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.[1] 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.[2] 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.[3]
| scope=col | scope=col | Artist | scope=col | Single | scope=col | Year | scope=col | Sales | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 1997 | 4,860,000 | |||||||
| 2 | "Do They Know It's Christmas" | 1984 | 3,550,000 | ||||||
| 3 | "Bohemian Rhapsody" | 1975 | 2,130,000 | ||||||
| 4 | "Mull of Kintyre" / "Girls' School" | 1977 | 2,050,000 | ||||||
| 5 | "Rivers of Babylon" / "Brown Girl in the Ring" | 1978 | 1,985,000 | ||||||
| 6 | "You're the One That I Want" | 1978 | 1,975,000 | ||||||
| 7 | "Relax" | 1983 | 1,910,000 | ||||||
| 8 | "She Loves You" | 1963 | 1,890,000 | ||||||
| 9 | "Unchained Melody" | 1995 | 1,840,000 | ||||||
| 10 | "Mary's Boy Child" / "Oh My Lord" | 1978 | 1,790,000 | ||||||
| 11 | "Love Is All Around" | 1994 | 1,780,000 | ||||||
| 12 | "I Just Called to Say I Love You" | 1984 | 1,775,000 | ||||||
| 13 | "I Want to Hold Your Hand" | 1963 | 1,750,000 | ||||||
| 14 | "Barbie Girl" | 1997 | 1,720,000 | ||||||
| 15 | "Believe" | 1998 | 1,670,000 | ||||||
| 16 | Various artists | "Perfect Day" | 1997 | 1,540,000 | |||||
| 17 | "(Everything I Do) I Do It for You" | 1991 | 1,520,000 | ||||||
| 18 | "Tears" | 1965 | 1,521,000 | ||||||
| 19 | "Can't Buy Me Love" | 1964 | 1,520,000 | ||||||
| 20 | "Summer Nights" | 1978 | 1,515,000 | ||||||
| 21 | "Two Tribes" | 1984 | 1,510,000 | ||||||
| 22 | "Baby One More Time" | 1999 | 1,450,000 | ||||||
| 23 | "Don't You Want Me" | 1981 | 1,430,000 | ||||||
| 24 | "Imagine" | 1975 | 1,426,000 | ||||||
| 25 | "Last Christmas" / "Everything She Wants" | 1984 | 1,420,000 | ||||||
| 26 | "I Feel Fine" | 1964 | 1,410,000 | ||||||
| 27 | "I'll Be Missing You" | 1997 | 1,400,000 | ||||||
| 28 | "Karma Chameleon" | 1983 | 1,405,000 | ||||||
| 29 | "The Carnival is Over" | 1965 | 1,400,000 | ||||||
| 30 | "Rock Around the Clock" | 1955 | 1,392,000 | ||||||
| 31 | "Day Tripper" | 1965 | 1,385,000 | ||||||
| 32 | "Y.M.C.A." | 1978 | 1,380,000 | ||||||
| 33 | "Careless Whisper" | 1984 | 1,360,000 | ||||||
| 34 | "Release Me" | 1967 | 1,365,000 | ||||||
| 35 | "I Will Always Love You" | 1992 | 1,355,000 | ||||||
| 36 | "The Power of Love" | 1985 | 1,321,530 | ||||||
| 37 | "My Heart Will Go On" | 1998 | 1,312,551 | ||||||
| 38 | "Wannabe" | 1996 | 1,269,841 | ||||||
| 39 | "Killing Me Softly" | 1996 | 1,268,157 | ||||||
| 40 | "Never Ever" | 1997 | 1,254,604 | ||||||
| 41 | "Gangsta's Paradise" | 1995 | 1,240,000 | ||||||
| 42 | "Diana" | 1957 | 1,240,000 | ||||||
| 43 | "Think Twice" | 1994 | 1,234,982 | ||||||
| 44 | "It's Now or Never" | 1960 | 1,210,000 | ||||||
