25 of the Highest-Grossing Broadway Shows Ever

New York City is home to many amazing landmarks, but for theater fans, nothing compares to Broadway. The 41 active Broadway theaters — i.e., Studio 54, the Hirschfeld Theater, the New Amsterdam Theatre — have put this part of town on the map as an international performing arts destination.

Many of the most talented artists of all time have graced Broadway stages, starring in shows like “Wicked” and “Hamilton.” Of course, as with all shows, some are much more successful than others, and some, such as “The Lion King” and “Phantom of the Opera,” have continued to sell box office seats for decades, due to their popularity.

GOBankingRates conducted a study to find out which Broadway shows of past and present have been the most profitable. Many are still active, so next time you’re in the Big Apple you’ll want to add at least one to your itinerary (though check with theaters about Covid-19 protocols).

Think you can guess which shows made the cut? Drumroll, please — here’s a look at the 25 highest-grossing Broadway shows of all time.

• Total Gross: $183.51 million
• Average Ticket Price: $102
• Seats Sold: 1.78 million
• Total Performances: 1,352
• Original Broadway Run: Nov. 13, 2008-Jan. 8, 2012
• Revival Run(s): N/A

• Total Gross: $184.78 million
• Average Ticket Price: $116
• Seats Sold: 1.58 million
• Total Performances: 1,699
• Original Broadway Run: April 24, 2016-January 5, 2020
• Revival Run(s): September 2, 2021-December 20, 2021

• Total Gross: $193.60 million
• Average Ticket Price: $123
• Seats Sold: 1.55 million
• Total Performances: 1,532
• Original Broadway Run: March 12, 2017-present
• Revival Run(s): N/A

• Total Gross: $198.20 million
• Average Ticket Price: $94
• Seats Sold: 2.10 million
• Total Performances: 1,591
• Original Broadway Run: April 11, 2013-Jan. 1, 2017
• Revival Run(s): N/A

• Total Gross: $212.41 million
• Average Ticket Price: $101
• Seats Sold: 2.10 million
• Total Performances: 1,248
• Original Broadway Run: June 14, 2011-Jan. 4, 2014
• Revival Run(s): N/A

• Total Gross: $252.20 million
• Average Ticket Price: $73
• Seats Sold: 3.42 million
• Total Performances: 2,673
• Original Broadway Run: Aug. 15, 2002-Jan. 4, 2009
• Revival Run(s): N/A

• Total Gross: $256.20 million
• Average Ticket Price: $168
• Seats Sold: 1.51 million
• Total Performances: 1,548
• Original Broadway Run: Dec. 4, 2016-present
• Revival Run(s): N/A

• Total Gross: $270.51 million
• Average Ticket Price: $117
• Seats Sold: 2.30 million
• Total Performances: 2,476
• Original Broadway Run: Jan. 12, 2014-Oct. 27, 2019
• Revival Run(s): N/A

• Total Gross: $274.25 million
• Average Ticket Price: $54
• Seats Sold: 5.03 million
• Total Performances: 5,139
• Original Broadway Run: April 29, 1996-Sept. 7, 2008
• Revival Run(s): N/A

• Total Gross: $288.40 million
• Average Ticket Price: $78
• Seats Sold: 3.70 million
• Total Performances: 2,535
• Original Broadway Run: April 19, 2001-April 22, 2007
• Revival Run(s): N/A

• Total Gross: $294.56 million
• Average Ticket Price: $75
• Seats Sold: 3.90 million
• Total Performances: 2,649
• Original Broadway Run: Nov. 16, 2006-March 3, 2013
• Revival Run(s): N/A

• Total Gross: $319 million
• Average Ticket Price: $105
• Seats Sold: 3 million
• Total Performances: 2,539
• Original Broadway Run: April 4, 2013-April 7, 2019
• Revival Run(s): N/A

• Total Gross: $322.10 million
• Average Ticket Price: $28
• Seats Sold: 6.60 million
• Total Performances: 4,475
• Original Broadway Run: April 11, 1991-Jan. 28, 2001
• Revival Run(s): March 23, 2017-Jan. 14, 2018

• Total Gross: $406.30 million
• Average Ticket Price: $23
• Seats Sold: 8.93 million
• Total Performances: 6,691
• Original Broadway Run: March 12, 1987-May 18, 2003
• Revival Run(s): Nov. 9, 2006-Jan. 6, 2008 & March 23, 2014-Sept. 4, 2016

• Total Gross: $429.16 million
• Average Ticket Price: $50
• Seats Sold: 7.61 million
• Total Performances: 5,507
• Original Broadway Run: April 18, 1994-July 29, 2007
• Revival Run(s): N/A

• Total Gross: $432 million
• Average Ticket Price: $20
• Seats Sold: 9.33 million
• Total Performances: 7,401
• Original Broadway Run: Oct. 7, 1982-Sept. 10, 2000
• Revival Run(s): July 31, 2016-Dec. 30, 2017

• Total Gross: $492.89 million
• Average Ticket Price: $106
• Seats Sold: 4.63 million
• Total Performances: 2,758
• Original Broadway Run: March 20, 2014-present
• Revival Run(s): N/A

• Total Gross: $558.42 million
• Average Ticket Price: $107
• Seats Sold: 5.20 million
• Total Performances: 4,680
• Original Broadway Run: Nov. 6, 2005-Jan. 15, 2017
• Revival Run(s): N/A

• Total Gross: $624.40 million
• Average Ticket Price: $82
• Seats Sold: 7.60 million
• Total Performances: 5,772
• Original Broadway Run: Oct. 18, 2001-Sept. 15, 2015
• Revival Run(s): N/A

• Total Gross: $687.18 million
• Average Ticket Price: $158
• Seats Sold: 4.32 million
• Total Performances: 3,993
• Original Broadway Run: March 24, 2011-present
• Revival Run(s): N/A

• Total Gross: $700.75 million
• Average Ticket Price: $73
• Seats Sold: 9.71 million
• Total Performances: 9,977
• Original Broadway Run: June 3, 1975-Aug. 27, 1977
• Revival Run(s): Nov. 14, 1996-present

• Total Gross: $727.84 million
• Average Ticket Price: $247
• Seats Sold: 2.95 million
• Total Performances: 2,205
• Original Broadway Run: Aug. 6, 2015-present
• Revival Run(s): N/A

• Total Gross: $1.30 billion
• Average Ticket Price: $55
• Seats Sold: 19.60 million
• Total Performances: 13,611
• Original Broadway Run: Jan. 26, 1988-present
• Revival Run(s): N/A

• Total Gross: $1.43 billion
• Average Ticket Price: $112
• Seats Sold: 12.70 million
• Total Performances: 7,128
• Original Broadway Run: Oct. 20, 2003-present
• Revival Run(s): N/A

• Total Gross: $1.74 billion
• Average Ticket Price: $108
• Seats Sold: 16.14 million
• Total Performances: 9,600
• Original Broadway Run: Nov. 13, 1997-present
• Revival Run(s): N/A

Jordan Rosenfeld contributed to the reporting for this article.

Methodology: For this support piece, GOBankingRates used BroadwayWorld.com and the Internet Broadway Database (IBDB), which both source their data from The Broadway League, in order to find the top 25 highest grossing Broadway productions of all time. For each production, GOBankingRates found: (1) show name; (2) total gross for original runs and revivals as of May 15, 2022; (3) average ticket price; (4) seats sold; (5) total performances including previews; as well as (6) the dates of the original run of the productions and any revivals. All data is up to date as of May 18, 2022 and only includes data for the Broadway productions of each show, national tours and other such runs were not included in final data.