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List of best-selling Latin singles

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Luis Fonsi and Daddy Yankee have the best-selling Latin single of all-time with "Despacito".

Latin music has an ambiguous meaning in the music industry due to differing definitions of the term "Latin".[1][2] For example, the Latin music market in the United States defines Latin music as any release that is mostly sung in Spanish, regardless of genre or artist nationality, by industry organizations including the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) and Billboard.[3][4] International organizations and trade groups such as the Latin Recording Academy include Portuguese-language music in the Latin category.[5][6][7]

Music journalists and musicologists define Latin music as musical styles from Spanish-speaking areas of Latin America and from Spain.[8][9] Music from Brazil is usually included in the genre and music from Portugal is occasionally included.[7][10]

As a result of the conflicting views of defining Latin music, the list includes Latin singles defined either by language for vocal songs or genre for instrumental recordings. Therefore, for a single to appear on the list, the figure must have been published by a reliable source, the single must have sold at least 1.5 million copies and must either a) have at least 51% of its content in Spanish or Portuguese[a], b) is a Latin instrumental single (or any of its subgenres) or c) ranked on Billboard's Latin Digital Sales Songs or Latin Streaming Songs chart or receive a RIAA Latin certification..

Sales for Latin singles prior to the digital era are often difficult to verify due to most Latin singles having been only released as promotional singles for radio stations. For example, Billboard did not track sales of Latin digital songs until it was introduced in the issue dated January 23, 2010 and merges all versions of a song sold from digital music distributors.[13]

Two best-selling singles lists are displayed here relating first to physical singles (mainly CD and vinyl singles) and second to digital singles (digitally downloaded tracks which first became available to purchase in the early 2000s).

Best-selling physical Latin singles

[edit]

5 million copies or more

[edit]
Artist Single Released Language(s) Sales
(in millions)		 Source
Los del Río "Macarena" 1993 Spanish 11 [14]
Mocedades "Eres Tú" 1973 Spanish 8 [15]
Ricky Martin "Livin' la Vida Loca"[a] 1999 English  • Spanish 8 [16]
Las Ketchup "The Ketchup Song (Aserejé)"[a] 2002 Spanish  • English 7 [17]
Manolo Escobar "Y Viva España" 1973 Spanish 6 [18]
Jeanette "Porque Te Vas" 1974 Spanish 6 [19]
Kaoma "Lambada" 1989 Portuguese 6 [20]
Mario Millán Medina [es] "El rancho'e la Cambicha [es]" 1950 Spanish 5 [21]
Ricky Martin "María" 1995 Spanish 5 [22]
Enrique Iglesias "Bailamos" 1999 Spanglish 5 [23][24]
Stan Getz and João Gilberto featuring Antônio Carlos Jobim and Astrud Gilberto "Garota de Ipanema (The Girl from Ipanema)" 1964 Portuguese  • English 5 [25]

1.5–4.99 million copies

[edit]
Artist Single Released Language(s) Sales
(in millions)		 Source
Miguel Ríos "Himno a la Alegría (A Song of Joy)" 1969 Spanish  • English 4 [26]
ABBA "Chiquitita" (Spanish version) 1979 Spanish 2.2[b] [27]
Lucho Gatica "La novia" 1961 Spanish 2 [28]
Los Ramblers [es] "El Rock del Mundial" 1961 Spanish 2 [29]
Juan Gabriel "Querida" 1984 Spanish 2[c] [30]
Luis Miguel "Sol, Arena y Mar" 1999 Spanish 2 [31]
Miami Sound Machine "Conga" 1985 English 2 [32]
Los Lobos "La Bamba" 1987 Spanish 2[d] [33]
Azúcar Moreno "Ven, Devórame Otra Vez" 1990 Spanish 2 [34]
Aventura "Obsesión" 2002 Spanish 2[e] [35][36]
José José "Si Me Dejas Ahora" 1979 Spanish 1.5 [37]
Ángela Carrasco "Quererte a ti" 1979 Spanish 1.5 [37]
Los Bukis "Tu Cárcel" 1987 Spanish 1.5 [38]
Banda Blanca "Sopa de Caracol" 1991 Spanish  • Garifuna 1.5[f] [39]

