) | Diane Keaton | Erica Jane Berry | Something's Gotta Give |
| 2003 (76th) | Samantha Morton | Sarah Sullivan | In America |
| 2003 (76th) | Naomi Watts | Cristina Williams-Peck | 21 Grams |
| 2004 (77th) | Hilary Swank ‡ | Maggie Fitzgerald | Million Dollar Baby |
| 2004 (77th) | Annette Bening | Julia Lambert | Being Julia |
| 2004 (77th) | Catalina Sandino Moreno | María Álvarez | Maria Full of Grace |
| 2004 (77th) | Imelda Staunton | Vera Rose Drake | Vera Drake |
| 2004 (77th) | Kate Winslet | Clementine Kruczynski | Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind |
| 2005 (78th) | Reese Witherspoon ‡ | June Carter Cash | Walk the Line |
| 2005 (78th) | Judi Dench | Laura Forster-Henderson | Mrs Henderson Presents |
| 2005 (78th) | Felicity Huffman | Sabrina "Bree" Osbourne | Transamerica |
| 2005 (78th) | Keira Knightley | Elizabeth Bennet | Pride & Prejudice |
| 2005 (78th) | Charlize Theron | Josey Aimes | North Country |
| 2006 (79th) | Helen Mirren ‡ | Queen Elizabeth II | The Queen |
| 2006 (79th) | Penélope Cruz | Raimunda | Volver |
| 2006 (79th) | Judi Dench | Barbara Covett | Notes on a Scandal |
| 2006 (79th) | Meryl Streep | Miranda Priestly | The Devil Wears Prada |
| 2006 (79th) | Kate Winslet | Sarah Pierce | Little Children |
| 2007 (80th) | Marion Cotillard ‡ | Édith Piaf | La Vie en Rose |
| 2007 (80th) | Cate Blanchett | Queen Elizabeth I | Elizabeth: The Golden Age |
| 2007 (80th) | Julie Christie | Fiona Anderson | Away from Her |
| 2007 (80th) | Laura Linney | Wendy Savage | The Savages |
| 2007 (80th) | Elliot Page | Juno MacGuff | Juno |
| 2008 (81st) | Kate Winslet ‡ | Hanna Schmitz | The Reader |
| 2008 (81st) | Anne Hathaway | Kym Buchman | Rachel Getting Married |
| 2008 (81st) | Angelina Jolie | Christine Collins | Changeling |
| 2008 (81st) | Melissa Leo | Ray Eddy | Frozen River |
| 2008 (81st) | Meryl Streep | Sister Aloysius Beauvier | Doubt |
| 2009 (82nd) | Sandra Bullock ‡ | Leigh Anne Tuohy | The Blind Side |
| 2009 (82nd) | Helen Mirren | Countess Sophia Tolstaya | The Last Station |
| 2009 (82nd) | Carey Mulligan | Jenny Mellor | An Education |
| 2009 (82nd) | Gabourey Sidibe | Claireece "Precious" Jones | Precious |
| 2009 (82nd) | Meryl Streep | Julia Child | Julie & Julia |

