Over 300 Metal Bands Ranked By Their Spotify Monthly Listener Counts (February 2020)
Welcome back to our monthly column in which we take a look at Spotify’s “monthly listeners” counts and compare several hundred metal bands side by side. For more on why we’re doing this column and the methodology behind it, read this.
In addition to a band’s monthly listener tally, each listing features arrows indicating whether a band’s total number of listeners went up since the previous month (↑), down (↓), or stayed the same (→). If no symbol is shown, this is the first time we’ve included the band on this chart. Where a band’s numbers from the previous month are noted in parentheses, their monthly listener count experienced a significant shift from month to month (more than 10%, roughly).
The vast majority of bands saw an uptick in monthly listeners over the past month as users returned to their normal streaming habits following the holiday season, which saw an overall decline.
Here are the numbers for February which, crucially, are not comprehensive: these are bands we decided to look up manually, and it is absolutely the case that many popular bands aren’t included (please email [email protected] if you’d like to see them added next month). For that reason, we haven’t numbered these rankings: to do so would disingenuously give the appearance this is a comprehensive list, which it is not.
Linkin Park: 17.65 ↑
AC/DC: 17.31 million ↓
Guns N’ Roses: 17.00 million ↑
Metallica: 14.62 million ↑
Foo Fighters: 11.02 million ↑
Muse: 8.70 million
Nickelback: 8.65 million
System of a Down: 8.58 million ↑
Van Halen: 8.20 million ↑
Kiss: 7.67 million ↑
Ozzy Osbourne: 7.57 million ↑ (last month: 6.03 million)
Disturbed: 7.39 million ↓
Black Sabbath: 7.14 million ↑
Slipknot: 7.09 million ↑
Rage Against the Machine: 6.43 million ↑
Rammstein: 6.13 million ↑
Limp Bizkit: 6.13 million ↑
Avenged Sevenfold: 5.66 million ↑ (last month: 5.04 million)
Iron Maiden: 5.37 million ↑
Five Finger Death Punch: 5.26 million ↑
Motley Crue: 5.19 million ↑
Korn: 5.10 million ↑
Whitesnake: 4.92 million ↑
Bring Me the Horizon: 4.90 million ↓
Def Leppard: 4.79 million ↑
Breaking Benjamin: 4.72 million ↑ (last month: 4.22 million)
Marilyn Manson: 4.63 million ↑
Shinedown: 4.53 million ↑
Soundgarden: 4.45 million ↑
Alice in Chains: 4.19 million ↑
A Day to Remember: 3.99 million ↑
Volbeat: 3.71 million ↑
Stone Sour: 3.67 million ↑
Motorhead: 3.58 million ↑
Godsmack: 3.38 million ↑
Pantera: 3.29 million ↑
Bullet For My Valentine: 3.06 million ↑
Poison: 3.01 million ↑
Bad Wolves: 2.97 million ↑
Judas Priest: 2.94 million ↑
Megadeth: 2.85 million ↑
Tool: 2.83 million ↓
Faith No More: 2.65 million ↑
Nine Inch Nails: 2.54 million ↑
Skid Row: 2.46 million ↑
Asking Alexandria: 2.39 million ↑
Deftones: 2.19 million ↑
Killswitch Engage: 2.08 million ↑
Rob Zombie: 2.07 million ↑
Dio: 1.98 million ↑
Sabaton: 1.95 million ↑ (last month: 1.69 million)
Ghost: 1.89 million ↓
Slayer: 1.86 million ↑
Alter Bridge: 1.82 million ↑ (last month: 1.65 million)
Halestorm: 1.71 million ↑
