RockLists.com

Year-end consensus · Alternative & Modern Rock · 17 countdowns combined

The best alternative rock songs of 2002

17 radio stations and charts published year-end countdowns for 2002: KROQ, 91X, Live 105, Q101, WHFS, K-Rock, WFNX, 107.7 The End, 89X, CD101, Y100, The Buzz, Channel 104.9, John Peel (BBC Radio 1), Virgin Radio, Triple J and Radio & Records. Combining every list, the top alternative rock song of 2002 is “By the Way” by Red Hot Chili Peppers, which appeared on 16 of the 17 countdowns and was voted number one by one of them. 13 different songs were voted number one somewhere: “Fell in Love With a Girl” by The White Stripes (2 stations), “Aerials” by System of a Down (2 stations), “Blurry” by Puddle of Mudd (2 stations), “You Know You're Right” by Nirvana (2 stations) and “Sorrow” by Bad Religion and others. System of a Down was the year’s most-charted artist, with six different songs placing 43 times across the countdowns.

17countdowns
474songs charted
13different #1s

Top 100 songs of 2002

All 474 songs →

Ranked by combined points across every 2002 year-end countdown in this format. How it works.

# Song Strength Lists Best #1s
1 By the Way Red Hot Chili Peppers
1,481		 16 #1 1
2 Fell in Love With a Girl The White Stripes
1,207		 15 #1 2
3 You Know You're Right Nirvana
1,160		 15 #1 2
4 All My Life Foo Fighters
1,143		 15 #4 –
5 Aerials System of a Down
1,139		 13 #1 2
6 Hate To Say I Told You So The Hives
1,075		 14 #1 1
7 Sweetness Jimmy Eat World
1,059		 13 #2 –
8 The Middle Jimmy Eat World
1,057		 11 #2 –
9 In My Place Coldplay
1,030		 16 #2 –
10 Youth of the Nation P.O.D.
1,022		 12 #1 1
11 Get Free The Vines
1,002		 15 #5 –
12 Amber 311
995		 14 #2 –
13 Toxicity System of a Down
992		 11 #2 –
14 Warning Incubus
973		 13 #7 –
15 Running Away Hoobastank
973		 13 #6 –
16 Blurry Puddle of Mudd
960		 10 #1 2
17 No One Knows Queens of the Stone Age
957		 14 #1 1
18 For You Staind
934		 12 #5 –
19 Last Nite The Strokes
914		 11 #2 –
20 Seein' Red Unwritten Law
880		 13 #6 –
21 Dead Leaves and the Dirty Ground The White Stripes
870		 13 #15 –
22 Here to Stay Korn
830		 12 #6 –
23 Crawling in the Dark Hoobastank
816		 10 #2 –
24 She Hates Me Puddle of Mudd
812		 12 #17 –
25 First Date blink-182
810		 13 #4 –
26 Keep Fishin' Weezer
802		 15 #6 –
27 Lose Yourself Eminem
789		 11 #1 1
28 Cochise Audioslave
781		 14 #19 –
29 Lifestyles of the Rich and Famous Good Charlotte
777		 13 #13 –
30 Without Me Eminem
759		 11 #2 –
31 The Zephyr Song Red Hot Chili Peppers
745		 12 #16 –
32 Someday The Strokes
733		 13 #15 –
33 Prayer Disturbed
718		 11 #16 –
34 I Am Mine Pearl Jam
715		 15 #7 –
35 My Friends Over You New Found Glory
703		 13 #18 –
36 Thoughtless Korn
701		 12 #5 –
37 Drift and Die Puddle of Mudd
692		 12 #15 –
38 Dope Nose Weezer
679		 14 #8 –
39 The Red Chevelle
659		 11 #18 –
40 Nice to Know You Incubus
654		 10 #3 –
41 Flake Jack Johnson
631		 10 #1 1
42 I Feel So Box Car Racer
619		 13 #14 –
43 Hard to Explain The Strokes
579		 12 #5 –
44 She Loves Me Not Papa Roach
574		 11 #24 –
45 Downfall Trust Company
571		 9 #11 –
46 Screaming Infidelities Dashboard Confessional
569		 11 #12 –
47 Clocks Coldplay
561		 12 #7 –
48 I Wish You Were Here Incubus
546		 7 #5 –
49 Still Waiting Sum 41
538		 11 #17 –
50 Somewhere Out There Our Lady Peace
518		 11 #13 –
51 I Stand Alone Godsmack
518		 8 #2 –
52 It's Goin' Down X-Ecutioners
512		 12 #19 –
53 Wasting My Time Default
498		 9 #7 –
54 In the End Linkin Park
492		 6 #4 –
55 Bother Stone Sour
477		 10 #20 –
56 A Praise Chorus Jimmy Eat World
471		 12 #28 –
57 Where Are You Going? Dave Matthews Band
464		 9 #5 –
58 Hero Chad Kroeger
459		 8 #9 –
59 Chop Suey System of a Down
428		 5 #1 1
60 Sorrow Bad Religion
427		 7 #1 1
61 Defy You The Offspring
419		 8 #20 –
62 Fine Again Seether
406		 10 #21 –
63 My Sacrifice Creed
404		 6 #5 –
64 Boom P.O.D.
396		 10 #42 –
65 Too Bad Nickelback
381		 6 #14 –
66 Papercut Linkin Park
364		 6 #28 –
67 One Last Breath Creed
363		 6 #17 –
68 The One Foo Fighters
357		 9 #11 –
69 Always Saliva
352		 9 #29 –
70 Rock Star N.E.R.D.
349		 7 #29 –
71 Are You In Incubus
348		 5 #9 –
72 Diamonds and Guns Transplants
345		 8 #34 –
73 Tribute Tenacious D
345		 7 #37 –
74 We Are All Made of Stars Moby
343		 11 #31 –
75 Epiphany Staind
316		 7 #33 –
76 Innervision System of a Down
309		 10 #37 –
77 Electrical Storm U2
305		 11 #41 –
78 Honestly Zwan
296		 9 #25 –
79 Get Over It OK Go
293		 8 #40 –
80 Never Gonna Stop Rob Zombie
292		 6 #20 –
81 Deny Default
283		 6 #27 –
82 When I'm Gone 3 Doors Down
278		 9 #39 –
83 Lost Cause Beck
278		 6 #7 –
84 Outtathaway The Vines
277		 10 #21 –
85 Friends and Family Trik Turner
263		 7 #27 –
86 Girl All the Bad Guys Want Bowling for Soup
256		 5 #5 –
87 Alive P.O.D.
256		 3 #8 –
88 There Is Box Car Racer
250		 6 #18 –
89 Zephyr Song Red Hot Chili Peppers
243		 3 #10 –
90 Bubble Toes Jack Johnson
242		 4 #11 –
91 Down With the Sickness Disturbed
240		 3 #8 –
92 Pretty Girl Sugarcult
239		 5 #36 –
93 How You Remind Me Nickelback
238		 4 #20 –
94 Poem Taproot
238		 8 #48 –
95 My December Linkin Park
231		 4 #15 –
96 Innocent Our Lady Peace
228		 7 #28 –
97 Lateralus Tool
226		 5 #10 –
98 Bouncing Off the Walls Sugarcult
222		 5 #19 –
99 Hey Mister Custom
222		 6 #42 –
100 You've Got to Hide Your Love Away Eddie Vedder
206		 6 #40 –