### 2010s

| Year | Actress | Role(s) | Film |
| 2010 (83rd) | Natalie Portman ‡ | Nina Sayers | Black Swan |
| 2010 (83rd) | Annette Bening | Dr. Nicole "Nic" Allgood | The Kids Are All Right |
| 2010 (83rd) | Nicole Kidman | Becca Corbett | Rabbit Hole |
| 2010 (83rd) | Jennifer Lawrence | Ree Dolly | Winter's Bone |
| 2010 (83rd) | Michelle Williams | Cynthia "Cindy" Heller | Blue Valentine |
| 2011 (84th) | Meryl Streep ‡ | Margaret Thatcher | The Iron Lady |
| 2011 (84th) | Glenn Close | Albert Nobbs | Albert Nobbs |
| 2011 (84th) | Viola Davis | Aibileen Clark | The Help |
| 2011 (84th) | Rooney Mara | Lisbeth Salander | The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo |
| 2011 (84th) | Michelle Williams | Marilyn Monroe | My Week with Marilyn |
| 2012 (85th) | Jennifer Lawrence ‡ | Tiffany Maxwell | Silver Linings Playbook |
| 2012 (85th) | Jessica Chastain | Maya Harris | Zero Dark Thirty |
| 2012 (85th) | Emmanuelle Riva | Anne Laurent | Amour |
| 2012 (85th) | Quvenzhané Wallis | Hushpuppy | Beasts of the Southern Wild |
| 2012 (85th) | Naomi Watts | Maria Bennett | The Impossible |
| 2013 (86th) | Cate Blanchett ‡ | Jeanette "Jasmine" Francis | Blue Jasmine |
| 2013 (86th) | Amy Adams | Sydney Prosser / Lady Edith Greensly | American Hustle |
| 2013 (86th) | Sandra Bullock | Ryan Stone | Gravity |
| 2013 (86th) | Judi Dench | Philomena Lee | Philomena |
| 2013 (86th) | Meryl Streep | Violet Weston | August: Osage County |
| 2014 (87th) | Julianne Moore ‡ | Alice Howland | Still Alice |
| 2014 (87th) | Marion Cotillard | Sandra Bya | Two Days, One Night |
| 2014 (87th) | Felicity Jones | Jane Wilde Hawking | The Theory of Everything |
| 2014 (87th) | Rosamund Pike | Amy Elliott-Dunne | Gone Girl |
| 2014 (87th) | Reese Witherspoon | Cheryl Strayed | Wild |
| 2015 (88th) | Brie Larson ‡ | Joy "Ma" Newsome | Room |
| 2015 (88th) | Cate Blanchett | Carol Aird | Carol |
| 2015 (88th) | Jennifer Lawrence | Joy Mangano | Joy |
| 2015 (88th) | Charlotte Rampling | Kate Mercer | 45 Years |
| 2015 (88th) | Saoirse Ronan | Eilis Lacey | Brooklyn |
| 2016 (89th) | Emma Stone ‡ | Mia Dolan | La La Land |
| 2016 (89th) | Isabelle Huppert | Michèle Leblanc | Elle |
| 2016 (89th) | Ruth Negga | Mildred Loving | Loving |
| 2016 (89th) | Natalie Portman | Jacqueline "Jackie" Kennedy | Jackie |
| 2016 (89th) | Meryl Streep | Florence Foster Jenkins | Florence Foster Jenkins |
| 2017 (90th) | Frances McDormand ‡ | Mildred Hayes | Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri |
| 2017 (90th) | Sally Hawkins | Elisa Esposito | The Shape of Water |
| 2017 (90th) | Margot Robbie | Tonya Harding | I, Tonya |
| 2017 (90th) | Saoirse Ronan | Christine "Lady Bird" McPherson | Lady Bird |
| 2017 (90th) | Meryl Streep | Katharine Graham | The Post |
| 2018 (91st) | Olivia Colman ‡ | Queen Anne | The Favourite |
| 2018 (91st) | Yalitza Aparicio | Cleodegaria "Cleo" Gutiérrez | Roma |
| 2018 (91st) | Glenn Close | Joan Castleman | The Wife |
| 2018 (91st) | Lady Gaga | Ally Maine | A Star Is Born |
| 2018 (91st) | Melissa McCarthy | Leonore Carol "Lee" Israel | Can You Ever Forgive Me? |
| 2019 (92nd) | Renée Zellweger ‡ | Judy Garland | Judy |
| 2019 (92nd) | Cynthia Erivo | Harriet Tubman | Harriet |
| 2019 (92nd) | Scarlett Johansson | Nicole Barber | Marriage Story |
| 2019 (92nd) | Saoirse Ronan | Josephine "Jo" March | Little Women |
| 2019 (92nd) | Charlize Theron | Megyn Kelly | Bombshell |

### 2020s

| Year | Actress | Role(s) | Film |
| 2020/21 (93rd) | Frances McDormand ‡ | Fern | Nomadland |
| 2020/21 (93rd) | Viola Davis | Gertrude "Ma" Rainey | Ma Rainey's Black Bottom |
| 2020/21 (93rd) | Andra Day | Billie Holiday | The United States vs. Billie Holiday |
| 2020/21 (93rd) | Vanessa Kirby | Martha Weiss | Pieces of a Woman |
| 2020/21 (93rd) | Carey Mulligan | Cassandra "Cassie" Thomas | Promising Young Woman |
| 2021 (94th) | Jessica Chastain ‡ | Tammy Faye Bakker | The Eyes of Tammy Faye |
| 2021 (94th) | Olivia Colman | Leda Caruso | The Lost Daughter |
| 2021 (94th) | Penélope Cruz | Janis Martínez Moreno | Parallel Mothers |
| 2021 (94th) | Nicole Kidman | Lucille Ball | Being the Ricardos |
| 2021 (94th) | Kristen Stewart | Diana, Princess of Wales | Spencer |
| 2022 (95th) | Michelle Yeoh ‡ | Evelyn Quan Wang | Everything Everywhere All at Once |
| 2022 (95th) | Cate Blanchett | Lydia Tár | Tár |
| 2022 (95th) | Ana de Armas | Norma Jeane / Marilyn Monroe | Blonde |
| 2022 (95th) | Andrea Riseborough | Leslie Rowland | To Leslie |
| 2022 (95th) | Michelle Williams | Mitzi Fabelman | The Fabelmans |
| 2023 (96th) | Emma Stone ‡ | Bella Baxter | Poor Things |
| 2023 (96th) | Annette Bening | Diana Nyad | Nyad |
| 2023 (96th) | Lily Gladstone | Mollie Burkhart | Killers of the Flower Moon |
| 2023 (96th) | Sandra Hüller | Sandra Voyter | Anatomy of a Fall |
| 2023 (96th) | Carey Mulligan | Felicia Montealegre | Maestro |
| 2024 (97th) | Mikey Madison ‡ | Anora "Ani" Mikheeva | Anora |
| 2024 (97th) | Cynthia Erivo | Elphaba Thropp | Wicked |
| 2024 (97th) | Karla Sofía Gascón | Emilia Pérez / Juan "Manitas" Del Monte | Emilia Pérez |
| 2024 (97th) | Demi Moore | Elisabeth Sparkle | The Substance |
| 2024 (97th) | Fernanda Torres | Eunice Paiva | I'm Still Here |