Atreyu: 1.66 million ↑ (last month: 1.40 million)
Warrant: 1.61 million
Trivium: 1.57 million ↑
Nightwish: 1.56 million ↑
Escape the Fate: 1.46 million ↑
In This Moment: 1.46 million ↑ (last month: 1.19 million)
Mudvayne: 1.45 million ↑
Parkway Drive: 1.44 million ↑ (last month: 1.22 million)
Dragonforce: 1.40 million ↑
In Flames: 1.40 million ↑
Within Temptation: 1.36 million ↑
All That Remains: 1.36 million ↑ (last month: 1.24 million)
Lamb of God: 1.31 million ↑
Motionless in White: 1.31 million ↑ (last month: 1.17 million)
Dream Theater: 1.25 million ↑
Machine Head: 1.22 million ↑ (last month: 1.11 million)
Amon Amarth: 1.13 million ↑
Anthrax: 1.1 million ↑ (last month: 995k)
Static-X: 1.08 million ↑
Amaranthe: 1.07 million ↑ (last month: 856k)
Danzig: 1.04 million ↑
Gojira: 1.04 million ↑ (last month: 954k)
Helloween: 1.03 million
Sepultura: 1.0 million ↑
Sepultura: 999k
Airbourne: 982k ↑ (last month: 896k)
Mastodon: 969k ↑
Ratt: 961k ↑ (last month: 870k)
White Zombie: 957k ↑ (last month: 855k)
Misfits: 955k ↑
Coheed & Cambria: 951k ↑
Sevendust: 933k ↑ (last month: 822k)
Hellyeah: 839k ↑ (last month: 766k)
Architects: 787k ↑
Hammerfall: 770k ↑ (last month: 693k)
Children of Bodom: 703k ↑
Opeth: 697k ↑
Manowar: 687k ↑ (last month: 622k)
Alestorm: 684k ↑
Living Colour: 682k ↑ (last month: 615k)
Arch Enemy: 673k ↑
Poppy: 663k ↑ (last month: 545k)
Lacuna Coil: 654k ↑
Fear Factory: 615k ↑ (last month: 548k)
Testament: 610k ↑ (last month: 504k)
Suicidal Tendencies: 587k ↑ (last month: 514k)
Dokken: 581k
August Burns Red: 579k ↓ (last month: 834k)
Suicide Silence: 573k ↑ (last month: 488k)
Issues: 558k ↓
Clutch: 557k ↓
Babymetal: 540k ↓
Hatebreed: 531k ↓
Type O Negative: 528k ↑
Eluveitie: 527k ↑
Skindred: 523k ↑ (last month: 480k)
Insane Clown Posse: 516k ↓
Sonata Arctica: 513k ↓
Korpiklaani: 513k ↑
Meshuggah: 495k ↑ (last month: 440k)
Steel Panther: 491k ↓ (last month: 550k)
Epica: 490k ↑
Blind Guardian: 486k ↑
Winger: 485k
Polyphia: 473k ↑
Death: 473k ↑ (last month: 432k)
Northlane: 462k ↑ (last month: 421k)
Whitechapel: 443k ↑
Thy Art is Murder: 435k ↑
Dethklok: 433k ↑
Refused: 428k ↑
After the Burial: 425k ↑
Soulfly: 420k ↑ (last month: 362k)
Jinjer: 420k ↑
Demon Hunter: 418k ↑
Periphery: 414k ↑
DevilDriver: 407k ↑ (last month: 367k)
Attila: 403k ↑
Exodus: 384k ↑ (last month: 335k)
Turisas: 381k ↑
Cradle of Filth: 365k ↑
Avatar: 354k ↑
Chon: 352k ↑
Cannibal Corpse: 343k ↑
Soilwork: 341k ↑
Light the Torch: 333k ↑
Dimmu Borgir: 303k ↑
Kreator: 303k ↑ (last month: 272k)
Chelsea Grin: 302k ↑
Delain: 301k
Kvelertak: 301k ↑ (last month: 158k)
Corrosion of Conformity: 298k ↑ (last month: 242k)
Animals as Leaders: 295k ↑
Emmure: 278k ↑
Overkill: 275k ↑ (last month: 245k)
New Years Day: 274k ↑
The Ghost Inside: 273k ↑
Body Count: 272k
Down: 267k ↑ (last month: 235k)
Veil of Maya: 265k ↑
Born of Osiris: 260k ↑
Knocked Loose: 253k ↑
Paradise Lost: 244k
Ensiferum: 235k ↑
Mercyful Fate: 235k ↑
Devin Townsend: 230k ↑
Venom: 229k ↑
Katatonia: 227k
Devin Townsend Project: 224k ↑
Lorna Shore: 224k ↑ (last month: 163k)
Baroness: 223k ↑
King Diamond: 223k ↓ (last month: 279k)
