The Official Aotearoa Music Charts, formerly the Official New Zealand Music Chart (Māori: Te Papa Tātai Waiata Matua o Aotearoa), is the weekly New Zealand top 40 singles and albums charts, issued weekly by Recorded Music NZ (formerly Recording Industry Association of New Zealand). The Music Chart also includes the top 40 Hot Singles chart, the top 20 New Zealand artist singles and albums, the top 20 Hot New Zealand singles, and top 10 compilation albums. All charts are compiled from data of both physical and digital sales from music retailers in New Zealand.^[1]

The singles chart is currently sales and streaming data of songs. In June 2014 it was announced that the chart would also include streaming;^[2] this took effect for the chart published 7 November 2014 and dated 10 November 2014.^[3] Previously airplay was factored into the chart methodology as well.^[4][5]

Before 1975, music charts in New Zealand had been regionally compiled by magazines, record stores, and radio stations on an ad hoc basis. This often occurred at different times which made chart compiling complex, and even then only singles were counted.^[6][7]

From May 1975 to 2004, RIANZ also published an nationwide annual ranking chart of singles and albums released in New Zealand.^[7] Position was awarded by a simple scoring system whereby a number one in one week gets 50 points, a number two gets 49 points and so on, then all weeks are added together. From 2004 onwards, however, the annual charts have songs positioned based on the number of sales for that year.

From April 2007 to October 2011, the charts were displayed and archived at the website radioscope.net.nz which listed 13 different charts, most notably RadioScope100 and NZ40 Airplay Chart.^[8] In November 2011, RIANZ launched an updated chart website. The new Chart website also provides the ability to listen to song previews, view music videos, and buy tracks and albums.^[9][10]

On 19 June 2021, a new chart was launched for the top ten songs in te reo Māori, for songs with at least 70% of vocals in Māori.^[11]

In addition to the main Top 40 Singles and Top 40 Albums charts ranking the top forty singles and albums by all artists, on 28 October 2011 Recorded Music NZ began publishing the Top 20 New Zealand Singles and Top 20 New Zealand Albums charts, which ranked the top twenty singles and albums by New Zealand artists only. They are currently named the Top 20 Aotearoa Singles and Top 20 Aotearoa Albums charts.^[12][13]

An additional "Heatseekers" chart was first published on the chart dated 5 October 2015. The chart consisted of the top ten singles outside of (and that had not previously charted inside) the top forty, and had the same rules and criteria as the Top 40 Singles Chart.^[14] Once a title made an appearance inside the top forty at any point, it became ineligible to appear on the Heatseekers chart.^[15]

Following the discontinuation of the Heatseekers chart, in July 2018 Recorded Music NZ began publishing the Hot Singles Chart,^[16] which tracks the "40 fastest-moving tracks by sales, streams and airplay". Songs can appear on both the NZ Top 40 and NZ Hot Singles charts simultaneously,^[17] as the primary aim of the Hot Singles chart is to "reflect the songs achieving the greatest week-on-week growth".^[18]

In mid-June 2021, Recorded Music NZ began publishing Te Reo Māori O Te Rārangi 10 O Runga chart, also known as the Top 10 Te Reo Māori Singles, which tracks songs at are at least 70% sung in Te Reo Māori using sales, streaming and airplay data.^[19]

1960s

1970s

1970s

1980s

1990s

2000s

2010s

2020s

1990s

2000s

2010s

2020s

In May 2015, Recorded Music NZ celebrated the 40th anniversary of the Official NZ Top 40 Music Charts. An event was held at Vector Arena in Auckland and featured performances from 16 artists from New Zealand and overseas who had previously achieved various chart milestones, including most number ones, most chart entries, most weeks in the chart and most weeks at number one.^[20]

As part of the celebrations, a limited edition single pressed on red vinyl was released, with Tiki Taane's song "Always on my Mind" (the New Zealand track to spend the most weeks - 55 - in the singles chart) and Scribe's song "Stand Up" (the New Zealand single to spend the most weeks - 12 - at number one).^[21]

The following chart achievements were noted:

Singles

• Most no.1 singles: The Beatles have fourteen as a band, Justin Bieber with eleven and Katy Perry with nine no.1 singles respectively
• Most no.1 singles (NZ): Deep Obsession, 3 no. 1 singles
• Most chart entries: Madonna, 53 entries
• Most chart entries (NZ): Shihad, 25 entries
• Most weeks in chart: New Order "Blue Monday", 74 weeks
• Most weeks in chart (NZ): Tiki Taane "Always On My Mind", 55 weeks

Albums

• Most No.1 albums: U2, 13 no.1 albums
• Most No.1 albums (NZ): Local Act: Hayley Westenra, and Shihad, five no.1 albums each
• Most chart entries: Elton John, 35 entries
• Most chart entries (NZ): Split Enz, 14 entries
• Most weeks in chart: Pink Floyd The Dark Side of the Moon, 297 weeks
• Most weeks in chart (NZ): Fat Freddy's Drop Based on a True Story, 108 weeks
• Most weeks at no.1: Adele 21, 28 weeks
• Most weeks at no.1 (NZ): Hayley Westenra Pure, 19 weeks

