Wikipedia:Record charts
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This guideline is a part of the English Wikipedia's Manual of Style. Editors should follow it, except where common sense and the occasional exception will improve an article. Before editing this page, please make sure that your revision reflects consensus. |
This page gives some guidelines for using and displaying record chart information in music-related articles. The chart positions should be organized into one table, and the table should be formatted using class="wikitable sortable".
Billboard component charts should not be used in the tables, unless the song fails to enter the main chart, but appears on an airplay or sales chart. Charts pertaining to only one specific retailer (such as iTunes, Amazon.com or Wal-Mart) should not be used. In addition, unofficial charts from television-related countdown shows (such as MTV's TRL or BET's 106 & Park) should not be used as they are not derived from verifiable sales and/or airplay totals.
Within the table, no chart positions should be boldfaced, as this violates Wikipedia's policy regarding neutral point of view. Weeks spent at peak position should be mentioned within the article text and not inserted into the table.
| Chart (2008) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| U.S. Billboard Hot 100 | 1 |
| U.S. Billboard Hot Dance Club Play | 1 |
| U.S. Billboard Hot R&B/Hip Hop Songs | 1 |
| U.S. Billboard Pop 100 | 1 |
| U.S. Billboard Rhythmic Top 40 | 1 |
| U.S. Billboard Top 40 Mainstream | 1 |
| Argentine Singles Chart | 1 |
| Australian ARIA Singles Chart | 1 |
| Canadian Singles Chart | 1 |
| Colombian Singles Chart | 1 |
| French Singles Chart | 1 |
| German Singles Chart | 1 |
| Norwegian Singles Chart | 1 |
| Swiss Singles Chart | 1 |
| UK Singles Chart | 1 |
The specific charts included should change depending upon the genre of the song. For hip hop music, the dance chart should be replaced with Hot Rap Tracks. For an R&B ballad, the dance chart should be replaced with the adult contemporary chart. For rock music, both the R&B and dance charts should be replaced with Mainstream Rock Tracks and Modern Rock Tracks. The number of charts should include no more than ten national charts, and up to ten additional charts, but no more than eighteen charts total.
Albums and singles which appear on different charts during different years are formatted with the charts for the most recent year furthest down the table:
| Chart (2006) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| U.S. Billboard Hot 100 | 1 |
| U.S. Billboard Modern Rock Tracks | 1 |
| U.S. Billboard Pop 100 | 1 |
| Australian ARIA Singles Chart | 1 |
| Canadian Singles Chart | 1 |
| Spanish Singles Chart | 1 |
| UK Singles Chart | 1 |
| Chart (2007) | Peak position |
| U.S. Billboard Top 40 Mainstream | 1 |
| Japanese Airplay Chart | 1 |
Alternative versions, such as remixes or radio edits, of the same song should be indicated on the table with superscript numbers:
| Chart (2007) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| U.S. Billboard Hot 100 | 1 |
| U.S. Billboard Mainstream Rock Tracks | 1 |
| U.S. Billboard Pop 100 | 1 |
| Australian ARIA Singles Chart | 1 |
| German Singles Chart 1 | 1 |
| UK Singles Chart 2 | 1 |
1 German radio version
2 Extended dance remix
[edit] Chart trajectories
A song/album's chart trajectory should not be included in an article, even if it is verifiable. Including the chart trajectory constitutes an indiscriminate collection of information. Chart trajectories should instead be briefly described in the text of the article or in a table for charts.
[edit] Resources
- allmusic.com has an incomplete but extensive list of most charting singles on Billboard charts including Hot 100 and other singles charts (ie; R&B, country) in its articles for the artist and the album.
- top40-charts.com has an extensive database of charts from 2000 onwards but beware of the popups. Has been known to give false information.
- αCharts.us has single and album chart trajectories since 2003.
- MusicSquare.net has single trajectories since 2002.
- ARIA has end-of-year Australian charts from 1989 onwards and a list of certifications at the end of each year for singles and albums (platinum and gold).
- songfacts.com lists US and UK chart positions on their database of songs see this article on "Hotel California" as an example.
- Oz Music Charts has a list of #1 hits in the US, UK and Australia dating back to the 1950's.
- everyhit.com has top-40 positions for UK singles from 1952.
- ChartStats.com more chart stats from the UK, including top 75 singles and albums back to 1952.
- the Database of Popular Music has a large database of songs including titles going back more than a century for both UK and USA.
- Randy Price has compiled the Cash Box magazine Best Selling Record charts from 1950 on.
