RockLists.com

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

The best alternative rock songs of 2023

Nine radio stations and charts published year-end countdowns for 2023: CFNY 102.1 The Edge, The Buzz, 102.7 WEQX, 88.3 The Sting, Impact 89FM, KALX 90.7, WBER, X96 and Triple J. Combining every list, the top alternative rock song of 2023 is “Rescued” by Foo Fighters, which appeared on six of the nine countdowns. Eight different songs were voted number one somewhere: “Lost” by Linkin Park (2 stations), “Blame Brett” by The Beaches, “Stick Season” by Noah Kahan, “Nice Work If You Can Get It” by Sloan and “A&W” by Lana Del Rey and others. Foo Fighters was the year’s most-charted artist, with two different songs placing 10 times across the countdowns.

9countdowns
682songs charted
8different #1s

Top 100 songs of 2023

All 682 songs →

Ranked by combined points across every 2023 year-end countdown in this format. How it works.

# Song Strength Lists Best #1s
1 Rescued Foo Fighters
493		 6 #2 –
2 Not Strong Enough Boygenius
411		 5 #2 –
3 One More Time blink-182
405		 5 #3 –
4 Dial Drunk Noah Kahan
392		 5 #3 –
5 Kid The Revivalists
379		 5 #6 –
6 The American Dream Is Killing Me Green Day
350		 5 #2 –
7 Lost Linkin Park
348		 4 #1 3
8 Under You Foo Fighters
329		 4 #5 –
9 Rescue Me Dirty Heads
318		 4 #7 –
10 New Gold Gorillaz
316		 6 #19 –
11 Stick Season Noah Kahan
305		 4 #1 1
12 My Love Mine All Mine Mitski
285		 4 #2 –
13 Ghosts Again Depeche Mode
284		 4 #3 –
14 Love From The Other Side Fall Out Boy
284		 3 #2 –
15 Just Pretend Bad Omens
275		 3 #5 –
16 Stuck 30 Seconds to Mars
251		 3 #9 –
17 Eat Your Young Hozier
247		 5 #14 –
18 Sleepwalking All Time Low
241		 3 #12 –
19 Dummy Portugal. The Man
224		 3 #15 –
20 Hollywood Baby 100 Gecs
200		 4 #30 –
21 Run Away with Me Cold War Kids
197		 3 #11 –
22 Vampire Empire Big Thief
195		 2 #3 –
23 Edging blink-182
190		 2 #3 –
24 Sail Away LovelyTheBand
187		 3 #6 –
25 Blame Brett The Beaches
183		 2 #1 1
26 Records Weezer
180		 2 #9 –
27 Running Out of Time Paramore
178		 3 #34 –
28 The Loneliest Maneskin
174		 2 #12 –
29 This Is Why Paramore
172		 2 #11 –
30 We Didn't Start The Fire Fall Out Boy
170		 3 #8 –
31 Emergency Contact Pierce The Veil
170		 2 #11 –
32 Tropic Morning News The National
168		 2 #8 –
33 Nothing Matters Last Dinner Party
157		 4 #7 –
34 Chemical Post Malone
157		 2 #10 –
35 Cannonballers Colony House
155		 2 #20 –
36 Wolf Yeah Yeah Yeahs
153		 2 #22 –
37 Landmines Sum 41
152		 3 #4 –
38 Say Yes to Heaven Lana Del Rey
150		 2 #24 –
39 In My Head Mike Shinoda
149		 3 #32 –
40 Pepper Death Cab for Cutie
149		 3 #28 –
41 Call Me What You Like Lovejoy
149		 3 #29 –
42 Back On 74 Jungle
147		 2 #17 –
43 Need A Favor Jelly Roll
146		 2 #15 –
44 Run Away To Mars Talk
142		 2 #28 –
45 A&W Lana Del Rey
141		 2 #1 1
46 Honey (Are You Coming?) Maneskin
141		 3 #19 –
47 Empty Nest Silversun Pickups
141		 2 #5 –
48 Down Here Waiting Blue October
140		 2 #14 –
49 Get Him Back! Olivia Rodrigo
137		 2 #28 –
