Methodology: This was an impossible task. Ranking Taylor’s top songs is such a personal thing to do. It shows a lot about your general style and how you relate to music. We (Rachel and Molly) each made our own lists (appended to the bottom of this article) and then attempted to combine them to make one comprehensive OFD list. We had 13 songs that overlapped (Taylor would be proud) so those were put as the top 13. That left us each with 6 more songs to add so we went in order of what had been left off of our lists and that is how we came up with this top 25. I’m sure 80% of you won’t agree but that’s another reason why Taylor is so special – everyone can find something to love and be extremely passionate about any song in her extensive discography (over 100 songs!).
1. Blank Space (Blank Space)
I’m sorry but what person alive can’t relate to being completely insane in a relationship at some point? This song and music video broke the internet when it came out and Blank Space is still one of the most exciting hits in her discography. “So it’s gonna be forever / or it’s gonna go down in flames / you can tell me when it’s over / if the high was worth the pain” is a thought that probably goes through most people’s heads when they’re getting out of a relationship – Taylor’s ability to make a universal reality into a hit song is how she became so popular in the first place. – Rachel
2. All Too Well (Red)
I mean… this song. The lyrics, the ramp up at the end, her hair flipping as she passionately played this on the piano at the Grammys, the fact that it is supposedly written about dear, sweet Jake Gyllenhaal. It’s hard for me to go on without opening a huge can of worms. It is the emotional epicenter of Taylor’s younger love life! How could you not love it? – Molly
3. Red (Red)
Whenever I’m in a bad mood or need inspiration, I turn directly to this song. I think it has incredible depth while also being a bop. Her ability to use something as simple as color association to connect metaphors about passion embodies everything that makes Taylor special. – Rachel
*Just had to quickly add that I have synesthesia, connecting colors to emotions, so this song GETS ME. I have never felt so connected to a song in this way. – Molly
4. Delicate (reputation)
This song explains everything you wanted to know about how Taylor was feeling when she wrote this album. She describes how she felt at an extreme low as the general public dismissed her as fake, but was able to find solace in a new love and discover new things together even if it’s at a “dive bar on the East Side.” Side note: I live near dive bars on the East Side and I’ve never seen you Taylor – where you at? – Rachel
5. Love Story (Fearless)
It would feel wrong if the single that really launched Taylor into super-stardom didn’t make the top 10 on this list. I hate to use the term “OG” too liberally, but this really is the OG Taylor song. The last verse where she gets quiet before bursting into the chorus still slaps. – Rachel
6. You Belong With Me (Fearless)
A classic Swift song. Everyone knows the lyrics to this song by heart. We all have been in the place where we feel like we deserve our crush so much that we can’t help but compare every single thing about ourselves to their object of affection. It will always be a bop and a half, and that is the hill I am willing to die on. – Molly
7. Getaway Car (reputation)
This song reminds me of Carter Ishak. Hi Carter! You better be reading this. Carter is a former roommate, and somewhere down the road (get it… it’s about a car), this became our song! We have requested it at clubs, we have shrieked it in Starbucks drive-thrus, and filmed about 1,000 videos of us lip syncing it. This song is expertly produced by Jack Antonoff, lead singer of Bleachers, and his influence is clear. (He is also Lorde’s producer for most of her stuff, and that’s dope too). Pop perfection. – Molly
8. Enchanted (Speak Now)
There is something so naive about this song, but I love it. It’s such a moment of beginning to have a crush on someone, and we can all relate to that. Plus, the chorus totally slaps. It ramps up in that classic “wanting to sing in the rain” way that Taylor’s songs have the tendency to do, and I adore it. – Molly
9. Our Song (Taylor Swift)
