Ed Sheeran - 2025's Most played artist

Dominating the airwaves

Story by Ben Avery

28/05/2026

Ed Sheeran has once again done what Ed Sheeran always seems to do: quietly (or not so quietly) dominate the British airwaves until resistance feels almost academic. According to fresh PPL data for 2025, the Suffolk hitmaker has been crowned the most played artist across UK radio, television and public venues. His eighth win in just eleven years.

It’s a stat that lands with the dull inevitability of a chart-topper you’ve heard six times before in a single taxi ride. Since first hitting No.1 in 2015, Sheeran has barely vacated the upper tier of the Most Played Artists list, lingering in the top three since 2017 and reclaiming the summit in 2023 before returning again this year with trademark persistence. PPL, the organisation responsible for licensing recorded music across UK broadcast and public spaces, gathers its data from an exhaustingly wide network: radio stations, TV broadcasters, shops, gyms, bars, restaurants, warehouses and anywhere else music is used to lubricate modern life. That usage translates directly into revenue for performers and rights holders, with more than 182,000 beneficiaries receiving distributions from last year’s airplay. Sheeran’s presence in that ecosystem is less a spike than a weather system. On average, his music was played 574 times a day in 2025, roughly 24 times an hour. His most dominant track of the year, “Sapphire”, accounted for 19% of that airplay, followed by “Azizam” and “Camera”. And then, looming over everything like a long shadow cast from 2017, “Shape Of You” continues its own immortal run, still averaging 37 plays a day. Behind him, Taylor Swift held firm at No.2 for a third consecutive year, while Dua Lipa slipped to No.3 after topping the chart last time out. Calvin Harris and David Guetta completed the top five, with Coldplay and Elton John reinforcing the enduring grip of UK talent across the wider top ten. Sheeran, for his part, responded with characteristic understatement: “I am so grateful… I really appreciate the continuing support.” If the artist chart tells a story of consolidation, the Most Played Tracks list tells one of flux. Myles Smith led the pack with “Nice To Meet You”, followed by Lola Young’s “Messy” and Alex Warren’s “Ordinary”. Sam Fender, ROSÉ & Bruno Mars, Benson Boone, Chappell Roan, and Smith again all populated a top ten that felt distinctly shaped by newer voices pushing into mainstream rotation. Notably, UK artists claimed six of the top ten tracks, suggesting that while global pop continues to dominate, domestic talent is far from background noise. PPL CEO Peter Leathem described the year as one defined by both “firm fan favourites” and “new artists breaking through”, a polite way of saying the system is currently balancing heritage superstardom with a fresh crop of streaming-era contenders. Still, one thing remains constant: wherever music is playing in Britain, there’s a good chance Ed Sheeran is already there, looping quietly in the background like a familiar ghost in the machine.