50 The Drummer Red Hot Chili Peppers
134		 3 #32 –
51 Yes, I'm A Mess Ajr
127		 3 #28 –
52 Spellbinding The Smashing Pumpkins
127		 3 #42 –
53 The Perfect Pair Beabadoobee
126		 3 #37 –
54 The Walk Home Young the Giant
125		 3 #16 –
55 Hold Me Like A Grudge Fall Out Boy
125		 2 #23 –
56 The Narcissist Blur
123		 2 #15 –
57 Hello Grouplove
121		 3 #31 –
58 Cracker Island Gorillaz
119		 2 #4 –
59 Out Of My Mind Little Image
118		 2 #13 –
60 Pay The Man Ghost of Vroom
115		 2 #9 –
61 Raw Raw K. Flay
113		 2 #9 –
62 Crying In The Shower Letdown.
113		 2 #30 –
63 About You 1975
112		 2 #27 –
64 Your Side of Town The Killers
110		 2 #24 –
65 S'old Taking Back Sunday
109		 3 #42 –
66 LIKED U BETTER Jeff Rosenstock
107		 2 #42 –
67 Living in a Haze Milky Chance
106		 2 #15 –
68 One of Your Girls Troye Sivan
106		 2 #31 –
69 More Than a Love Song Black Pumas
106		 2 #13 –
70 Lost Bring Me the Horizon
105		 2 #20 –
71 Lowest In Me Staind
105		 2 #38 –
72 Nurse! bar italia
103		 2 #6 –
73 The Way Manchester Orchestra
101		 2 #11 –
74 My Love Florence And The Machine
100		 1 #1 1
75 Paint the Town Red Doja Cat
100		 1 #1 1
76 Running Snõõper
100		 1 #1 1
77 Overrated Giovannie and the Hired Guns
100		 2 #33 –
78 BadI Sabah Olmadan Altin Gün
100		 1 #2 –
79 The Worst Person Alive G Flip
99		 1 #2 –
80 Tumbleweed Quarantine Dead Air Fresheners
99		 1 #3 –
81 Burning Yeah Yeah Yeahs
99		 1 #2 –
82 Queen Of The Rub Dub Specialist
99		 1 #4 –
83 Saving Up Dom Dolla
98		 1 #3 –
84 Brass Bell Screaming Females
98		 1 #5 –
85 Rhyme Dust MK and Dom Dolla
97		 1 #4 –
86 talk talk abracadabra
97		 1 #7 –
87 Goodbye Evergreen Sufjan Stevens
97		 1 #4 –
88 Day of the Living Sky Sun Ra Arkestra
97		 1 #8 –
89 Prada Cassö, Raye and D-Block Europe
96		 1 #5 –
90 chained to a cloud Slowdive
96		 1 #9 –
91 Sex, Drugs, Etc. Beach Weather
96		 1 #5 –
92 People Are Good Depeche Mode
96		 1 #5 –
93 Anti-glory Horsegirl
96		 1 #10 –
94 Maybe Maybe Slothrust
95		 1 #6 –
95 Adore U Fred Again and Obongjayar
95		 1 #6 –
96 Room 720 Dengue Fever
95		 1 #11 –
97 Exhausting Lover Ben Folds
95		 1 #6 –
98 Zwaar The Mauskovic Dance Band
95		 1 #12 –
99 Bull Believer Wednesday
94		 1 #6 –
100 Seaforth King Krule
94		 2 #52 –

Every station’s number one of 2023

StationNumber one songCountdown
CFNY 102.1 The Edge Blame Brett The Beaches 102.1 The Edge The Top 23 of 2023
The Buzz Lost Linkin Park The Buzz Top 99 Songs of 2023
102.7 WEQX Stick Season Noah Kahan WEQX Top 102.7 of 2023
88.3 The Sting Nice Work If You Can Get It Sloan 88.3 The Sting WBWC Top 88 Songs of 2023
Impact 89FM A&W Lana Del Rey Impact 89FM Top 89 Songs of 2023
KALX 90.7 Running Snõõper KALX 200 Most Played New Songs in 2023
WBER My Love Florence + The Machine WBER Listener Countdown 2023
X96 Lost Linkin Park X96 Music Quorum 2023 Top 50 Songs
Triple J Paint the Town Red Doja Cat Triple J Hottest 100 of 2023

All 2023 countdowns in this ranking

About the 2023 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 2023 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.