These 20 Artists Have Sold the Most Concert Tickets in the Past 40+ Years
Pollstar, a tour industry publication, has released a list of the artists who have sold the most concert tickets since 1980. On that list are some of rock’s most iconic…
Pollstar, a tour industry publication, has released a list of the artists who have sold the most concert tickets since 1980. On that list are some of rock's most iconic acts.
Topping the concert ticket sales list was U2 with over 26 million tickets sold. Pollstar noted of the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame group's humble early days, "U2’s first show recorded in the archives was a performance for 1,440 patrons at Warfield Theatre in San Francisco on Nov. 29, 1981, during the band’s “October” tour supporting their second studio album. It was the fourth headlining trek in the group’s touring history and ran for about one year, wrapping in August 1982."
A number of major rock acts are scattered throughout the top 2o of the massive 150 artist ranking. Among them are Bon Jovi, the Eagles, Metallica, Paul McCartney and more.
Scroll below and see which acts made the top 20 of Pollstar's Top Touring Artists list along with their total touring grosses.
20. Ed Sheeran
Tickets sold: 11,865,380
19. Tim McGraw
Tickets sold: 12,266,482
18. George Strait
Tickets sold: 12,287,930
17. Coldplay
Tickets sold: 12,532,987
16. Neil Diamond
Tickets sold: 12,948,499
15. Rod Stewart
Tickets sold: 13,173,925
14. Jimmy Buffett
Tickets sold: 13,297,669
13. Aerosmith
Tickets sold: 13,336,974
12. Phish
Tickets sold: 13,501,959
11. Trans-Siberian Orchestra
Tickets sold: 15,276,864
10. Grateful Dead
Tickets sold: 15,549,243
9. Kenny Chesney
Tickets sold: 16,410,448
8. Billy Joel
Tickets sold: 16,973,102
7. Bon Jovi
Tickets sold: 17,750,044
6. Metallica
Tickets sold: 19,468,173
5. Elton John
Tickets sold: 19,756,467
4. Bruce Springsteen & The E Street Band
Tickets sold: 20,845,687
3. The Rolling Stones
Tickets sold: 22,137,799
2. Dave Matthews Band
Tickets sold: 23,279,056
1. U2
Tickets sold: 26,178,043
