Coldplay, U2 & Ed Sheeran Rule the Millennium… According to Ticket Sales 🎟️🤯

Turns out, the kings of touring aren’t who you might expect in the year of our lord 2025. Sure, billion-dollar tours are suddenly a thing — thanks to Taylor Swift and now The Weeknd — but when you look at actual tickets sold since 2001?

The charts tell a different story…

🎟️ The Top Touring Artists of the Millennium

(aka: Who convinced the most people to leave their house)

1️⃣ Coldplay — 24.8 million tickets
(Chris Martin has evangelized more glow sticks than anyone alive)

2️⃣ U2 — 20.2 million
(Bono stays winning)

3️⃣ Ed Sheeran — 19.6 million
(Just a guitar, some looping pedals, and 20 million best friends)

Rounding out the Top 5:

4️⃣ Dave Matthews Band — just under 19.6 million
(Jam band fans really roll deep)

5️⃣ Taylor Swift — 18.9 million
(Considering she only started in 2006? Insane.)

Pollstar tallied all shows — reported and estimated — from 2001 to the end of 2025.
Which means this list is a marathon, not a sprint.

Where Are the Women? 😑

In the Top 10, Swift is the only woman.
The rest are dudes like:

🧾 Bruce Springsteen
🧢 Kenny Chesney
🎸 Metallica
🎤 Bon Jovi
🕶 Elton John

Women finally show up again here:

• Pink — #11 (13M tickets)
• Beyoncé — #13 (11.8M, bow down)
• Madonna — #15 (nearly 11M, queen behaviour)

Only four women in the entire Top 25. Shocking no one… yet still annoying.

RELATED: Madonna Celebrates 20 Years of Confessions on a Dance Floor — And Announces a 2026 Sequel 🪩💗

And Before You Swifties Riot…

This is ticket count, NOT money earned.
On the cash side? Taylor AND Beyoncé are running the entire economy. 💅✨

In Summary

🥇 Coldplay: kings of wholesome stadium sob-singing
🥈 U2: sunglasses at night remain undefeated
🥉 Ed Sheeran: cardigan-energy supremacy
🌎 Taylor Swift: printing money like the Bank of Canada

So yes — millennials may be broke… But at least we spent our money screaming lyrics loudly with strangers. 🎶🍻

Photos from AP...