How Much Does Mariah Carey Make from ‘All I Want for Christmas Is You’ Each Year? (Hint: It’s in the Millions!)

When the song was first released in 1994, Carey made $60 million. Now, according to Forbes, Carey earns around $2.5 million in annual royalties based on calculations from The Economist. The outlet reported that The New York Post estimated the number to be even higher, at $3 million.

“All I Want for Christmas Is You” was part of Carey’s fourth album, Merry Christmas, and was instantly a global success, topping the charts in 26 countries. Three decades after its release, it continues to climb back up the Billboard Hot 100 ladder and Spotify’s streaming numbers as soon as the holiday season comes around.

The tune has consistently been among the most-streamed holiday songs, per Forbes, and became the first holiday single to ever receive the coveted RIAA (Recording Industry Association of America) Diamond Award in 2021.

To earn the prize, “All I Want for Christmas Is You” had to reach 10 million sales and streams.

Two years later, the song was inducted into the Library of Congress’ National Recording Registry.

“I’m honored beyond belief!” Carey wrote of the achievement on X. “I definitely did not even imagine this would happen when writing and recording this song!”

Is “All I Want for Christmas Is You” the most popular Christmas song of all time?

According to Spotify, “All I Want for Christmas Is You” has grown 120% globally on the platform since 2019, becoming the most streamed holiday song of all time both globally and in the U.S.

While Carey has yet to beat Bing Crosby’s “White Christmas,” the highest-selling single of all time with 50 million copies sold worldwide, the Christmas tune is well on its way.

At least on Spotify, Carey’s classic has been the No. 1 song globally on Christmas Day every year since 2016. In 2024, its streams have continually increased throughout the season, growing 860% globally and 1,100% in the U.S. since Nov. 1.

On Dec. 17, “All I Want for Christmas Is You” notched its 20th week at the top spot on Billboard’s streaming songs chart, tying it with Lil Nas X’s “Old Town Road” for most weeks at No. 1. At that point, it had also spent 16 weeks in the No. 1 spot on the Billboard Hot 100 list.

How many times has “All I Want for Christmas Is You” been covered?

The classic has been covered more than a dozen times by a number of popular artists. Carey even rerecorded the song herself in 2011 alongside Justin Bieber for his Christmas album Under the Mistletoe.

Bublé released his own version that same year on his Christmas album, while other artists like Barry Manilow, Fifth Harmony, Ingrid Michaelson and even Dolly Parton with Jimmy Fallon have all covered it.

In 2003, the song was used in the beloved movie Love Actually, performed by Olivia Olson, who played Joanna. The tween sang the song herself — and was even offered record deals after.