Even though Disney has vastly expanded its cinematic repertoire over the last two decades, the company is still closely associated with creating animated musical movies aimed at children (though they also often gain a substantial adult audience). A big part of what makes these films memorable are their original songs – many of which achieve peak positions on the Billboard Hot 100 chart. (These are the most dominant reigns in Billboard history.)
To determine the top-charting songs from animated Disney movies, 24/7 Tempo reviewed data on the performance on the Billboard Hot 100 chart, including each song’s date of entry into the Hot 100, total time on the chart, and peak position (and its duration). Songs were ranked based on an inverse performance score wherein a week at No. 1 on the Hot 100 is worth 100 points, a week at No. 2 worth 99 points, and so on, up to a week at No. 100 being worth one point. Chart data is current through July 16, 2022.
As the Billboard Hot 100 didn’t debut until 1958, earlier hit Disney songs which might have charted – like the Oscar-winning “When You Wish Upon a Star” from 1940’s “Pinocchio” and “Zip-a-Dee-Doo-Dah” from 1947’s “Song of the South” – are not included. (These are the best animated Disney movies of all time.)
The film yielding the most hits on the Hot 100 was “Encanto,” placing six songs on this list. One of them, “We Don’t Talk About Bruno,” was all the rage when it first came out in November 2021. The catchy song was so popular that it was played more times than Happy Birthday on YouTube – and the “Encanto” soundtrack as a whole was the first movie soundtrack to reach No. 1 on the Billboard charts in two years.
Historically, however, several other songs have performed better than “Bruno.” After all, Disney has been making movies – and songs for those movies – for about a century. (These are the best Disney movies of all time.)
25. “You’re Welcome” by Dwayne Johnson (from “Moana”)
> Entered Billboard Hot 100: December 17, 2016
> Peak position: No. 65 (for 1 week)
> Total time on chart: 13 weeks
24. “Nobody Like U” by 4TOWN (from “Turning Red”)
> Entered Billboard Hot 100: April 2, 2022
> Peak position: No. 49 (for 1 week)
> Total time on chart: 5 weeks
23. “Try Everything” by Shakira (from “Zootopia”)
> Entered Billboard Hot 100: March 26, 2016
> Peak position: No. 63 (for 1 week)
> Total time on chart: 9 weeks
22. “Into the Unknown” by Idina Menzel & AURORA (from “Frozen II”)
> Entered Billboard Hot 100: December 7, 2019
> Peak position: No. 46 (for 1 week)
> Total time on chart: 12 weeks
21. “Waiting on a Miracle” by Stephanie Beatriz (from “Encanto”)
> Entered Billboard Hot 100: January 15, 2022
> Peak position: No. 48 (for 1 week)
> Total time on chart: 12 weeks
20. “How Far I’ll Go” by Alessia Cara (from “Moana”)
> Entered Billboard Hot 100: December 17, 2016
> Peak position: No. 56 (for 1 week)
> Total time on chart: 19 weeks
19. “Little Wonders” by Rob Thomas (from “Meet the Robinsons”)
> Entered Billboard Hot 100: April 14, 2007
> Peak position: No. 58 (for 1 week)
> Total time on chart: 16 weeks
18. “For the First Time in Forever” by Kristen Bell & Idina Menzel (from “Frozen”)
> Entered Billboard Hot 100: January 11, 2014
> Peak position: No. 57 (for 1 week)
> Total time on chart: 19 weeks
17. “Dos Oruguitas” by Sebastian Yatra (from “Encanto”)
> Entered Billboard Hot 100: January 15, 2022
> Peak position: No. 36 (for 1 week)
> Total time on chart: 16 weeks
16. “Do You Want to Build a Snowman?” by Kristen Bell, Agatha Lee Monn, & Katie Lopez (from “Frozen”)
> Entered Billboard Hot 100: January 11, 2014
> Peak position: No. 51 (for 1 week)
> Total time on chart: 18 weeks
15. “What Else Can I Do?” by Diane Guerrero & Stephanie Beatriz (from “Encanto”)
> Entered Billboard Hot 100: January 15, 2022
> Peak position: No. 27 (for 1 week)
> Total time on chart: 14 weeks
14. “How Far I’ll Go” by Auli’i Cravalho (from “Moana”)
> Entered Billboard Hot 100: December 17, 2016
> Peak position: No. 41 (for 1 week)
> Total time on chart: 20 weeks
13. “Someday” by All-4-One (from “The Hunchback of Notre Dame”)
> Entered Billboard Hot 100: June 29, 1996
> Peak position: No. 30 (for 1 week)
> Total time on chart: 15 weeks
12. “The Family Madrigal” by Stephanie Beatriz, Olga Merediz, & Encanto Cast (from “Encanto”)
> Entered Billboard Hot 100: January 15, 2022
> Peak position: No. 20 (for 3 weeks)
> Total time on chart: 16 weeks
11. “Let It Go” by Demi Lovato (from “Frozen”)
> Entered Billboard Hot 100: December 14, 2013
> Peak position: No. 38 (for 1 week)
> Total time on chart: 20 weeks
10. “You’ll Be In My Heart” by Phil Collins (from “Tarzan”)
> Entered Billboard Hot 100: July 3, 1999
> Peak position: No. 21 (for 1 week)
> Total time on chart: 20 weeks
9. “Go The Distance” by Michael Bolton (from “Hercules”)
> Entered Billboard Hot 100: June 7, 1997
> Peak position: No. 24 (for 1 week)
> Total time on chart: 20 weeks
8. “Circle Of Life” by Elton John (from “The Lion King”)
> Entered Billboard Hot 100: August 27, 1994
> Peak position: No. 18 (for 1 week)
> Total time on chart: 20 weeks
7. “Surface Pressure” by Jessica Darrow (from “Encanto”)
> Entered Billboard Hot 100: January 8, 2022
> Peak position: No. 8 (for 1 week)
> Total time on chart: 19 weeks
6. “Beauty And The Beast” by Celine Dion and Peabo Bryson (from “Beauty and the Beast”)
> Entered Billboard Hot 100: January 18, 1992
> Peak position: No. 9 (for 1 week)
> Total time on chart: 20 weeks
5. “We Don’t Talk About Bruno” by Carolina Gaitán, Mauro Castillo, Adassa, Rhenzy Feliz, Diane Guerrero, Stephanie Beatriz, & Encanto Cast (from “Encanto”)
> Entered Billboard Hot 100: January 8, 2022
> Peak position: No. 1 (for 5 weeks)
> Total time on chart: 20 weeks
4. “Colors Of The Wind” by Vanessa Williams (from “Pocahontas”)
> Entered Billboard Hot 100: June 24, 1995
> Peak position: No. 4 (for 1 week)
> Total time on chart: 23 weeks
3. “A Whole New World” by Peabo Bryson & Regina Belle (from “Aladdin”)
> Entered Billboard Hot 100: December 19, 1992
> Peak position: No. 1 (for 1 week)
> Total time on chart: 23 weeks
2. “Can You Feel The Love Tonight” by Elton John (from “The Lion King”)
> Entered Billboard Hot 100: May 21, 1994
> Peak position: No. 4 (for 1 week)
> Total time on chart: 26 weeks
1. “Let It Go” by Idina Menzel (from “Frozen”)
> Entered Billboard Hot 100: December 14, 2013
> Peak position: No. 5 (for 5 weeks)
> Total time on chart: 33 weeks