Best-selling Latin digital singles

[edit]
Artist Single Released Language(s) Sales
(in millions)		 Source
Luis Fonsi and Daddy Yankee "Despacito" 2017 Spanish  • English 36.1[b] [40][41]
Shakira featuring Wyclef Jean "Hips Don't Lie"[a] 2006 English  • Spanish 10 [42]
Shakira featuring Freshlyground "Waka Waka (This Time for Africa) / Waka Waka (Esto es Africa)" 2010 English  • Spanish 10 [43]
Enrique Iglesias featuring Sean Paul, Descemer Bueno and Gente de Zona "Bailando" 2014 Spanish 8 [44]
Michel Teló "Ai Se Eu Te Pego" 2011 Portuguese 7.2 [45]
Don Omar and Lucenzo "Danza Kuduro" 2010 Spanish  • Portuguese 5 [46]
Shakira "La Tortura" 2005 Spanish 5 [47]
Shakira "Loca" 2010 Spanish • English 5 [48]
Pitbull "I Know You Want Me (Calle Ocho)" 2009 Spanglish 2.6[g] [49]

By stream equivalent units

[edit]

Beginning in 2020, the International Federation of the Phonographic Industry began reporting the best-selling singles of each year in terms of subscription streams equivalent units. The methodology used converts all digital formats, including digital download sales, paid subscription streaming, and free ad-supported streaming, into a single figure.[50]

Artist Single Released Language Units
(in billions)		 Source
Yng Lvcas and Peso Pluma "La Bebé" 2021 Spanish 1.45 [51]
Bad Bunny and Chencho Corleone "Me Porto Bonito" 2022 Spanish 1.21 [52]
Karol G and Shakira "TQG" 2023 Spanish 1.18 [51]
Bad Bunny "Tití Me Preguntó" 2022 Spanish 1.14 [52]
FloyyMenor and Cris MJ "Gata Only" 2023 Spanish 0.98 [53]
Farruko "Pepas" 2024 Spanish 0.94 [52]
Karol G "Provenza" 2022 Spanish 0.92 [52]

Multiple versions

[edit]
Artist Single Released Language(s) Sales
(in millions)		 Source
Various artists[h] "Oye Cómo Va" 1962 Spanish 5 [54]

See also

[edit]

Notes

[edit]
  1. ^ This is the same metric Billboard, the RIAA, and the Latin Recording Academy uses to categorize a recording as "Latin".[3][11][12]
  2. ^ Attributed to Latin American sales alone
  3. ^ Mexican sales alone
  4. ^ Attributed to American sales alone
  5. ^ Attributed to European sales alone
  6. ^ Attributed to American sales alone
  7. ^ American sales alone
  8. ^ Cover versions of the songs
  • a.^ For both the English and Spanish versions.
  • b.^ Sales figure includes 'equivalent track streams'.

