20. Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers


Tom Petty sadly passed away 02/10/2017.
Here's Free Fallin' on his last ever performance at the Hollywood Bowl in Los Angeles <3

20. Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers
American – Rock – active 1970-2017

$65 mil
700k people attended
46 shows in 38 cities

19. Ariana Grande
American – Pop – active since 2008

gross $66 mil
880k people attended
77 shows in 69 cities

19. Ariana Grande


Ariana Grande's Dangerous Woman tour got attacked in Manchester by terrorists.
23 of Ariana Grande's fans lost their lives, and other 500 were injured.
After the trauma, Grande decided not to bow to fear and returned to Manchester
to hold a charity concert for the victims and their families and then resumed her tour.
  • 18. Red Hot Chili Peppers

    American – Rock – active since 1983

    gross $73 mil
    880k people attended
    67 shows in 58 cities

  • 17. Tim McGraw & Faith Hill

    Collaboration: Country – American – active since ~1990

    gross $79 mil
    930k people attended
    79 shows in 70 cities

  • 16. The Weeknd

    Canadian – R&B – active since 2010

    gross $80 mil
    990k people attended
    76 shows in 70 cities

  • 15. Billy Joel

    American – Rock – active since 1965

    gross $82 mil
    715k people attended
    76 shows in 70 cities

    ranked 11th in 2014, 8th in 2015 (grossing $2.3 mil per show)
    & 9th in 2016.

  • 14. Lady Gaga

    American – Pop – active since 2001

    gross $86 mil
    740k people attended
    41 shows in 35 cities

    ranked 9th in 2014

  • 13. Roger Waters

    English – Rock – active since 1964

    gross $92 mil
    750k people went
    63 shows in 46 cities

  • 12. Justin Bieber

    Canadian – Pop – active since 2007

    gross $94 mil
    +1 million people attended
    29 shows in 26 cities

    ranked 5th in 2016

  • 11. Celine Dion

    Canadian – Pop – active since 1980

    gross $101 mil
    680k people attended
    90 shows in 29 cities

    ranked 17th in 2016

  • 9. The Rolling Stones

    English – Rock – active since 1962

    gross $120 mil
    750k people attended
    14 shows in 12 cities

    ranked 3rd in 2014, 4th in 2015 & 8th in 2016
    What's interesting about the Rolling Stones is that they never play more than 20 shows in a year. High ticket price in giant venues lands them in the top 10 every year which you can read more about here – grossing almost $10 mil per performance (highest of all).

  • 8. Ed Sheeran

    English – Pop – active since 2004

    gross $124 mil
    1.5 million people attended
    111 shows in 86 cities

    ranked 15th in 2015

  • 7. Paul McCartney

    English – Rock – 1957
    longest career, total of 60 years!

    gross $132 mil
    900k people attended
    36 shows in 27 cities

    grossed 6th in 2014 & 13th in 2016

  • 6. Depeche Mode

    English – Pop – active since 1980

    gross $141 mil
    1.8 million people attended
    73 shows in 66 cities

    ranked 21st in 2014

  • 5. Metallica

    American – Metal – active since 1981

    gross $153 mil
    1.6 million people attended
    45 shows in 39 cities

  • 4. Bruno Mars

    American – R&B – active since 2004

    gross $200 mil
    2 million people attended
    121 shows in 92 cities

    ranked 7th in 2014 (gross $97 mil, so he's doubled in revenue since then)

  • 3. Coldplay

    English – Rock – active since 1996

    gross $237 mil
    2.5 million people attended
    54 shows in 40 cities

    ranked 3rd in 2016

  • 2. Guns N'Roses

    American – Rock – active since 1985

    gross $293 mil
    2.7 million people attended
    81 shows in 74 cities

    ranked 6th in 2016
    the tour seems pretty unaffected by change in band members

  • 1. U2

    Irish – Rock – active since 1976

    gross $315 mil
    2.7 million people attended
    50 shows in 38 cities

    ranked 3rd in 2015
    U2 also holds the record of the highest grossing tour of all time for their 360° tour (2009-2011)

Well done U2

U2 is the highest grossing band of the year – with 2.7 million tickets sold in 2017