RockLists.com

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

The best alternative rock songs of 2021

Nine radio stations and charts published year-end countdowns for 2021: 91X, CFNY 102.1 The Edge, 102.7 WEQX, 88.3 The Sting, ALT 104.5, Impact 89FM, WBER, X96 and Triple J. Combining every list, the top alternative rock song of 2021 is “Missing Piece” by Vance Joy, which appeared on seven of the nine countdowns. Nine different songs were voted number one somewhere: “The Adults Are Talking” by The Strokes, “Blow Up” by The Beaches, “I Don't Wanna Talk (I Just Wanna Dance)” by Glass Animals, “All My Favorite Songs” by Weezer and “Follow You” by Imagine Dragons and others. Foo Fighters was the year’s most-charted artist, with four different songs placing 14 times across the countdowns.

9countdowns
495songs charted
9different #1s

Top 100 songs of 2021

All 495 songs →

Ranked by combined points across every 2021 year-end countdown in this format. How it works.

# Song Strength Lists Best #1s
1 Missing Piece Vance Joy
471		 7 #2 –
2 We Are Between Modest Mouse
441		 6 #4 –
3 Waiting On A War Foo Fighters
389		 5 #3 –
4 Brightside Lumineers
388		 6 #6 –
5 Shy Away Twenty One Pilots
387		 5 #2 –
6 Serotonin Girl In Red
383		 6 #7 –
7 Follow You Imagine Dragons
372		 5 #1 2
8 Heat Waves Glass Animals
369		 4 #1 1
9 Beggin' Maneskin
361		 4 #4 –
10 The Bandit Kings of Leon
358		 7 #8 –
11 Nowhere Generation Rise Against
334		 5 #5 –
12 Taking Me Back Jack White
309		 4 #14 –
13 I Don't Wanna Talk (I Just Wanna Dance) Glass Animals
308		 5 #1 1
14 Saturday Twenty One Pilots
299		 4 #2 –
15 Survivor Nathaniel Rateliff and the Night Sweats
297		 4 #7 –
16 I Don't Live Here Anymore The War On Drugs
283		 5 #4 –
17 All My Favorite Songs Weezer
276		 5 #6 –
18 What You Say Cold War Kids
275		 6 #6 –
19 Once In A Lifetime All Time Low
275		 4 #11 –
20 Bed Head Manchester Orchestra
261		 3 #3 –
21 Chaise Longue Wet Leg
253		 4 #2 –
22 Solar Power Lorde
251		 6 #26 –
23 Let The Bad Times Roll The Offspring
246		 3 #4 –
24 Higher Power Coldplay
234		 4 #4 –
25 Typhoons Royal Blood
222		 4 #12 –
26 Estella Kenny Hoopla
202		 4 #12 –
27 Sofia Clairo
200		 3 #7 –
28 Your Power Billie Eilish
191		 5 #21 –
29 Wrecked Imagine Dragons
191		 3 #12 –
30 Colorado Milky Chance
187		 4 #6 –
31 Happier Than Ever Billie Eilish
184		 2 #5 –
32 Be Sweet Japanese Breakfast
183		 2 #2 –
33 Stop Making This Hurt Bleachers
183		 5 #9 –
34 Shame Shame Foo Fighters
178		 2 #7 –
35 The Angel of 8th Ave. Gang of Youths
174		 2 #6 –
36 Crawling Kingsnake The Black Keys
169		 3 #17 –
37 Kiss Me More Doja Cat
168		 2 #7 –
38 Moaning Lisa Smile Wolf Alice
168		 3 #25 –
39 Freaks Surf Curse
165		 2 #8 –
40 Mystery Turnstile
165		 2 #16 –
41 Way Less Sad Ajr
162		 2 #9 –
42 The Sun Hasn't Left Modest Mouse
160		 4 #46 –
43 Therefore I Am Billie Eilish
160		 2 #14 –
44 NDA Billie Eilish
158		 3 #11 –
45 Making A Fire Foo Fighters
157		 4 #31 –
46 Amoeba Clairo
149		 2 #15 –
47 Distorted Light Beam Bastille
144		 4 #27 –
48 Montero (Call Me by Your Name) Lil Nas X
138		 2 #10 –
49 Blunt Force Concussion The Dirty Nil
132		 2 #28 –
50 Time In Disguise Kings of Leon
131		 4 #30 –