References

[edit]
  1. ^ Edwards, Bob (13 September 2000). "Profile: Latin Grammys at the Staples Center in Los Angeles". NPR. Archived from the original on 24 September 2015. Retrieved 7 August 2015. Defining exactly what Latin music is a slippery business. The US record industry trade group says it's any release with lyrics that are mostly in Spanish and that it's more popular than ever, comprising more than 5 percent of US record sales.
  2. ^ Valdes-Rodriguez, Alisa (12 September 2000). "One Little Word, Yet It Means So Much". Los Angeles Times. Archived from the original on 29 December 2013. Retrieved 25 December 2013.
  3. ^ a b Cobo, Leila (6 January 2011). "2010's Latin Music Sales Down 26.8%, Digital Up 28%, Enrique Igelsias Is Top-Selling Artist". Billboard. Archived from the original on 18 November 2019. Retrieved 18 November 2019.
  4. ^ Valdes-Rodriguez, Alisa (26 December 1999). "The Loud and Quiet Explosions". Los Angeles Times. Archived from the original on 23 November 2015. Retrieved 28 October 2015.
  5. ^ Cobo, Leila (4 September 2004). "'The Academy's Big Responsibility Is The Diffusion Of Latin Music'". Billboard. Vol. 116, no. 36. p. 62. Retrieved 30 September 2019. Q: What is LARAS's definition of Latin music? A: Music in Spanish or Portuguese.
  6. ^ Llewellyn, Howell (25 November 1995). "ShowMarket To Focus On Development of Latin Music". Billboard. Vol. 107, no. 47. p. 72. Retrieved 30 July 2015.
  7. ^ a b Flores, Juan; Rosaldo, Renato (2007). A Companion to Latina/o Studies. Oxford: Blackwell Pub. p. 50. ISBN 978-0-470-65826-0. Retrieved 10 September 2015. ...but the term "Latin music" continues to be used - by the music industry as well as in common parlance - as a catch-all phrase to describe all Spanish and Portuguese-language popular music...
  8. ^ Lawrence, Larry; Wright, Tom (26 January 1985). "¡Viva Latino!". Billboard. Vol. 97, no. 4. pp. 53, 62. ISSN 0006-2510. Retrieved 9 April 2015.
  9. ^ Morales, Ed (2003). The Latin Beat: The Rhythms and Roots of Latin music From Bossa Nova to Salsa and Beyond (1. Da Capo Press ed.). Cambridge, MA: Da Capo Press. p. xiii. ISBN 978-0-306-81018-3. Retrieved 10 September 2015. Including Spain, there are twenty-two predominately Spanish-speaking countries, and there are many more styles of Latin music.
  10. ^ Arenas, Fernando (2011). Lusophone Africa: Beyond Independence. Minneapolis: University of Minnesota Press. p. 220. ISBN 978-0-8166-6983-7. Retrieved 10 September 2015.
  11. ^ "RIAA 2015 Year-End LATIN Sales & Shipments Data Report | RIAA". RIAA. 2015. Archived from the original on 8 March 2021. Retrieved 23 July 2022.
  12. ^ "Membership Application" (PDF). Latin Recording Academy. Archived (PDF) from the original on 10 September 2014. Retrieved 24 June 2015.
  13. ^ "Latin Digital Song Sales: Top Spanish Songs – The Week of January 23, 2010". Billboard. Retrieved 25 March 2017.
  14. ^ Hlavaty, Craig (1 August 2016). "20 years ago the world couldn't stop doing the 'Macarena'". The Houston Chronicle. Retrieved 13 January 2023.
  15. ^ Salcedo, Rosa María (3 January 2023). "'Eres tú', de Mocedades, celebra su 50º aniversario con una versión renovada que conserva la misma esencia". Antena 3 (in Spanish). Retrieved 19 March 2025.
  16. ^ Trujillo, Jovita (14 April 2022). "Livin' La Vida Loca is added to the National Recording Registry of the Library of Congress". ¡Hola!. Retrieved 18 March 2025.
  17. ^ "Las Ketchup baten el récord con «Aserejé»: siete millones de discos". Diario de León (in Spanish). 30 January 2003. Retrieved 18 March 2025.
  18. ^ "El parecido del 'Y viva España' de Manolo Escobar con un himno italiano de nuestra Guerra Civil". Libertad Digital (in Spanish). 28 May 2023. Retrieved 18 March 2025.
  19. ^ "Perales levanta al público de Marbella con sus éxitos de siempre". ELMUNDO (in Spanish). 6 August 2016. Retrieved 18 March 2025.
  20. ^ "El Escandalo". La Otra (in Spanish). 1989. p. 60. Retrieved 18 March 2025. Pero no todo se ha presentado " color de rosas " para el grupo Kaoma , que , con la versión brasileña de esta canción , vendió seis millones de copias
  21. ^ Vitale, Cristian (16 September 2002). "Fui vocero de los cabecitas". Página 12 (in Spanish). Retrieved 5 April 2025.
  22. ^ "50 Greatest Latin Pop Songs". Rolling Stone. 9 July 2018. Archived from the original on 24 August 2021. Retrieved 21 March 2025.
  23. ^ "Enrique Iglesias | Artist". The Recording Academy. Retrieved 18 March 2025.
  24. ^ Utset, Joaquim (18 September 2024). "The Biggest Moments in Latin Music from Gloria Estefan to Bad Bunny". People en Español. Retrieved 18 March 2025.
  25. ^ Savage, Mark (6 June 2023). "Astrud Gilberto: The Girl from Ipanema singer dies at 83". BBC. Retrieved 23 March 2025.
  26. ^ Hyatt, Wesley (1999). The Billboard Book of #1 Adult Contemporary Hits (Billboard Publications)
