Every #1 Song of 1989 (Billboard Hot 100) | Full Year in Order
All the #1 Songs of 1989 — The Final Blast of the 80s
Crank the boombox and rewind to 1989 — the year the 80s went out with power ballads, dance-pop, MTV polish, boy-band fever, big soundtrack emotion, and one last avalanche of Billboard Hot 100 #1 songs before the decade handed the keys to the 90s.
This Smells Like Gen X music rewind runs through every Billboard #1 hit from 1989 in exact chart order — from Poison’s “Every Rose Has Its Thorn” rolling in from late ’88 to Phil Collins’ “Another Day in Paradise” carrying the year into 1990. In between, you get Paula Abdul, Milli Vanilli, Madonna, Janet Jackson, Bon Jovi, Bobby Brown, Roxette, and a whole mall-jukebox worth of late-80s chaos.
1989 was a monster chart year: 32 different singles hit #1, with Paula Abdul and Milli Vanilli each scoring three number-one hits. The radio was crowded, MTV was glossy, and the decade was basically sprinting toward the finish line in acid-washed denim.
Watch the September 8, 1989 Top 5 Countdown
Want a single-week chart snapshot from the same year? Jump to the Top 5 Songs Today — September 8, 1989, featuring Richard Marx, Warrant, Gloria Estefan, Paula Abdul, and New Kids On The Block.
Keep Rewinding 1989
The #1 hits were only one piece of 1989. This was also the year of Batman, Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade, Lethal Weapon 2, Ghostbusters II, Game Boy, Nintendo, TMNT, late-80s TV comfort, end-of-decade fads, and pop culture basically emptying the 80s tank before the 90s took over.
A few chart-toppers from the 1989 lineup
Why this 1989 playlist still feels like the end of an era
Fun 1989 Billboard Hot 100 notes
All the Billboard #1 hits featured in this 1989 countdown
- Every Rose Has Its Thorn — Poison
- My Prerogative — Bobby Brown
- Two Hearts — Phil Collins
- When I’m with You — Sheriff
- Straight Up — Paula Abdul
- Lost in Your Eyes — Debbie Gibson
- The Living Years — Mike + the Mechanics
- Eternal Flame — The Bangles
- The Look — Roxette
- She Drives Me Crazy — Fine Young Cannibals
- Like a Prayer — Madonna
- I’ll Be There for You — Bon Jovi
- Forever Your Girl — Paula Abdul
- Rock On — Michael Damian
- Wind Beneath My Wings — Bette Midler
- I’ll Be Loving You (Forever) — New Kids on the Block
- Satisfied — Richard Marx
- Baby Don’t Forget My Number — Milli Vanilli
- Good Thing — Fine Young Cannibals
- If You Don’t Know Me by Now — Simply Red
- Toy Soldiers — Martika
- Batdance — Prince
- Right Here Waiting — Richard Marx
- Cold Hearted — Paula Abdul
- Hangin’ Tough — New Kids on the Block
- Don’t Wanna Lose You — Gloria Estefan
- Girl I’m Gonna Miss You — Milli Vanilli
- Miss You Much — Janet Jackson
- Listen to Your Heart — Roxette
- When I See You Smile — Bad English
- Blame It on the Rain — Milli Vanilli
- We Didn’t Start the Fire — Billy Joel
- Another Day in Paradise — Phil Collins
More 1989 Rewinds Are Waiting
If you dig these deep-cut chart runs, keep going through the final full year of the 80s with the September 8 Top 5 countdown, the year-end songs list, movies, TV shows, toys, fads, and more Smells Like Gen X nostalgia.
Topics: 1989 Billboard Hot 100 #1 songs, 1989 number one hits, every #1 song of 1989, Top 5 Songs Today September 8 1989, 80s music countdown, Poison Every Rose Has Its Thorn, Bobby Brown My Prerogative, Paula Abdul Straight Up, Milli Vanilli Baby Don’t Forget My Number, Madonna Like a Prayer, Bon Jovi I’ll Be There for You, Janet Jackson Miss You Much, New Kids on the Block Hangin Tough, Billy Joel We Didn’t Start the Fire, Phil Collins Another Day in Paradise, Gen X nostalgia, Smells Like Gen X.