Beyoncé, Taylor or Adele? Who’s the Real Queen of the Grammys?

Beyoncé, Taylor Swift and Adele have all had big nights at the Grammy Awards, but who is the real queen of the Grammys? Beyoncé has won the most Grammys of anyone in history (32) and is tied with her husband and frequent collaborator Jay-Z for the most nominations of anyone in history (88), so you could say she is by definition the queen of the Grammys. Few would argue with that, and yet…

Only one of Beyoncé’s Grammys has come in a “Big Four” category – album, record and song of the year plus best new artist. That happened when “Single Ladies (Put a Ring on It)” won song of the year in 2010. Fully three-quarters of Beyoncé’s Grammys (24 of 32) have come in the R&B and rap fields.

Adele has won seven Grammys in the “Big Four” categories – more than Swift and Beyoncé combined. Adele is also the only one of these three women who won best new artist. Swift was nominated but lost to Amy Winehouse. Beyoncé wasn’t eligible when she released her first solo album in 2003 because she was already a star (and a three-time Grammy winner) by virtue of her role in Destiny’s Child.

Swift is one of only four artists – and the only woman – to have won album of the year three times. The other three-time album of the year winners are Grammy GOATs Frank Sinatra, Stevie Wonder and Paul Simon. Swift could be headed for an unprecedented fourth win in that category when the 66th annual Grammy Awards are presented on Feb. 4.

So, who is the real queen of the Grammys? As with many things in life, that depends on how you look at it and what criteria you consider most important. Here are the relevant stats, updated through the 65th Annual Grammy Awards, so you can arrive at your own conclusion.

Notes: The women are ranked from most to least nominations or awards in each category, so their order shifts. The “general field,” referenced below, is the Recording Academy’s terminology for the Big Four categories.