That part where she takes an extra beat in the last verse “when we’re on the phone and you talk real slow [beat beat] cause it’s late and your mama don’t know” is enough to put this song so high up on this list for me. – Rachel
10. The Way I Loved You (Fearless)
As I recently discovered with one of my best friends, Allison, who is also an avid Swiftie, this song is a blast to belt in a car, when you’re driving way too fast and reminiscing on past loves! The chorus just makes you want to let it ALL out. – Molly
11. Tim McGraw (Taylor Swift)
This is Taylor’s first single and showed in touch with her emotions she was. Few people can articulate how they feel about something or someone let alone write a tune to accompany those feelings. I get full body chills when the drums and guitar kick up for the last time and she sings “when you think happiness / I hope you think that little black dress / think of my head on your chest / and my old faded blue jeans / when you think Tim McGraw / I hope you think of me” – Rachel
12. Mine (Speak Now)
This song just brings me back to middle school, scream-singing this song at socials at camp. This song feels like summertime, and it will forever hold a special place in my heart for crushes and first loves. – Molly
13. New Romantics (1989)
This was Taylor’s first moment of fighting back against the media, forming her own armor through song. This song feels like a dance party and makes me want to jump around and throw glitter everywhere and I think it just evokes her 1989 era in a brilliant way. – Molly
14. Lover (Lover)
Okay, hear me out. I know this JUST came out, but… I love it. It very nearly TOPPED my personal list, which is insane. But I feel like I’ve already listened to it 1,000,000 times! Taylor is bringing it back to Red vibes, and I am obsessed. She is SO in love, and you can feel it in the music and in the lyrics of this new era. She has either been proposed to, or maybe she and Joe secretly got married. I don’t know! I just know that Taylor Alison Swift is finally happy, and goddamnit, she deserves it. – Molly
15. I Almost Do (Red)
I know most people turn to All Too Well when they talk about the emotional crux of the Red album, but I turn to I Almost Do. The feeling of desperate yearning is something everyone can deeply relate to and her falsetto in the chorus hits me in the gut every time. – Rachel
16. New Years Day (reputation)
This is the kind of thing I’ve always dreamed about! A relationship so secure that it endures the crazy parties and flashy moments. It’s just as good on the quiet days. I think this is a beautiful song, and it’s a low-key moment on this album that warms my heart. Also her stacked harmonies are glorious. – Molly
17. Style (1989)
While I understand that this song is actually a commentary on beauty standards, instead it makes me think of how cool Taylor is. Everyone knows that famous Taylor red-lip and when she sings the chorus it makes me picture myself in a red-lip, leather jacket driving down the highway with the windows down. I love that this song can evoke that type of seductively fun feeling. – Rachel
18. Long Live (Speak Now)
I distinctly remember her medley of this song and New Year’s Day from the Reputation tour. Listening to this song, especially now, makes me want to give Taylor the biggest hug. This song celebrates her legacy, even as young as she was when she released it, and by god, she keeps on going. She’s about to turn 30, meaning she will have been writing songs and in the public eye for HALF of her existence. That’s insane, and it’s true, she will always be remembered. – Molly
19. Wildest Dreams (1989)
I always think this song combines Adele-like lyrics with Lana Del Ray’s attitude and Taylor Swift’s dream-pop style. “Say you’ll remember me even if it’s just in your wildest dreams” is at the same time slyly seductive and desperately sad. – Rachel
20. I Wish You Would (1989)
Everyone has regrets in life and this song embodies what it means for both people in a relationship to just want the other person to have done a few things differently so that maybe things wouldn’t have ended up the way they did. “You always knew how to push my buttons / you gave me everything and nothing / this mad, mad love makes you come rushing” helps you understand how complicated it can be when someone knows you so well that they know exactly how to make you upset. This song is also really fun with a good beat. – Rachel
