Top 20 catchiest songs of all time
If you had to listen to 1,000 hit songs from the past 70 years, which one would you recognize quickest? That’s what researchers at the Museum of Science and Industry (MOSI) set out to answer. They did so through a year-long study where they asked people to play Hooked on Music, an online game where people are timed to see how quickly they recognize a song.
12,000 people later the results are in. Click the Next button to run through the list of the top 20 catchiest songs of all time, along with the average time it took the participants to recognize the song.
20. Candle in the Wind – Elton John
Average time to recognize song:
3.04 seconds
19. Rivers of Babylon – Boney M
Average time to recognize song:
3.03 seconds
18. Devil in Disguise – Elvis Presley
Average time to recognize song:
3.01 seconds
Get unlimited streaming of this song free with Amazon Prime
17. …Baby One More Time – Britney Spears
Average time to recognize song:
2.99 seconds
Get unlimited streaming of this song free with Amazon Prime
16. Karma Chameleon – Culture Club
Average time to recognize song:
2.99 seconds
15. Billie Jean – Michael Jackson
Average time to recognize song:
2.97 seconds
14. You Ain’t Seen Nothin’ Yet – Bachman-Turner Overdrive
Average time to recognize song:
2.94 seconds
13. It’s Now Or Never – Elvis Presley
Average time to recognize song:
2.91 seconds
Get unlimited streaming of this song free with Amazon Prime
12. MMMbop – Hanson
Average time to recognize song:
2.89 seconds
11. Poker Face – Lady Gaga
Average time to recognize song:
2.88 seconds
10. I Don’t Want to Miss a Thing – Aerosmith
Average time to recognize song:
2.84 seconds
Get unlimited streaming of this song free with Amazon Prime
9. Don’t You Want Me – The Human League
Average time to recognize song:
2.83 seconds
8. I Will Always Love You – Whitney Houston
Average time to recognize song:
2.83 seconds
Get unlimited streaming of this song free with Amazon Prime
7. Beat It – Michael Jackson
Average time to recognize song:
2.80 seconds
6. Pretty Woman – Roy Orbison
Average time to recognize song:
2.73 seconds
Get unlimited streaming of this song free with Amazon Prime
5. SOS – ABBA
Average time to recognize song:
2.73 seconds
4. Just Dance – Lady Gaga
Average time to recognize song:
2.66 seconds
3. Eye of the Tiger – Survivor
Average time to recognize song:
2.62 seconds
Get unlimited streaming of this song free with Amazon Prime
2. Mambo No. 5 (A Little Bit Of…) – Lou Bega
Average time to recognize song:
2.48 seconds
Get unlimited streaming of this song free with Amazon Prime
1. Wannabe – Spice Girls
Average time to recognize song:
2.29 seconds
