Michael Jackson's "Thriller" Could Be in the Running for Post-Halloween No. 1

Michael Jackson's "Thriller" could be among the contenders for the top spot on the Billboard Hot 100 after Halloween this year, according to a Billboard Chart Beat analysis published on 23 October 2026.

The Hot 100 is Billboard's weekly ranking of the most popular songs in the United States. It combines sales, radio airplay and streaming, so a song can climb as people buy it, play it on the radio or stream it more often.

"Thriller" has a long history on the chart. It first peaked at No. 4 in 1984. It first re-entered the Hot 100 on the chart dated Nov. 10, 2018, at No. 31, and it jumped to No. 19 in 2021 after returning in the 40s in 2019 and 2020. In November 2025, it reached No. 10, which Billboard described as the first Halloween seasonal favourite to return to the top 10.

Halloween songs have a track record at the top of the chart too. Bobby "Boris" Pickett and the Crypt-Kickers' "Monster Mash" spent two weeks at No. 1 at the end of October in 1962. Ray Parker Jr.'s "Ghostbusters" topped the Hot 100 in 1984, during its original run.

This year, Billboard writer Katie Atkinson said she is watching a song called "Dracula" for a Halloween bump that could shake up the October Hot 100. That song first entered the Hot 100 on the chart dated Oct. 11, 2025, according to Billboard.

Jackson's album Thriller has its own chart history. It spent 37 weeks at No. 1 on the Billboard 200, the album chart, in 1983 and 1984, a record at the time.

For listeners, the seasonal pattern is simple. Each October, people go back to certain songs, and those plays and purchases show up in the weekly count. A song that returns to the chart every year is, in the end, a lot of people choosing to press play again.

The final positions will appear on the Hot 100 charts Billboard publishes each week.