A definitive ranking of all of Taylor Swift’s songs

Published March 18, 2021

By EMMA BROWN AND RILEY PALSHAW

As two die-hard Taylor Swift fans, we felt that it was our civic duty to provide our readers with the most controversial article of the year: a definitive ranking of all of Taylor Swift’s songs, including each track’s most memorable lyric. 

148. “A Place In This World”

“Maybe I’m just a girl on a mission/ But I’m ready to fly”

This song is, in the wise words of Tim Gunn, “[not] cohesive.”

147. “Sad Beautiful Tragic”

“Words, how little they mean/ When you’re a little too late”

146. “I’m Only Me When I’m With You”

“I’m only up when you’re not down/ Don’t wanna fly if you’re still on the ground”

145. “Tied Together With a Smile”

“Hoping it will end up in his pocket/ But he leaves you out like a penny in the rain”

144. “I Forgot That You Existed”

“I forgot that you existed/ And I thought that it would kill me, but it didn’t”

143. “The Other Side of the Door”

“Me and my stupid pride sittin’ here alone/ Going through the photographs, staring at the phone/ I keep going back over the things we both said”

142. “SuperStar”

“I am no one special/ Just another wide-eyed girl/ Who’s desperately in love with you”

141. “Change”

“We’re getting stronger now/ Find things they never found”

140. “Tell Me Why”

“You tell me that you want me, then push me around/ And I need you like a heartbeat/ But you know you got a mean streak/ Makes me run for cover when you’re around”

139. “Invisible”

“And all I think about is how to make you think of me,/ And everything that we could be./ I just wanna show you/ She don’t even know you,/ She’s never gonna love you like I want to. ”

138. “You Need to Calm Down”

“And we see you over there on the internet/ Comparing all the girls who are killing it/ But we figured you out/ We all know now, we all got crowns”

137. “The Outside”

“How can I ever try to be better?/ Nobody ever lets me in/ And I can still see you, this ain’t the best view/ On the outside looking in”

136. “Bad Blood”

“Did you think we’d be fine?/ Still got scars on my back from your knife/ So don’t think it’s in the past/ These kind of wounds they last and they last”

If there is one music video I would show my children, it would be the masterpiece Taylor created for this song. 

135. “Me!” feat. Brendan Urie

“I know I tend to make it about me/ I know you never get just what you see/ But I will never bore you, baby”

134. “This Is Why We Can’t Have Nice Things”

“Here’s a toast to my real friends/ They don’t care about the he said, she said/ And here’s to my baby/ He ain’t reading what they call me lately”

133. “Stay Stay Stay”

“You took the time to memorize me/ My fears, my hopes and dreams”

132. “Breathe” feat. Cobie Callet

“And we know it’s never simple,/ Never easy/ Never a clean break, no one here to save me/ You’re the only thing I know like the back of my hand”

131. “Our Song”

“I’ve heard every album, listened to the radio/ Waited for something to come along/ That was as good as our song”

130. “22”

“It feels like one of those nights/ You look like bad news/ I gotta have you”

129. “Welcome to New York”

“Kaleidoscope of loud heartbeats under coats”

128. “If This Was A Movie”

“Come back, come back, come back to me like/ You could, you could if you just said you’re sorry”

127. “Mary’s Song (Oh My My My)”

“I looked at you like the stars that shine/ In the sky, the pretty lights”

This would be one of my favorite songs, if it weren’t so violently country-esque. 

126. “Look What You Made Me Do”

“Honey, I rose up from the dead, I do it all the time”

125. “Shake It Off”

“I go on too many dates/ But I can’t make ’em stay”

124. “Girl At Home”

“I see you turn off your phone/ And now you got me alone”

123. “I Think He Knows’

“I am an architect, I’m drawing up the plans/ He’s so obsessed with me, and boy I understand”

122. “End Game” feat. Future and Ed Sheeran

“Reputation precedes me, they told you I’m crazy/ I swear I don’t love the drama, it loves me”

121. “seven”

“I think you should come live with me/ And we can be pirates/ Then you won’t have to cry/ Or hide in the closet”

120. “Jump Then Fall”

“The bottom’s gonna drop out from under our feet/ I’ll catch you, I’ll catch you”

119. “How You Get the Girl”

“Broke your heart, I’ll put it back together/ I would wait for ever and ever”

Emma dressed up as a boy and lip-synced to this song. Yes, we are music video producers too. 

