Halloween was barely over before Spotify listeners began switching to Christmas music. On November 1, holiday streams jumped sharply across the platform, with Mariah Carey’s “All I Want for Christmas Is You” leading the global and U.S. holiday rankings as seasonal listening returned in full force.
Spotify reported that holiday music streams rose 235% in the United States, 250% in the United Kingdom and 135% worldwide on November 1, compared with the average daily streams in October. The change was also reflected in search activity: queries for terms including “holiday,” “Christmas” and “xmas” climbed 560% in the U.S., 455% in the U.K. and 345% globally.
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Mariah Carey’s perennial hit was the most-streamed holiday song worldwide and in the U.S. on November 1. It also made an immediate impact on Spotify’s daily song rankings, re-entering the Daily Global chart at No. 32 with 1.879 million streams. In the United States, “All I Want for Christmas Is You” returned to the Top Songs USA chart at No. 9, placing it among the platform’s most-listened-to tracks just as November began.
Wham!’s “Last Christmas” was the leading holiday song in the U.K., where it re-entered the Top Songs UK chart at No. 8. The George Michael and Andrew Ridgeley classic also returned to the Daily Global chart at No. 40, earning 1.754 million streams. It ranked No. 12 on the U.S. daily chart, while Carey’s track entered the U.K. ranking at No. 10.
The early-season rush extended to curated listening, too. Streams of holiday playlists increased 350% in the U.S., 240% in the U.K. and 220% globally on November 1, compared with October’s daily average.
The timing made for a sharp seasonal handoff. Just one day earlier, on October 31, Michael Jackson’s “Thriller” led Spotify’s Global chart for the first time in its nearly 44-year history, collecting 6.606 million streams as Halloween favorites filled the ranking. Ray Parker Jr.’s “Ghostbusters” and Bobby “Boris” Pickett and the Crypt-Kickers’ “Monster Mash” followed at Nos. 2 and 3. By November 1, the platform’s biggest seasonal story had shifted from spooky classics to Christmas standards.
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