ALL-TIME BOX OFFICE RECORDS (by ticket sales)

The charts below show the top ten movies of all-time box office records, as they would have been calculated at the end of each calendar year. The amounts shown are the estimated number of tickets sold domestically. (U.S. and Canada)

Many high-ranking films have been released multiple times over the past century, and the ticket amounts reflect that. Several films, such as Avatar and The Birth of a Nation, sold tickets at premium prices. Their ticket sale numbers may be lower than would be expected from looking at their total gross.

Follow this link to see the all-time box office records tables in raw gross.

1978

  1. Gone with the Wind (194.6m)
  2. The Sound of Music (139.1m)
  3. The Ten Commandments (131m)
  4. Jaws (122m)
  5. Star Wars (122m)
  6. Doctor Zhivago (103m)
  7. Ben-Hur (101.2m)
  8. The Exorcist (94.6m)
  9. The Sting (91.9m)
  10. Fantasia (88.2m)

1979

  1. Gone with the Wind (194.6m)
  2. The Sound of Music (139.1m)
  3. The Ten Commandments (131m)
  4. Star Wars (126.9m)
  5. Jaws (125.9m)
  6. Doctor Zhivago (103m)
  7. Ben-Hur (101.2m)
  8. The Exorcist (100.7m)
  9. The Sting (91.9m)
  10. Fantasia (88.2m)

1980

  1. Gone with the Wind (194.6m)
  2. The Sound of Music (139.1m)
  3. The Ten Commandments (131m)
  4. Star Wars (126.9m)
  5. Jaws (125.9m)
  6. Doctor Zhivago (103m)
  7. Ben-Hur (101.2m)
  8. The Exorcist (100.7m)
  9. The Sting (91.9m)
  10. Mary Poppins (90.7m)

1981

  1. Gone with the Wind (194.6m)
  2. The Sound of Music (139.1m)
  3. Star Wars (133.1m)
  4. The Ten Commandments (131m)
  5. Jaws (125.9m)
  6. Doctor Zhivago (103m)
  7. Ben-Hur (101.2m)
  8. The Exorcist (100.7m)
  9. The Sting (91.9m)
  10. Mary Poppins (90.7m)

1982-84

  1. Gone with the Wind (194.6m)
  2. Star Wars (139.2m)
  3. The Sound of Music (139.1m)
  4. The Ten Commandments (131m)
  5. Jaws (125.9m)
  6. E.T. (122.2m)
  7. Doctor Zhivago (103m)
  8. Ben-Hur (101.2m)
  9. The Exorcist (100.7m)
  10. The Sting (91.9m)

1985-86

  1. Gone with the Wind (194.6m)
  2. E.T. (142.8m)
  3. Star Wars (139.2m)
  4. The Sound of Music (139.1m)
  5. The Ten Commandments (131m)
  6. Jaws (125.9m)
  7. Doctor Zhivago (103m)
  8. Ben-Hur (101.2m)
  9. The Exorcist (100.7m)
  10. Fantasia (92m)

1987-88

  1. Gone with the Wind (194.6m)
  2. E.T. (142.8m)
  3. Star Wars (139.2m)
  4. The Sound of Music (139.1m)
  5. The Ten Commandments (131m)
  6. Jaws (125.9m)
  7. Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs (103.1m)
  8. Doctor Zhivago (103m)
  9. Ben-Hur (101.2m)
  10. The Exorcist (100.7m)

1990-92

  1. Gone with the Wind (195.2m)
  2. E.T. (142.8m)
  3. Star Wars (139.2m)
  4. The Sound of Music (139.3m)
  5. The Ten Commandments (131m)
  6. Jaws (125.9m)
  7. Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs (103.1m)
  8. Doctor Zhivago (103m)
  9. Ben-Hur (101.2m)
  10. The Exorcist (100.7m)

1998-99

  1. Gone with the Wind (196.7m)
  2. Star Wars (169.4m)
  3. E.T. (142.8m)
  4. The Sound of Music (139.3m)
  5. The Ten Commandments (131m)
  6. Titanic (128.6m)
  7. Jaws (125.9m)
  8. Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs (113m)
  9. Doctor Zhivago (103m)
  10. Ben-Hur (101.2m)

Since 1919, seven different films have held the #1 spot:

The Spoilers (1919-1920)
Mickey (1921-1937)
Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs (1938-1945)
Fantasia (1946)
Gone with the Wind (1947-1957; 1967-Present)
The Ten Commandments (1958-1964; 1966)
The Sound of Music (1965)