118. “Hey Stephen”

“The way you walk/ Way you talk/ Way you say my name/ It’s beautiful, wonderful/ Don’t you ever change”

117. “Tim McGraw”

“When you think happiness/ I hope you think “that little black dress”/ Think of my head on your chest”

116. “The Best Day”

“Past the pumpkin patch and the tractor rides, look now, the sky is gold/ I hug your legs and fall asleep on the way home”

115. “New Romantics”

“’Cause baby, I could build a castle/ Out of all the bricks they threw at me”

114. “Speak Now”

“Baby, I didn’t say my vows/ So glad you were around/ When they said speak now”

113. “You’re Not Sorry”

“And you got your share of secrets/ And I’m tired of being last to know”

112.  “London Boy”

“But something happened, I heard him laughing/ I saw the dimples first and then I heard the accent/ They say home is where the heart is/ But that’s not where mine lives”

111. “Dancing With Our Hands Tied”

“I could’ve spent forever with your hands in my pockets/ Picture of your face in an invisible locket”

110. “Picture to Burn”

“There’s no time for tears/ I’m just sitting here planning my revenge”

109. “Never Grown Up”

“I just realized everything I have is someday gonna be gone”

Seniors, this is the song for you. 

108. “Ours”

“So don’t you worry your pretty, little mind/ People throw rocks at things that shine/ And life makes love look hard”

107. “Teardrops On My Guitar”

“And there he goes, so perfectly,/ The kind of flawless I wish I could be”

106. “We Are Never Ever Getting Back Together”

“And you would hide away and find your peace of mind/ With some indie record that’s much cooler than mine”

105. “Stay Beautiful”

“And when you find everything you’ve looked for/ I hope your love leads you back to my door”

104. “marjorie”

“The autumn chill that wakes me up/ You loved the amber skies so much”

103. “closure”

“Don’t treat me like some situation that needs to be handled/ I’m fine with my spite/ And my tears/ And my beers and my candles”

102. “Miss Americana and the Heartbreak Prince”

“Boys will be boys, then/ Where are the wise men?”

Shockingly, this song is a political commentary. And here I was thinking it was about high school. 

101. “White Horse”

“This is a big world, that was a small town/ There in my rear-view mirror disappearing now”

100. “Wonderland”

“I reached for you/ But you were gone/ I knew I had to go back home/ You search the world for something else/ To make you feel like what we had”

99. “it’s time to go – bonus track”

“15 years, 15 million tears/ Begging ’til my knees bled/ I gave it my all, he gave me nothing at all/ Then wondered why I left”

98. “This Love”

“In losing grip/ On sinking ships/ You showed up just in time”

97. “It’s Nice to Have a Friend”

“Light pink sky up on the roof/ Sun sinks down, no curfew”

96. “invisible string”

“Time, mystical time/ Cuttin’ me open, then healin’ me fine”

Do soulmates exist? Taylor says, “Yes.”

95. “New Years Day”

“Don’t read the last page/ But I stay when it’s hard or it’s wrong or you’re making mistakes”

94. “willow”

“Wait for the signal and I’ll meet you after dark/ Show me the places where the others gave you scars”

93. “Long Live”

“If you have children some day/ When they point to the pictures/ Please tell them my name”

92. “Should Have Said No”

“And I should’ve been there/ In the back of your mind/ I shouldn’t be asking myself why”

91. “Afterglow”

“I lived like an island, punished you with silence/ Went off like sirens, just crying/ Why’d I have to break what I love so much?”

90. “Begin Again”

“Thinking all love ever does/ Is break and burn, and end/ But on a Wednesday in a cafe/ I watched it begin again”

89. “Everything Has Changed” feat. Ed Sheeran

“’Cause all I know is we said, “Hello”/ And your eyes look like comin’ home”

88. “Starlight”

“’Don’t you see the starlight, starlight/ Don’t you dream impossible things’”

87. “Mean”

“I walk with my head down/ Trying to block you out, ’cause I’ll never impress you/ I just wanna feel okay again”

A request for when we graduate: Play this song when we walk across the stage. 