Every station’s number one of 2002

StationNumber one songCountdown
KROQ Fell in Love With a Girl The White Stripes KROQ Top 106.7 Songs of 2002
91X Sorrow Bad Religion 91X Top 91 Songs of 2002
Live 105 Hate to Say I Told You So The Hives Live 105 Top 105.3 Songs of 2002
Q101 Youth of the Nation P.O.D. Q101 Top 101 Songs of 2002
WHFS Aerials System of a Down WHFS Top 99.1 Songs of 2002
K-Rock Blurry Puddle of Mudd K-Rock Top 92.3 Songs of 2002
WFNX Aerials System of a Down WFNX Top 100 Songs of 2002
107.7 The End You Know You're Right Nirvana The End Top 107 Songs of 2002
89X Lose Yourself Eminem 89X Top 89 Songs of 2002
CD101 Fell in Love With a Girl The White Stripes CD101 Top 101 Songs of 2002
Y100 Chop Suey System of a Down Y100 Top 100 Songs of 2002
The Buzz You Know You're Right Nirvana The Buzz Top 99 Songs of 2002
Channel 104.9 Flake Jack Johnson Channel 104.9 Top 104.9 Songs of 2002
John Peel (BBC Radio 1) Girls Are The New Boys Saloon John Peel's Festive Fifty of 2002
Virgin Radio By the Way Red Hot Chili Peppers Virgin Radio Top 10 Songs of 2002
Triple J No One Knows Queens of the Stone Age Triple J Hottest 100 of 2002
Radio & Records Blurry Puddle of Mudd Radio & Records Top 100 Songs of 2002

All 2002 countdowns in this ranking

About the 2002 ranking

Radio stations count down their listeners’ favorite songs at the end of every year. Each station’s list reflects its own audience, so a song that ruled Los Angeles could miss the top ten in Chicago. To find the songs that defined 2002 everywhere, RockLists gives every appearance percentile-based points (a number one earns 100, the last position earns close to zero) and adds them up across all 17 qualifying countdowns. Each radio format is ranked separately, so classic rock and hard rock countdowns never shift the alternative results; use the tabs above to switch formats. Read the full methodology.