From June 2016, the method of determining certifications was changed to a points-based system based on a combination of physical sales, digital sales and online streams. For singles, 175 streams is considered equal to one sale. For albums, the Stream Equivalent Album (SEA) system is used.^[22]

A single qualifies for gold certification if it exceeds 15,000 points and platinum certification if it exceeds 30,000 points. An album qualifies for gold certification if it exceeds 7500 points and platinum certification if it exceeds 15,000 points. wholesale sales to retailers. For music DVDs (formerly videos), a gold accreditation represents 2,500 copies shipped, with a platinum accreditation representing 5,000 units shipped.^[1]

These totals include singles when the artist is 'featured'—that is, not the main artist.

 ‡  – The Beatles' 14 chart placings predate the Official New Zealand Music Chart which began in May 1975.

These totals includes singles when the artist is 'featured'—that is, not the main artist.

 †  – includes duet or collaboration by two New Zealand artists.

 ‡  – includes songs whose chart placings predate the Official New Zealand Music Chart which began in May 1975.

Key

 †  – Song of New Zealand origin^{[nb 1]}

Songs denoted with an asterisk (*) spent non-consecutive weeks at number one

Year	Artist	Song	Total weeks at number one
2014	Pharrell Williams	"Happy" *	15
1978	Boney M.	"Rivers of Babylon"	14
1992/1993	Whitney Houston	"I Will Always Love You"	14
2016	Drake featuring Wizkid and Kyla	"One Dance"	13
2017	Ed Sheeran	"Shape of You" *	13
2017	Luis Fonsi and Daddy Yankee featuring Justin Bieber	"Despacito (Remix)"	13
1975	Freddy Fender	"Wasted Days and Wasted Nights" *	12
2003	Scribe	"Stand Up/Not Many" *	12
2019	Lil Nas X feat. Billy Ray Cyrus	"Old Town Road (Remix)"	12
1993	UB40	"Can't Help Falling in Love" *	11
2005	Crazy Frog	"Axel F" *	11
2009	Smashproof featuring Gin Wigmore	"Brother"	11
2011	LMFAO feat. Lauren Bennett & GoonRock	"Party Rock Anthem"	11
2013	Robin Thicke feat. Pharrell Williams & T.I.	"Blurred Lines" *	11
2013	Katy Perry	"Roar"	11
2019/2020	Tones and I	"Dance Monkey" *	11
2021	The Kid Laroi and Justin Bieber	"Stay" *	11
1973	Tony Orlando & Dawn	"Tie a Yellow Ribbon Round the Ole Oak Tree"	10
1976	Pussycat	"Mississippi"	10
2002/2003	Las Ketchup	"The Ketchup Song (Aserejé)"	10
2008	Lady Gaga	"Poker Face"	10
2009/2010	Stan Walker	"Black Box"	10
2015/2016	Justin Bieber	"Love Yourself"	10
2023	Doja Cat	"Paint the Town Red"	10
1976	ABBA	"Fernando" *	9
1976	Elton John and Kiki Dee	"Don't Go Breaking My Heart" *	9
1986	All of Us	"Sailing Away"	9
1995	Coolio featuring L.V.	"Gangsta's Paradise" *	9
2002	Avril Lavigne	"Complicated"	9
2009	The Black Eyed Peas	"I Gotta Feeling"	9
2011	Rihanna featuring Calvin Harris	"We Found Love"	9
2012/2013	Macklemore & Ryan Lewis featuring Wanz	"Thrift Shop"	9
2014/2015	Mark Ronson featuring Bruno Mars	"Uptown Funk"	9
2018	Drake	"God's Plan"	9
2022	Luude featuring Colin Hay	"Down Under"	9
2023	Dave and Central Cee	"Sprinter" *	9
2024	Lady Gaga and Bruno Mars	"Die with a Smile"	9

The following is a list of albums that have been certified by the Recorded Music NZ for ten platinum or more

This list of songs or music-related items is incomplete; you can help by adding missing items. (October 2021)

• Beautiful Collision
• Metallica

• Come Away with Me
• Greatest Hits
• I Dreamed a Dream

• Christmas
• Falling into You
• The Phantom of the Opera (1986 musical)
• Pure
• Thriller

• 21
• Rumours

• The Joshua Tree
• The Wall

• 1

• Gold: Greatest Hits
• The Dark Side of the Moon

• ÷
• Bat Out of Hell
• Born in the U.S.A.

• Legend

• Come On Over

• Brothers in Arms
• The Best of ABBA

• List of number-one singles in New Zealand by New Zealand artists
• List of number-one albums in New Zealand by New Zealand artists
• List of best-selling albums in New Zealand

• Scapolo, Dean (2007). "Introduction". The Complete New Zealand Music Charts: 1966 – 2006. Maurienne House. ISBN 978-1-877443-00-8.

• Official Aotearoa Music Charts Website
• New Zealand Charts portal and archive