86. “Untouchable”

“In the middle of the night/ When I’m in this dream/ It’s like/ A million little stars/ Spelling out your name”

85. “’tis the damn season”

“Time flies, messy as the mud on your truck tires/ Now I’m missing your smile, hear me out/ We could just ride around”

84. “The Archer”

“I wake in the night, I pace like a ghost/ The room is on fire, invisible smoke/ And all of my heroes die all alone/ Help me hold onto you”

83. “I Almost Do”

“I bet/ It never ever occurred to you/ That I can’t say “Hello” to you/ And risk another goodbye”

82. “The Moment I Knew”

“I try not to fall apart/ And the sinking feeling starts/ As I say hopelessly/ ‘He said he’d be here’”

81. “Better Than Revenge”

“She looks at life like it’s a party and she’s on the list/ She looks at me like I’m a trend and she’s so over it”

80. “Fearless”

“But you’re just so cool/ Run your hands through your hair/ Absent mindedly makin’ me want you”

79. “Fifteen”

“I’ve found time can heal most anything/ And you just might find who you’re supposed to be/ I didn’t know who I was supposed to be/ At fifteen”

From two 15-year-olds, yeah, this song sums up the whole experience. 

78. “Gorgeous”

“You should think about the consequence/ Of your magnetic field being a little too strong”

77. “Red”

“Remembering him comes in flashbacks and echoes/ Tell myself it’s time now gotta let go”

76. “Call It What You Want”

“And I know I make the same mistakes every time/ Bridges burn, I never learn, at least I did one thing right”

75. “mad woman”

“The master of spin has a couple side flings/ Good wives always know/ She should be mad, should be scathing like me, but/ No one likes a mad woman”

74. “dorothea”

“But it’s never too late/ To come back to my side/ The stars in your eyes/ Shined brighter in Tupelo”

73. “The Lucky One”

“They say you bought a bunch of land somewhere/ Chose the Rose Garden over Madison Square”

72. “the 1”

“And if my wishes came true/ It would’ve been you”

71. “Daylight”

“I don’t wanna look at anything else now that I saw you/ (I can never look away)/ I don’t wanna think of anything else now that I thought of you/ (Things will never be the same)”

70. “Mine”

“Do you remember all the city lights on the water?/ You saw me start to believe, for the first time/ You made a rebel of a careless man’s careful daughter”

69. “The Way I Loved You”

“Breakin’ down and coming undone/ It’s a roller-coaster kinda rush/ And I never knew I could feel that much”

68. “Dress”

“Flashback to my mistakes/ My rebounds, my earthquakes/ Even in my worst lies, you saw the truth of me/ And I woke up just in time/ Now I wake up by your side”

67. “Story of Us”

“Oh, I’m scared to see the ending/ Why are we pretending this is nothing?/ I’d tell you I miss you, but I don’t know how/ I never heard silence quite this loud”

66. “gold rush”

“I don’t like slow motion double vision in rose blush/ I don’t like that falling feels like flying ’til the bone crush”

A song for that one person you just can’t get over. 

65. “ …Ready For It?”

“Me, I was a robber first time that he saw me/ Stealing hearts and running off and never saying sorry”

64. “I Did Something Bad”

“But if he drops my name, then I owe him nothin’/ And if he spends my change, then he had it comin’”

The best song for when you know your worth. Or if you have a god complex.

63. “Back to December”

“I’d go back in time and change it, but I can’t/ So if the chain is on your door, I understand”

62. “hoax”

“Your faithless love’s the only hoax/ I believe in”

61. “Forever and Always”

“’Cause it rains in your bedroom/ Everything is wrong/ It rains when you’re here and it rains when you’re gone”

60. “Treacherous”

“Your name has echoed through my mind/ And I just think you should, think you should know/ That nothing safe is worth the drive”

59. “The Man”

“I’m so sick of running as fast I can/ Wondering if I’d get there quicker/ If I was a man”

58. “the lakes – bonus track”

“While I bathe in cliffside pools/ With my calamitous love and insurmountable grief”

57. “Superman”

“’Cause I loved you from the very first day/ I watch superman fly away/ You’ve got a busy day today to save the world/ I’ll be around forever and ever here”

THE most underrated Taylor Swift song. We’ve had some good dance parties to this song.