51 Transparent Soul Willow
127		 2 #35 –
52 Sticky The Maine
127		 3 #25 –
53 U&ME Alt J
126		 3 #30 –
54 Love Dies Young Foo Fighters
126		 3 #40 –
55 The Adults Are Talking The Strokes
124		 2 #1 1
56 You Asked For This Halsey
118		 3 #25 –
57 You Can Get It Arkells
118		 2 #7 –
58 Can You Handle My Love? Walk the Moon
117		 2 #18 –
59 Monday The Regrettes
116		 2 #3 –
60 The Hardest Cut Spoon
110		 2 #5 –
61 Kyoto Phoebe Bridgers
108		 2 #27 –
62 Overwhelmed Royal & The Serpent
103		 2 #15 –
63 Blow Up The Beaches
100		 1 #1 1
64 How Not To Drown CHVRCHES
100		 1 #1 1
65 Elephant (Like a Version) The Wiggles
100		 1 #1 1
66 HOT WIND BLOWS Tyler, the Creator
100		 1 #1 1
67 Stay The Kid Laroi and Justin Bieber
99		 1 #2 –
68 Under the Table Fiona Apple
99		 1 #2 –
69 Lots of Nothing Spacey Jane
98		 1 #3 –
70 Fire For You Canons
98		 1 #3 –
71 THERE'S NOTHING YOU CAN'T DO SPIRIT OF THE BEEHIVE
98		 1 #3 –
72 Good 4 U Olivia Rodrigo
97		 1 #4 –
73 Little Things Big Thief
97		 1 #4 –
74 My Ex's Best Friend Machine Gun Kelly & Blackbear
96		 1 #3 –
75 My Ex's Best Friend Machine Gun Kelly
96		 1 #3 –
76 Colors Black Pumas
96		 1 #5 –
77 Pick Up Your Feelings Jazmine Sullivan
96		 1 #5 –
78 Make It Through Chris Trapper
95		 1 #5 –
79 Outside Injury Reserve
94		 1 #6 –
80 The Steps Haim
94		 1 #6 –
81 Secrets (Your Fire) Magdalena Bay
93		 1 #7 –
82 Cranium Slothrust
93		 1 #8 –
83 Industry Baby Lil Nas X and Jack Harlow
93		 1 #8 –
84 Monsters f/blackbear All Time Low
92		 1 #5 –
85 Crystal Ball MIKE
92		 1 #8 –
86 On My Knees Rüfüs Du Sol
92		 1 #9 –
87 Genesis Deftones
92		 1 #8 –
88 The Final Parade The Mighty Mighty Bosstones
91		 1 #10 –
89 Movement 6 Floating Points, Pharoah Sanders & The London Symphony Orchestra
91		 1 #9 –
90 In The Den Hum
90		 1 #9 –
91 Once More For The Ocean Slothrust
90		 1 #11 –
92 All My Favorite Songs f/AJR Weezer
90		 1 #6 –
93 Is It True Tame Impala
90		 1 #10 –
94 H.Y.C.Y.BH Tom Cardy
90		 1 #11 –
95 Act Up Terry Presume
90		 1 #10 –
96 Leave Me Alone I Don't Know How But They Found Me
90		 1 #10 –
97 Lunchtime Spacey Jane
89		 1 #12 –
98 Family Ties Baby Keem
89		 1 #11 –
99 Chapstick Coin
89		 3 #24 –
100 Magnificent Hurt Elvis Costello and The Imposters
88		 1 #13 –

Every station’s number one of 2021

StationNumber one songCountdown
91X The Adults Are Talking The Strokes 91X Top 91 Songs of 2021
CFNY 102.1 The Edge Blow Up The Beaches 102.1 The Edge The Top 21 of 2021
102.7 WEQX I Don't Wanna Talk (I Just Wanna Dance) Glass Animals WEQX Top 102.7 of 2021
88.3 The Sting All My Favorite Songs Weezer 88.3 The Sting WBWC Top 88 Songs of 2021
ALT 104.5 Follow You Imagine Dragons ALT 104.5 Top 50.5 Songs of 2021
Impact 89FM HOT WIND BLOWS Tyler the Creator feat. Lil Wayne Impact 89FM Top 89 Songs of 2021
WBER How Not To Drown Chvrches WBER Listener Countdown 2021
X96 Heat Waves Glass Animals X96 Top 50 Songs of 2021
Triple J Elephant (Like a Version) The Wiggles Triple J Hottest 100 of 2021

All 2021 countdowns in this ranking

About the 2021 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 2021 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 nine 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.