Music industry magazine Pollstar has reported that the top-earning rock bands on tour during the first half of 2026 were AC/DC, Eagles, Trans-Siberian Orchestra and Bruce Springsteen.
The Australian giants turned over $120.2 million, with 907,000 tickets sold for 15 shows at an average price of $132. With just over half the total figure, Eagles came second at $69.7million, selling 235,000 tickets at an average of $296, also over 15 shows.
Next came TSO, who played 109 shows and sold 774,000 tickets at an average of $78, bringing in a total of $60.4 million; while Springsteen and the E Street Band played 14 shows and made $58.4 million from 230,000 sales averaging $254 per ticket.
AC/DC were fourth in Pollstar’s overall chart, with Bad Bunny ($225 million), Lady Gaga ($209 million) and BTS ($139 million) ahead. Ed Sheeran ($105million), SEVENTEEN ($76 million) and Cardi B ($72 million) came ahead of Eagles, TSO and Springsteen.
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Pollstar noted: “Cumulative grosses and tickets sold… grew by more than 12 percent. Worldwide grosses hit $3.16billion, up 12.3 percent over 2025, while ticket sales increased 12.8 percent year-on-year to 26.3 million.
“North American grosses stayed constant at $1.92 billion, up 0.1 percent over 2025, with ticket sales up 2.5%. Per-show averages were down single digits, but mitigated by a surge in the number of shows.”
Andy Gensler, the publication’s editor, said: “It’s gratifying to see Pollstar’s record-setting mid-year data finally putting to rest this year’s so-called ‘blue dot fever,’ which erroneously claimed the live business was collapsing. Our data definitively shows otherwise.”
Pollstar’s list of top 10 artists in North America didn’t feature AC/DC, while Eagles, TSO and Springsteen – who played the region exclusively during the first half of 2026 – were ranked 5th, 6th and 7th overall.
Pollstar’s 2026 Mid-Year Worldwide Top Touring Artists
1. Bad Bunny: $225.1m; avg price $150, total sales 1.4m over 27 shows
2. Lady Gaga: $209.4m; avg $213; 982,530 tickets over 41 shows
3. BTS: $139.6m; avg $211; 661,216 tickets over 13 shows
4. AC/DC: $120.3m; avg $132; 907,831 tickets over 15 shows
5. Ed Sheeran: $105.1m; avg $129; 811,233 tickets over 21 shows
6. Seventeen: $75.9m; avg $141; 534,723 tickets over 18 shows
7. Cardi B: $72.1m; avg $155; 464,635 tickets over 36 shows
8. Eagles: $69.7m; avg $296; 235,458 tickets over 15 shows
9. TSO: $60.4m; avg $78; 774,057 tickets over 109 shows
10. Bruce Springsteen: $58.5m; avg $254; 229,678 tickets over 14 shows
The Oldest Rockers on Tour This Summer
They helped push rock into fun and interesting places – and they’ll still be out there doing it in the summer of 2026.
Gallery Credit: Nick DeRiso
