Lists of UK singles chart number ones

The UK Singles Chart is a weekly record chart which for most of its history was based on single sales from Sunday to Saturday in the United Kingdom. Since July 2014 it has also incorporated streaming data, and from 10 July 2015 has been based on a Friday to Thursday week. As of 16 January 2026, 1448 singles have reached number one. The chart was founded in 1952 by Percy Dickins of New Musical Express (NME), who telephoned 20 record stores to ask what their top 10 highest-selling singles were. Dickins aggregated the results into a top 12 hit parade, which was topped by "Here in My Heart" by Al Martino. NME's chart was published each week in its eponymous magazine.

The sources, in accordance with the official canon of the Official Charts Company, are the New Musical Express chart from 1952 to 1960; the Record Retailer chart from 1960 to 1969; and the Official UK Singles Chart from 1969 onwards.

Turnover of number ones

The calendar year that has featured the most UK number ones is 2000, with 42; the year with the fewest number ones is 2016, with 10. 1952 had only one number one, although the chart started in November.

The act that has achieved the most number ones is American entertainer Elvis Presley, who has topped the chart 21 times (including 3 re-releases of songs that had previously been number ones) – Presley's second number one, "Jailhouse Rock", was the first single ever to debut at the top of the chart. The most successful band (and equal with Elvis based on unique songs) are The Beatles, who have achieved 18 number ones. The Beatles' first chart-topper, "From Me to You", reached number one in May 1963, and their last in November 2023 – the longest span of number ones for any artist.

In the 1970s, the required number of sales needed to top the chart was roughly 150,000. During 1992, when few releases were reaching number one, sales of CD singles were low: songs needed to sell only 60–70,000 each week to remain at the top. In 2000, when turnover of number ones was high, tracks could often sell between 100,000 and 200,000 copies in a single week. UK chart commentator James Masterton remarked in 2003: "When record sales are high, public interest in a song expires very quickly and this creates a need for ever more new product to take its place." Sales figures improved in 2008 and continued into the early 2010s, peaking in 2013, before declining over the next few years as audio streaming became popular. Eventually, streaming was incorporated into the sales chart.

Number ones in each year

Key

†	Most number ones of the decade
‡	Most number ones of all time

Year	Number-one singles	Ref.
1950s
1952	1
1953	14
1954	11
1955	14
1956	12
1957	13
1958	13
1959	16 †
1960s
1960	16
1961	21
1962	12
1963	17
1964	23
1965	24 †
1966	20
1967	14
1968	21
1969	18
1970s
1970	14
1971	13
1972	17
1973	17
1974	21 †
1975	20
1976	16
1977	18
1978	14
1979	18
1980s
1980	24 †
1981	19
1982	21
1983	17
1984	14
1985	19
1986	20
1987	19
1988	19
1989	18
1990s
1990	17
1991	17
1992	12
1993	15
1994	15
1995	17
1996	24
1997	24
1998	29
1999	36 †
2000s
2000	42 ‡
2001	30
2002	30
2003	22
2004	29
2005	28
2006	24
2007	17
2008	20
2009	31
2010s
2010	35
2011	30
2012	36
2013	29
2014	38 †
2015	23
2016	10
2017	14
2018	16
2019	12
2020s
2020	20
2021	13
2022	12
2023	15
2024	13
2025	13
2026	3

See also

• List of NME number-one singles of the 1970s – the original chart source continued to independently compile a chart
• List of NME number-one singles of the 1980s – the original chart source continued to independently compile a chart