## Multiple wins and nominations

The following individuals received two or more Best Actress awards:
| Wins | Actress | Nominations |
| 4 | Katharine Hepburn | 12 |
| 3 | Frances McDormand | 3 |
| 2 | Meryl Streep | 17 |
| 2 | Bette Davis | 11 |
| 2 | Ingrid Bergman | 6 |
| 2 | Jane Fonda | 6 |
| 2 | Elizabeth Taylor | 5 |
| 2 | Olivia de Havilland | 4 |
| 2 | Glenda Jackson | 4 |
| 2 | Jodie Foster | 3 |
| 2 | Sally Field | 2 |
| 2 | Vivien Leigh | 2 |
| 2 | Luise Rainer | 2 |
| 2 | Emma Stone | 2 |
| 2 | Hilary Swank | 2 |
The following individuals received three or more Best Actress nominations:
| Nominations | Actress |
| 17 | Meryl Streep |
| 12 | Katharine Hepburn |
| 10 | Bette Davis |
| 7 | Greer Garson |
| 6 | Ingrid Bergman |
| 6 | Jane Fonda |
| 6 | Deborah Kerr |
| 6 | Norma Shearer |
| 6 | Sissy Spacek |
| 5 | Anne Bancroft |
| 5 | Cate Blanchett |
| 5 | Ellen Burstyn |
| 5 | Judi Dench |
| 5 | Irene Dunne |
| 5 | Susan Hayward |
| 5 | Audrey Hepburn |
| 5 | Jessica Lange |
| 5 | Shirley MacLaine |
| 5 | Susan Sarandon |
| 5 | Elizabeth Taylor |
| 4 | Annette Bening |
| 4 | Glenn Close |
| 4 | Julie Christie |
| 4 | Greta Garbo |
| 4 | Olivia de Havilland |
| 4 | Glenda Jackson |
| 4 | Jennifer Jones |
| 4 | Diane Keaton |
| 4 | Nicole Kidman |
| 4 | Marsha Mason |
| 4 | Geraldine Page |
| 4 | Vanessa Redgrave |
| 4 | Rosalind Russell |
| 4 | Barbara Stanwyck |
| 4 | Kate Winslet |
| 4 | Joanne Woodward |
| 4 | Jane Wyman |
| 3 | Julie Andrews |
| 3 | Claudette Colbert |
| 3 | Joan Crawford |
| 3 | Faye Dunaway |
| 3 | Joan Fontaine |
| 3 | Jodie Foster |
| 3 | Jennifer Lawrence |
| 3 | Frances McDormand |
| 3 | Julianne Moore |
| 3 | Carey Mulligan |
| 3 | Eleanor Parker |
| 3 | Saoirse Ronan |
| 3 | Gloria Swanson |
| 3 | Charlize Theron |
| 3 | Emma Thompson |
| 3 | Michelle Williams |
| 3 | Debra Winger |
| 3 | Renée Zellweger |

## Age superlatives

| Record | Actor | Film | Year | Age |
| Oldest Winner | Jessica Tandy | Driving Miss Daisy | 1990 | 80 |
| Oldest Nominee | Emmanuelle Riva | Amour | 2013 | 85 |
| Youngest Winner | Marlee Matlin | Children of a Lesser God | 1987 | 21 |
| Youngest Nominee | Quvenzhané Wallis | Beasts of the Southern Wild | 2013 | 9 |

## Films with multiple Leading Actress nominations

Winners are in bold.
* All About Eve (1950) – Anne Baxter and Bette Davis
* Suddenly, Last Summer (1959) – Katharine Hepburn and Elizabeth Taylor
* The Turning Point (1977) – Anne Bancroft and Shirley MacLaine
* Terms of Endearment (1983) – Shirley MacLaine and Debra Winger
* Thelma & Louise (1991) – Geena Davis and Susan Sarandon

## Multiple character nominations

The following were nominated for their portrayals of the same fictional or non-fictional character in separate films (including variations of the original).
* Billie Holiday from Lady Sings the Blues (Diana Ross, 1972) and The United States vs. Billie Holiday (Andra Day, 2021)
* Josephine "Jo" March from Little Women (Winona Ryder, 1994) and Little Women (Saoirse Ronan, 2019)
* Leslie Crosbie from The Letter (Jeanne Eagels, 1929) and The Letter (Bette Davis, 1940)
* Marilyn Monroe from My Week with Marilyn (Michelle Williams, 2011) and Blonde (Ana de Armas, 2022)
* Queen Elizabeth I from Elizabeth (Cate Blanchett, 1998) and Elizabeth: The Golden Age (Cate Blanchett, 2007)
* Vicki Lester (née Esther (Victoria) Blodgett) from A Star Is Born (Janet Gaynor, 1937) and A Star Is Born (Judy Garland, 1954)
** Ally Maine (née Campano) from A Star Is Born (Lady Gaga, 2018)