  27. ^ Murrells, Joseph (1985). Million selling records from the 1900s to the 1980s : an illustrated directory. Arco Pub. p. 469. ISBN 0668064595. Biggest sales for this disc were the Spanish version for the Latin market — 2,250,000 copies.
  28. ^ Márquez, Pablo (2013). El Rey Lucho cantaba boleros (in Spanish). Penguin Random House Grupo Editorial. ISBN 978-956-347-671-2. Retrieved 31 March 2025. La Novia se convirtió en su caballo de batalla. Llegó al número uno en España y estuvo en lo alto por más de un año, y hasta se filmó una película inspirada en la canción [...] entre 1960 y 1964, el disco de La Novia superó las dos millones de copias vendidas
  29. ^ "World Cup party music". Fédération Internationale de Football Association (FIFA). 19 April 2014. p. 19. Archived from the original on 6 December 2022. Retrieved 8 May 2025 – via issuu.
  30. ^ "Juan Gabriel: 'Querida', una historia de ESTRELLATO y ROMANCE; ¿se la compuso a su manager?". El Heraldo de Mexico (in Spanish). 31 March 2021. Retrieved 21 March 2025.
  31. ^ Navarro, Juan Manuel (12 September 1999). "El Sol brilla de nuevo". Reforma (in Spanish). p. 32. Retrieved 18 March 2025.
  32. ^ Harrington, Richard (17 July 1988). "Miami Voice: How Shy, Cuban-Born Gloria Estefan Came to Power the Sound Machine". The Washington Post. Retrieved 18 March 2025.
  33. ^ "On Kiko, Los Lobos plays stark, mostly blues-tinged rock 'n' roll with occasional ethnic overtones". Orange Coast. August 1992. p. 103. Retrieved 24 March 2025.
  34. ^ "El sabor iberoamericano". 15 días (in Spanish). No. 131–142. 1995. p. 43. Retrieved 22 March 2025. Con el tema " Devórame otra vez " conquistaron el mercado internacional y vendieron dos millones de copias
  35. ^ "Aventura saca nuevo álbum al mercado". Diario Libre (in Spanish). 30 April 2005. Retrieved 24 March 2025.
  36. ^ "Grupo Aventura con vídeo, disco y proyectos". Hoy Digital (in Spanish). 19 April 2005. Retrieved 24 March 2025.
  37. ^ a b "Camilo mejor que nunca". Pueblo (in Spanish). 27 July 1980. p. 1. Retrieved 24 March 2025.
  38. ^ "Marco Antonio Solís sigue agregando funciones y ya va por la tercera: ¿cuándo canta y dónde comprar las entradas?". Clarín (in Spanish). 15 May 2023. Retrieved 21 March 2025.
  39. ^ Martínez, Belkis (28 May 2021). ""Sopa de caracol": por qué la famosa canción causó una pelea que abarca tres países". La Nación (in Spanish). Retrieved 7 May 2025.
  40. ^ "Global Top 10 Digital Singles of 2017", IFPI Global Music Report 2018 (PDF), International Federation of the Phonographic Industry, p. 9, archived from the original (PDF) on 24 April 2018, retrieved 24 April 2018
  41. ^ "Havana by Camila Cabello (featuring Young Thug) named best-selling single of 2018". International Federation of the Phonographic Industry. 6 March 2019. Archived from the original on 30 March 2019. Retrieved 23 March 2019.
  42. ^ "Shakira to Release Special U.S. Edition of Her Hit Album She Wolf" (Press release). PR Newswire. 18 November 2009. Archived from the original on 6 October 2012. Retrieved 19 July 2015.
  43. ^ Cantor-Navas, Judy (1 October 2012). "Pitbull Vs. Shakira: Whose World Cup Song Is Better? (Poll)". Billboard. Archived from the original on 14 July 2014. Retrieved 25 July 2014.
  44. ^ "IFPI publishes Digital Music Report 2015". IFPI. 14 April 2015. Archived from the original on 14 April 2015. Retrieved 21 March 2025.
  45. ^ NEGÓCIOS, Época (21 August 2022). "Michel Teló ganha prêmio da Billboard" (in Brazilian Portuguese). Grupo Globo. Retrieved 21 March 2025.
  46. ^ Mendoza, Alejandro (1 September 2017). "Don Omar se retira". El País (in Spanish). Retrieved 23 March 2025.
  47. ^ "Alejandro Sanz, un músico de alto vuelo que llega a Bogotá" (in Spanish). Terra. Archived from the original on 11 September 2016. Retrieved 21 March 2025.
  48. ^ Chung, Andrew (20 August 2014). ""Loca", de Shakira, es una copia de un tema de un artista dominicano: juez" (in Spanish). Reuters. Retrieved 21 March 2025.
  49. ^ "The Billboard Cover Story: Pitbull". Telemundo. 21 June 2011. Retrieved 18 March 2025.
  50. ^ "The Weeknd wins 2020's IFPI Global Digital Single Award for Blinding Lights". IFPI. 9 March 2021. Retrieved 9 March 2021.
  51. ^ a b "Miley Cyrus' Flowers Confirmed by IFPI as Biggest-Selling Global Single of the Year". IFPI. 26 February 2024. Retrieved 26 February 2023.
  52. ^ a b c d "Harry Styles wins IFPI Global Single Award for As It Was". IFPI. 23 February 2023. Retrieved 24 February 2023.
  53. ^ "Benson Boone's Beautiful Things Confirmed by IFPI as Biggest-Selling Global Single of the Year". IFPI. 20 February 2025. Retrieved 20 February 2025.
  54. ^ "Puente Still a Draw: A Maestro 25 Years". Billboard. Vol. 86, no. 37. 14 September 1974. p. 23. ISSN 0006-2510. Retrieved 24 March 2025.
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