Obituary: 221k
Dark Tranquillity: 217k ↑
Plini: 207k ↑
Between the Buried and Me: 207k ↑ (last month: 181k)
The Black Dahlia Murder: 203k ↑
Tesseract: 199k ↑
Red Fang: 198k ↓ (last month: 219k)
Code Orange: 198k ↓
Insomnium: 197k ↑
Fit For An Autopsy: 197k ↓
Myrkur: 197k ↑ (last month: 116k)
Norma Jean: 195k ↓
3Teeth: 195k ↑ (last month: 176k)
Cattle Decapitation: 193k ↓ (last month: 216k)
Sleep: 188k ↑
Death Angel: 181k ↑ (last month: 160k)
Rhapsody of Fire: 178k (last month: 162k)
The Contortionist: 174k ↑ (last month: 157k)
Mayhem: 172k ↑
The Browning: 171k ↑ (last month: 152k)
At the Gates: 164k ↑
Rings of Saturn: 158k
Rotting Christ: 158k ↑
Candlemass: 157k
Alien Weaponry: 156k ↑
The Acacia Strain: 155k ↑
Chimaira: 152k ↑ (last month: 132k)
Carnifex: 151k ↑ (last month: 134k)
Deicide: 147k ↑
Carcass: 143k ↓ (last month: 165k)
Satyricon: 140k ↑
Dying Fetus: 135k ↑
Converge: 134k ↑ (last month: 109k)
Shadows Fall: 131k ↑ (last month: 110k)
Unearth: 130k ↑ (last month: 114k)
Zeal & Ardor: 127k
Covet: 126k
Immortal: 124k ↑
Municipal Waste: 123k ↑
Entombed: 123k ↑ (last month: 106k)
High on Fire: 122k ↑ (last month: 110k)
Deafheaven: 119k ↑
Darkthrone: 115k ↑ (last month: 100k)
Celtic Frost: 113k ↑
Bloodbath: 109k ↑
Gwar: 107k ↓
Darkest Hour: 107k (last month: 91k)
Fleshgod Apocalypse: 97k ↑
Nevermore: 96k
Cult of Luna: 96k ↑
Havok: 90k ↑
Emperor: 88k ↑
Within the Ruins: 86k ↑
The Agonist: 84k ↑
Enslaved: 78k ↑
The Ocean: 78k ↑ (last month: 70k)
Ihsahn: 76k ↓ (last month: 101k)
Septicflesh: 73k ↑
Oceano: 72k
Isis: 70k ↑ (last month: 62k)
The Faceless: 69k ↑
Pelican: 69k
Oceano: 67k ↓
Rivers of Nihil: 67k ↑ (last month: 58k)
Toxic Holocaust: 66k
Myrone: 65k
Torche: 64k ↑
King’s X: 64k ↑ (last month: 38k)
Revocation: 63k ↑ (last month: 57k)
Sunn O))): 62k
Allegaeon: 61k ↑
Brutus: 61k →
Crowbar: 59k ↑ (last month: 53k)
Neurosis: 58k ↑ (last month: 51k)
Intronaut: 58k
Cynic: 58k ↑ (last mont: 38k)
Pig Destroyer: 57k ↑ (last month: 46k)
Warbringer: 56k ↑
Vein: 53k ↑ (last month: 44k)
Abbath: 52k ↑ (last month: 45k)
Gatecreeper: 50k →
Dyscarnate: 48k ↑ (last month: 40k)
Eyehategod: 43k ↑ (last month: 38k)
Mutoid Man: 43k
Yob: 40k ↑
Aborted: 39k
Author & Punisher: 37k
Moon Tooth: 36k
Cave In: 34k ↑ (last month: 30k)
Black Crown Initiate: 28k ↑
Beneath the Massacre: 24k
Inter Arma: 22k ↓
Exhumed: 20k
Triptykon: 17k ↑
Venom Prison: 15k ↓
The Red Chord: 14k
Spirit Adrift: 14k ↓
Primitive Man: 13k ↑
By contrast, here are the numbers some modern pop and hip hop artists are sporting:
Ed Sheeran: 62.37 million ↓
Billie Eilish: 56.19 million ↑
Drake: 51.68 million ↑ (last month: 45.40 million)
Maroon 5: 50.55 million ↓
The Weeknd: 47.99 million ↑
Eminem: 46.43 million ↑ (last month: 32.07 million)
Taylor Swift: 36.74 million ↓ (last month: 41.41 million)
Kanye West: 31.51 million ↓
Beyonce: 29.12 million
Katy Perry: 29.08 million ↓ (last month: 33.96 million)
Lizzo: 23.30 million
Wiz Khalifa: 21.76 million ↑
Kelly Clarkson: 12.14 million ↓ (last month: 27.08 million)
Dr. Dre: 10.31 million ↑
Carrie Underwood: 5.35 million ↓
Nipsey Hussle: 4.56 million ↑