56. “long story short”

“Past me/ I wanna tell you not to get lost in these petty things/ Your nemeses/ Will defeat themselves before you get the chance to swing”

55. “Paper Rings”

“I hate accidents except when we went from friends to this”

54. “Soon You’ll Get Better” feat. The Dixie Chicks

“Holy orange bottles, each night I pray to you”

53. “I Wish You Would”

“And I wish you were right here, right now/ It’s all good/ I wish you would”

52. “State of Grace”

“Just twin fire signs, four blue eyes/ So you were never a saint/ And I’ve loved in shades of wrong”

51. “evermore” feat. Bon Iver

“I rewind the tape but all it does is pause/ On the very moment all was lost/ Sending signals/ To be double crossed”

50. “You Belong With Me”

“Standing by and waiting at your backdoor/ All this time how could you not know, baby?”

49. “False God”

“And you can’t talk to me when I’m like this/ Daring you to leave me just so I can try and scare you”

48. “mirrorball”

“I’m still a believer but I don’t know why/ I’ve never been a natural/ All I do is try, try, try”

47. “Cornelia Street”

“And baby, I get mystified by how this city screams your name”

46. “the last great american dynasty”

“There goes the most shameless woman this town has ever seen/ She had a marvelous time ruining everything”

45. “Sparks Fly”

“The way you move is like a full on rainstorm/ And I’m a house of cards”

If you’re captivated by everything about a person, I suggest you press play.

44. “this is me trying”

“And it’s hard to be at a party/ When I feel like an open wound/ It’s hard to be anywhere these days/ When all I want is you”

43. “So It Goes”

“I’m yours to keep/ And I’m yours to lose”

42. “Come Back. . . Be Here”

“The delicate beginning rush/ The feeling you can know so much/ Without knowing anything at all”

41. “Wildest Dreams”

“His hands are in my hair, his clothes are in my room/ And his voice is a familiar sound/ Nothing lasts forever but this is getting good now”

40. “no body, no crime” feat. HAIM

“She says, “That ain’t my merlot on his mouth”/ “That ain’t my jewelry on our joint account’”

39. “Delicate”

“Handsome, you’re a mansion with a view”

Being in love with your friend is hard. This song can help.

38. “peace”

“But I’m a fire and I’ll keep your brittle heart warm/ If your cascade ocean wave blues come”

37. “King of my Heart”

“Late in the night, the city’s asleep/ Your love is a secret I’m hoping, dreaming, dying to keep”

36. “Haunted”

“Oh, I’m holding my breath/ Won’t lose you again/ Something’s made your eyes go cold”

35. “I Know Places”

“And you know for me it’s always you/ I know places/ In the dead of night, your eyes so green”

34. “Don’t Blame Me”

“And baby, for you, I would fall from grace/ Just to touch your face”

33. “Clean”

“Hung my head, as I lost the war, and the sky turned black like a perfect storm”

32. “Cold as You”

“And you come away with a great little story/ Of a mess of a dreamer with the nerve to adore you”

31. “Love Story”

“You’ll be the prince and I’ll be the princess/ It’s a love story, baby, just say, ‘Yes’”

Why did we read “Romeo and Juliet” freshman year when we could have just listened to this song?

30. “epiphany”

“And some things you just can’t speak about”

29. “Style”

“He says ‘What you’ve heard is true but I/ Can’t stop thinking about you’ and I/ I said ‘I’ve been there too a few times’”

28. “Holy Ground”

“Back when you fit in my poems like a perfect rhyme”

27. “cowboy like me”

“Now you hang from my lips/ Like the Gardens of Babylon/ With your boots beneath my bed/ Forever is the sweetest con”

26. “Cruel Summer”

“Said I’m fine, but it wasn’t true/ I don’t wanna keep secrets just to keep you”

25. “ivy”

“Crescent moon, coast is clear/ Spring breaks loose, but so does fear/ He’s gonna burn this house to the ground”

24. “Lover”

“My heart’s been borrowed and yours has been blue/ All’s well that ends well to end up with you”

23. “I Knew You Were Trouble”

“And I heard you moved on/ From whispers on the street/ A new notch in your belt/ Is all I’ll ever be”

If you’ve been played by the biggest player in the school, we would recommend listening to this song.

