Mariah Carey Basically Wins the Lottery Every December Thanks to One Song
Every December, holiday music slips back into daily life, playing in stores, on the radio, and across streaming platforms. Few songs reappear as reliably as Mariah Carey’s All I Want for Christmas Is You, first released in 1994. Nearly three decades later, it still dominates the season and continues to generate remarkable income year after year. That staying power raises a simple question: just how much does the song earn for Carey today?
How Much the Song Generates Each Year
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Industry experts who evaluate catalog performance estimate that the track produces between two and four million dollars in total annual revenue. The entertainment law firm Manatt, Phelps and Phillips calculated that the song averages approximately 3.4 million dollars per year across global streaming and non-streaming formats. This aligns with the song’s long-term commercial trajectory.
Spotify confirmed that it became the first holiday song to surpass two billion global streams. It also reached the top position on the Billboard Hot 100 for the first time in 2019 and has returned to the same spot every December since.
The Recording Industry Association of America awarded the single Diamond certification in 2021 for ten million units sold in the United States, making it the first holiday track to achieve this milestone.
What Carey Personally Earns
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A 2022 Billboard breakdown estimated that Carey earned roughly $ 2.7 to $ 3.3 million from the song that year. This included income from the master recording and publishing revenue. The calculation did not include income from endorsements, live holiday tours, or televised specials, which may result in a higher total seasonal revenue.
Analysts consistently place her annual take in the same range. Both Forbes and The Economist have reported that she earns approximately $ 2.5 to $ 3 million per year from the song alone. These estimates are based on her multiple credits: she is the performer, co-writer, and co-producer, which allows her to earn royalties from both the composition and the sound recording.
Songwriter royalties are divided among credited writers. In this case, Carey’s publishing share is split with Walter Afanasieff, her co-writer and co-producer, who receives the other portion of the composition-related income.
Why the Song Produces Reliable Annual Income
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Holiday songs operate differently from standard chart hits, with listening patterns resetting each December. That seasonal cycle benefits Mariah Carey’s track, as U.S. Luminate data shows domestic audio streams rising from 167 million in 2019 to 249 million in 2023.
The song also generates royalties from a broad mix of platforms. These include international radio, retail environments, television placements, films, and user-generated content.
More than 150 artists have recorded their own versions, and whenever a cover is played publicly, publishing royalties are paid to the songwriters and their respective publishers. This contributes to a consistent yearly revenue stream that extends beyond Carey’s own recording.
How Long Do the Earnings Last
Under U.S. copyright law, works published after 1978 remain protected for the life of the author plus seventy years after the death of the final surviving co-writer. Since Carey and Afanasieff are the credited writers, royalties for both the composition and the recording will continue for many decades. Only after copyright expiration would the work enter the public domain.
Carey has said she aimed to create a holiday track that would hold up over time rather than reflect a specific decade. The song’s performance over thirty years demonstrates that the approach succeeded.