Rolling Stones, Elton John, and Mötley Crüe/Def Leppard among top-grossing tours of 2022

Rock artists might not be selling albums in the manner they used to, but when it comes to putting butts on seats and shifting tickets for live shows, classic rock legends are still very much doing the business. 

Below is the annual report on the top-grossing tours of the year, and tours by The Rolling Stones, Elton John, Red Hot Chili Peppers and the stadium-slaying Mötley Crüe/Def Leppard spectacular all ranked among the Top 10 money-spinners of 2022.

Top Tour Chart 2022
1. Bad Bunny – $373,463,379 (65 shows)
2. Elton John – $334,385,023 (84 shows)
3. Ed Sheeran – $246,287,916 (63 shows)
4. Harry Styles – $214,408,180 (71 shows)
5. Coldplay – $208,000,727 (40 shows)
6. The Rolling Stones – $179,349,815 (20 shows)
7. Red Hot Chili Peppers – $176,998,650 (31 shows)
8. Def Leppard and Motley Crue – $173,474,649 (35 shows)
9. Kenny Chesney – $135,046,047 (41 shows)
10. The Weeknd – $131,056,262 (19 shows)

Elton John and the Rolling Stones sold more than half a billion dollars of total concert tickets in 2022 with their respective tours.

John earned over $334 million with 85 Farewell Yellow Brick Road dates, second only to Bad Bunny on Billboard‘s 2022 Top Tours chart. The Stones came in at No. 6 with more than $179 million, an impressive number considering they played only 20 shows.

Four other rock tours earned over $100 million on the road last year, led by Red Hot Chili Peppers with $176 million from 31 shows, the combination of Def Leppard and Motley Crue with $173 million (35 shows), Paul McCartney with $105 million (16 concerts) and Eagles with $104 million (40 shows).

Further down the list, Guns N’ Roses earned $93 million from 27 shows, Genesis made $81 million from 35 farewell dates and Iron Maiden rang up $76 million from 47 shows. Roger Waters and Billy Joel also made the Top 40, with $66 and $65 million in respective ticket sales.

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Adam Regan
Adam Regan
Deputy Editor

Features and account management. 3 years media experience. Previously covered features for online and print editions.

Email Adam@MarkMeets.com
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