22. “All You Had to Do Was Stay”

“Had me in the palm of your hand/ Then why’d you have to go and lock me out when I let you in?”

21. “Innocent”

“It’s alright, just wait and see/ Your string of lights is still bright to me/ Oh, who you are is not where you’ve been”

20. “Out of the Woods”

“The rest of the world was black and white/ But we were in screaming color”

19. “august”

“Back when we were still changin’ for the better/ Wanting was enough/ For me, it was enough”

18. “coney island” feat. The National

“And do you miss the rogue/ Who coaxed you into paradise and left you there?”

17. “The Last Time” feat. Gary Lightbody

“You find yourself at my door/ Just like all those times before/ You wear your best apology/ But I was there to watch you leave”

16. “illicit affairs”

“Don’t call me kid/ Don’t call me baby/ Look at this godforsaken mess that you made me”

15. “Blank Space”

“But you’ll come back each time you leave/ ‘Cause, darling, I’m a nightmare dressed like a daydream’”

This song is a response to how the media treated Taylor Swift. Destroy the tabloids, Taylor. 

14. “You are in Love”

“And you understand now why they lost their minds and fought the wars/ And why I’ve spent my whole life tryin’ to put it into words”

13. “Death by a Thousand Cuts”

“Quiet my fears with the touch of your hand/ Paper cut stings from our paper thin plans”

12. “betty”

“If you kiss me, will it be just like I dreamed it?/ Will it patch your broken wings?”

11. “right where you left me – bonus track”

“Did you hear about the girl who lives in delusion?/ Break-ups happen every day, you don’t have to lose it”

10. “my tears ricochet”

“Cursing my name, wishing I stayed/ You turned into your worst fears/ And you’re tossing out blame, drunk on this pain/ Crossing out the good years”

This song is the female version of punching a hole in the wall. 

9. “exile” feat. Bon Iver

“I can see you starin’, honey/ Like he’s just your understudy/ Like you’d get your knuckles bloody for me”

The older sister to “Story of Us.”

8. “Enchanted”

“This night is sparkling, don’t you let it go/ I’m wonder struck, blushing all the way home”

Remember that feeling of realizing how cool someone is, but then worrying that maybe they’re too good for you? We certainly do, and so does Taylor. 

7. “cardigan”

“You drew stars around my scars/ But now I’m bleedin’”

Betty, you have our permission to smash James’ skateboard. 

6. “champagne problems”

“Your Midas touch on the Chevy door/ November flush and your flannel cure”

Laurie and Jo from “Little Women” vibes.

5. “Dear John”

“You are an expert at sorry,/ And keeping the lines blurry/ Never impressed by me acing your tests”

John Mayer, Carmel is not a safe place for you.

4. “Last Kiss”

“So I’ll watch your life in pictures like I used to watch you sleep/ And I feel you forget me like I used to feel you breathe”

Listen to this song while sobbing on your floor. It adds some depth to the lyrics. 

3. “Getaway Car”

“I left you in the motel bar/ Put the money in a bag and I stole the keys/ That was the last time you ever saw me”

POV: You’re Taylor Swift’s car. 

2. “tolerate it”

“Break free and leave us in ruins/ Took this dagger in me and removed it/ Gain the weight of you then lose it/ Believe me, I could do it”

The way she captures the ultimate pain of abandonment: *chef’s kiss*

1. “All Too Well”

“And you call me up again/ Just to break me like a promise/ So casually cruel in the name of being honest/ I’m a crumpled up piece of paper lying here”

This song is the reason why we hate He Who Must Not Be Named (Jake Gyllenhal). Jake, Taylor would like her scarf back ASAP.