21. Don’t Blame Me (reputation)
This was such a departure from anything I had ever heard from Taylor. It totally fits in canonically with Reputation’s vibe, but the EDM influences and production value are hard to ignore. It’s also another self-aware acknowledgement of Taylor’s “crazy” tendencies in love and life. We love a self-aware queen. There’s something that FULLY reminds me of Harley Quinn with this song. I don’t know if that’s a good thing, but I appreciate it, nonetheless. – Molly
22. State of Grace (Red)
First of all, the drumming at the beginning. It’s such a great beat, and hypes me UP. She belts a lot in this song, and it just gets me going. I use this song before auditions, because the rhythm pumps me up,but without being a negative song. – Molly
23. Fearless (Fearless)
This is some cute, country Taylor, and I love her! She’s so young and this song feels like falling in love. I want to dance with her in the middle of the parking lot! Is that too much to ask? – Molly
24. 22 (Red)
This could win my vote for the most purely fun Taylor song; unlike most of her songs there just isn’t much depth. It really was made just to be danced to in honor of Taylor feeling herself as she turned 22. Every time this song comes on I want to get up and dance around with my girlfriends and scream the lyrics at the top of my lungs. As a true basic white girl, I made my roommates in college listen to this song on repeat ALL DAY when I turned 22 and it never got old (at least for me, if not them). – Rachel
25. Teardrops On My Guitar (Taylor Swift)
This song was Love Story before there was Love Story. You can tell this was written by a teenager – the feeling that no one understands you because a boy is the end of your world and he has no idea. Also the staccato violin throughout the chorus paired with the acoustic guitar is unique pop-country that made Taylor so popular in the first place. – Rachel
Our Personal Lists:
Molly’s List
Disclaimer: I know my list is wild. It’s crazy. To be fair, I listened through all of Taylor’s songs to pick, and though some have been constant faves for years, these were the songs that spoke to me in the moment. I love this woman so much, and I have connected to so much of her music for so long, so it was all up to the FEELING. Of course, she has hundreds of bangers, so don’t take this too seriously.
- All Too Well (Red)
- Lover (Lover)
- Blank Space (1989)
- Our Song (Taylor Swift)
- Red (Red)
- Delicate (Reputation)
- New Year’s Day (Reputation)
- Love Story (Fearless)
- Long Live (Speak Now)
- You Belong With Me (Fearless)
- Enchanted (Speak Now)
- Getaway Car (Reputation)
- Don’t Blame Me (Reputation)
- State Of Grace (Red)
- Fearless (Fearless)
- The Way I Loved You (Fearless)
- Clean (1989)
- Begin Again (Red)
- Speak Now (Speak Now)
- Mean (Speak Now)
- Mine (Speak Now)
- I Did Something Bad (Reputation)
- Holy Ground (Red)
- Tim McGraw (Taylor Swift)
- New Romantics (1989)
Rachel’s List
I know there’s a lot of 1989 in the top 15. I just loved that album – I feel it was so authentically her. She was at the peak of her powers; both musically and in her celebrity. But I’ve loved Taylor for over 10 years and going back to fully listen through all 6 albums at once was a genuine treat and made me fully appreciate how impactful her music has been to me through the years. Making this list was difficult but I’d ride for any of these songs any day of the week.
- Red (Red)
- Blank Space (1989)
- I Almost Do (Red)
- Delicate (Reputation)
- Getaway Car (Reputation)
- Love Story (Fearless)
- Tim McGraw (Taylor Swift)
- Style (1989)
- Mine (Speak Now)
- All Too Well (Red)
- Wildest Dreams (1989)
- I Wish You Would (1989)
- Our Song (Taylor Swift)
- Enchanted (Speak Now)
- 22 (Red)
- The Way I Loved You (Fearless)
- You Belong With Me (Fearless)
- Teardrops on My Guitar (Taylor Swift)
- Dress (Reputation)
- Tell Me Why (Fearless)
- Everything Has Changed (ft. Ed Sheeran) (Red)
- The Story of Us (Speak Now)
- New Romantics (1989)
- The Archer (Lover)
- I’d Lie (Fearless)
Final Disclaimer: Rachel and Molly reserve the right to change their top 25 lists at any time depending on their levels of emotional turmoil.
