Adult Pop Airplay
The Adult Pop Airplay chart is published weekly by Billboard magazine and ranks "the most popular adult top 40 as based on radio airplay detections measured by Nielsen Broadcast Data Systems."
It is a format in which the genre is geared more towards an adult audience who are not into hard rock, hip hop, or soft adult contemporary fare. The main genres within this format are a mix of soft and energetic adult contemporary music alongside adult alternative rock and adult-oriented pop music. It is not to be confused with the Adult Contemporary chart which contains more ballad-driven songs played on the radio. The current number-one song on the chart is "Golden" by Huntr/x.
History
The chart was first published in the March 16, 1996, issue of Billboard; however, historically, the chart's introduction was in October 1995, when it began as a test chart.The Adult Top 40 chart was formed following a split of the "Hot Adult Contemporary" chart due to the growing emergence of Adult Top 40 radio stations in the 1990s. These stations played a wider variety of artists and saw a faster turnover of songs compared to traditional adult contemporary radio. Songs by modern rock, dance, and R&B artists were mixed in with acts more closely associated with adult contemporary. According to Billboard, splitting the chart "better reflect the music being played on adult contemporary and adult/top 40 stations."
The first number-one song on the Adult Top 40, from the test chart of October 7, 1995, was "Kiss from a Rose" by Seal. The first number-one song on the Adult Top 40, from the published chart of March 16, 1996, was "One Sweet Day" by Mariah Carey and Boyz II Men.
Chart criteria
There are 40 positions on this chart. Songs are ranked based on its total number of spins per week. This is calculated by electronically monitoring Adult Top 40 radio stations across the U.S. 24 hours a day, seven days a week by Nielsen Broadcast Data Systems.Songs receiving the greatest growth receive a "bullet", although there are tracks that also get bullets if the loss in detections doesn't exceed the percentage of downtime from a monitored station. "Airpower" awards are issued to songs that appear on the top 20 of both the airplay and audience chart for the first time, while the "greatest gainer" award is given to song with the largest increase in detections. A song with six or more spins in its first week is awarded an "airplay add". If two songs are tied in spins in the same week, the one with the biggest increase that week ranks higher.
Recurrent rules
All-time achievements
In 2016, for the 20th anniversary of the chart, Billboard compiled a ranking of the 50 best-performing songs and artists on the chart over the 20 years. "Smooth" by Santana featuring Rob Thomas was ranked as the #1 song, while Maroon 5 was ranked as the #1 artist. Listed below are the top 10 songs and the top 10 artists.Top 10 Greatest of All Time Adult Pop Songs (1996–2016)
Source:Top 10 Greatest of All Time Adult Pop Songs Artists (1996–2016)
Source:Song records
Most weeks at number one
| Number of weeks | Artist | Song | Year | Source |
| 30 | Alex Warren | "Ordinary" | 2025–26 | |
| 25 | Santana featuring Rob Thomas | "Smooth" | 1999-2000 | |
| 23 | The Calling | "Wherever You Will Go" | 2001-02 | |
| 23 | Taylor Swift | "Cruel Summer" | 2023-24 | |
| 20 | The Weeknd | "Blinding Lights" | 2020 | |
| 18 | Matchbox Twenty | "Unwell" | 2003 | |
| 18 | Nickelback | "Photograph" | 2005-06 | |
| 17 | Goo Goo Dolls | "Iris" | 1998 | |
| 17 | Miley Cyrus | "Flowers" | 2023 | |
| 16 | Avril Lavigne | "Complicated" | 2002 | |
| 15 | No Doubt | "Don't Speak" | 1996-97 | |
| 15 | The Fray | "How to Save a Life" | 2006-07 | |
| 15 | Panic! at the Disco | "High Hopes" | 2018-19 |
Most weeks on the chart
| Number of weeks | Artist | Song | Year | Source |
| 75 | Train | "Drops of Jupiter " | 2001-02 | |
| 73 | Lifehouse | "Hanging by a Moment" | 2001-02 | |
| 72 | Santana featuring Rob Thomas | "Smooth" | 1999-2000 | |
| 71 | The Calling | "Wherever You Will Go" | 2001-03 | |
| 69 | Sister Hazel | "All for You" | 1997-98 | |
| 65 | Goo Goo Dolls | "Slide" | 1998-1999 | |
| 65 | The Weeknd | "Blinding Lights" | 2020-21 | |
| 63 | Vertical Horizon | "Everything You Want" | 1999-2001 | |
| 62 | Edwin McCain | "I'll Be" | 1998-99 | |
| 61 | Duncan Sheik | "Barely Breathing" | 1996-97 |
Highest debut
| Debut Position | Artist | Song | Debut Date | Source |
| No. 8 | Taylor Swift | "The Fate of Ophelia" | October 18, 2025 | |
| No. 9 | Taylor Swift | "Shake It Off" | September 6, 2014 | |
| No. 9 | Taylor Swift featuring Post Malone | "Fortnight" | May 4, 2024 | |
| No. 12 | Ed Sheeran | "Eyes Closed" | April 8, 2023 | |
| No. 12 | NSYNC | "Better Place" | October 14, 2023 | |
| No. 13 | Alanis Morissette | "Thank U" | October 10, 1998 | |
| No. 13 | Ed Sheeran | "Afterglow" | January 2, 2021 | |
| No. 14 | Taylor Swift featuring Brendon Urie | "Me!" | May 4, 2019 | |
| No. 14 | Adele | "Easy on Me" | October 23, 2021 | |
| No. 14 | Miley Cyrus | "Flowers" | January 28, 2023 | |
| No. 14 | Ed Sheeran | "Azizam" | April 19, 2025 | |
| No. 16 | Eric Clapton | "Change the World" | June 22, 1996 | |
| No. 16 | Maroon 5 | "Maps" | July 5, 2014 | |
| No. 16 | Taylor Swift | "Look What You Made Me Do" | September 9, 2017 | |
| No. 16 | Pink | "Never Gonna Not Dance Again" | November 19, 2022 |
Artist records
Most number-one songs
| Number of singles | Artist | Source |
| 15 | Maroon 5 | |
| 14 | Taylor Swift | |
| 10 | Pink | |
| 8 | Katy Perry | |
| 8 | Ed Sheeran | |
| 6 | Adele | |
| 6 | Shawn Mendes | |
| 5 | Nickelback | |
| 5 | Justin Bieber |
Most cumulative weeks at number one
Most top-ten songs
| Number of singles | Artist | Source |
| 33 | Taylor Swift | |
| 28 | Maroon 5 | |
| 20 | Pink | |
| 17 | Kelly Clarkson | |
| 17 | Ed Sheeran | |
| 16 | Katy Perry | |
| 14 | Goo Goo Dolls | |
| 14 | Train | |
| 14 | Justin Bieber | |
| 14 | Bruno Mars |
Most chart entries
| Number of entries | Artist | Source |
| 54 | Taylor Swift | |
| 34 | Pink | |
| 33 | Maroon 5 | |
| 32 | Ariana Grande | |
| 30 | Kelly Clarkson | |
| 29 | Katy Perry | |
| 28 | Rihanna | |
| 28 | Train | |
| 28 | Justin Bieber | |
| 27 | Ed Sheeran | |
| 26 | Coldplay |
Longest break between number ones
Additional achievements
- Shawn Mendes is the first artist to have four songs hit number one on the chart before age 20.