| 45 | "Green Green Grass of Home" | 1966 | 1,205,000 | ||||||
| 46 | "Come On Eileen" | 1982 | 1,201,000 | ||||||
| 47 | "Heart of Glass" | 1979 | 1,180,000 | ||||||
| 48 | "Mary's Boy Child" | 1957 | 1,175,000 | ||||||
| 49 | "The Last Waltz" | 1967 | 1,160,000 | ||||||
| 50 | "Bright Eyes" | 1979 | 1,155,000 | ||||||
| 51 | "Heartbeat / Tragedy" | 1998 | 1,150,285 | ||||||
| 52 | "Don't Give Up on Us" | 1976 | 1,145,000 | ||||||
| 53 | "I Love You Love Me Love" | 1973 | 1,140,000 | ||||||
| 54 | "Tainted Love" | 1981 | 1,135,000 | ||||||
| 55 | "Stranger on the Shore" | 1961 | 1,130,000 | ||||||
| 56 | "It's Like That" | 1998 | 1,110,000 | ||||||
| 57 | "Teletubbies Say Eh-Oh!" | 1997 | 1,107,235 | ||||||
| 58 | "Spaceman" | 1996 | 1,098,880 | ||||||
| 59 | "I Remember You" | 1962 | 1,096,000 | ||||||
| 60 | "I Believe" / "Up on the Roof" | 1995 | 1,093,972 | ||||||
| 61 | "Saturday Night" | 1994 | 1,090,000 | ||||||
| 62 | "No Matter What" | 1998 | 1,070,000 | ||||||
| 63 | "2 Become 1" | 1996 | 1,070,000 | ||||||
| 64 | "The Young Ones" | 1962 | 1,052,000 | ||||||
| 65 | "Earth Song" | 1995 | 1,038,821 | ||||||
| 66 | "Merry Xmas Everybody" | 1973 | 1,006,500 | ||||||
| 67 | "Save Your Kisses for Me" | 1976 | 1,006,200 | ||||||
| 68 | "Eye Level" | 1972 | 1,005,500 | ||||||
| 69 | "Blue Monday" | 1983 | 1,001,000 | ||||||
| 70 | "Long Haired Lover from Liverpool" | 1972 | 998,000 | ||||||
| 71 | "Another Brick in the Wall (Part 2)" | 1979 | 995,000 | ||||||
| 72 | "Don't Cry for Me Argentina" | 1976 | 993,000 | ||||||
| 73 | "Eye of the Tiger" | 1982 | 990,000 | ||||||
| 74 | "I'd Like to Teach the World to Sing" | 1971 | 990,000 | ||||||
| 75 | "Tie a Yellow Ribbon Round the Old Oak Tree" | 1973 | 988,000 | ||||||
| 76 | "Stand and Deliver" | 1981 | 985,000 | ||||||
| 77 | "Under the Moon of Love" | 1976 | 985,000 | ||||||
| 78 | "Torn" | 1997 | 982,000 | ||||||
| 79 | "Especially for You" | 1988 | 982,000 | ||||||
| 80 | "Hit Me With Your Rhythm Stick" | 1978 | 979,100 | ||||||
| 81 | "Sugar Sugar" | 1969 | 979,000 | ||||||
| 82 | "The Lion Sleeps Tonight" | 1982 | 978,000 | ||||||
| 83 | "Bachelor Boy" / "The Next Time" | 1962 | 976,000 | ||||||
| 84 | "Fame" | 1982 | 975,000 | ||||||
| 85 | "Ghostbusters" | 1984 | 974,000 | ||||||
| 86 | "Uptown Girl" | 1983 | 974,000 | ||||||
| 87 | "Ride On Time" | 1989 | 973,000 | ||||||
| 88 | "Telstar" | 1962 | 967,000 | ||||||
| 89 | "Wonderwall" | 1995 | 966,940 | ||||||
| 90 | The Pipes and Drums and Military Band of the Royal Scots Dragoon Guards | "Amazing Grace" | 1972 | 962,000 | |||||
| 91 | "Back for Good" | 1995 | 959,000 | ||||||
| 92 | "Blue (Da Ba Dee)" | 1999 | 956,000 | ||||||
| 93 | "Sailing" | 1975 | 955,000 | ||||||
| 94 | "Mississippi" | 1976 | 947,000 |