Nothing ushers in the holiday spirit like blasting festive music on the drive to the mall, the office party or Grandma’s house.
Every December, holiday streaming numbers skyrocket, with classics old and new dominating car stereos across the country. But those same beloved songs might be doing more than lifting your mood. They could be affecting how you drive without you realizing it.
Researchers have long noted that music with certain tempos or intensities can change a driver’s speed, focus and reaction time. Add in holiday stress, traffic and unpredictable winter weather, and the soundtrack you pick becomes more important than ever.
That’s why researchers at Pulsz analyzed 100 of Spotify’s most-streamed holiday songs, ranking each track using three factors known to influence driver behavior: tempo (BPM), loudness (decibels) and danceability.
Leading the list is Dean Martin’s “Let It Snow! Let It Snow! Let It Snow!,” which earns the highest distraction score due to its lively 134 BPM tempo, moderate danceability and louder-than-expected audio profile. This creates a listening experience energetic enough to encourage quicker driving without the listener necessarily noticing.
In second place is Bing Crosby’s “The Little Drummer Boy,” whose steady percussion, stronger 64 percent danceability and one of the highest volume rankings in the study make it significantly more stimulating than its calm tone implies. Modern favorite Dasha’s “Driving Home for Christmas” lands in third place, topping the entire dataset in danceability while also being one of the loudest tracks analyzed, a combination that can easily pull a driver’s focus into the beat.
The contrast in style continues through the rest of the top five. Crosby reappears with “Do You Hear What I Hear?,” a track that compensates for its slower tempo with a notably high danceability score that encourages listeners to move along with the melody. East 17’s ’90s ballad “Stay Another Day” rounds out the top five with a brisk 128 BPM and elevated loudness, both of which can heighten alertness to the point where drivers become inconsistent with speed or over-responsive to the road. Idina Menzel and Michael Bublé’s version of “Baby, It’s Cold Outside” ranks sixth with a powerful mix profile, blending a midtempo beat with high volume that keeps listeners mentally engaged enough to shift attention away from driving tasks.
The final four songs in the top 10, Bublé’s “Christmas [Baby Please Come Home],” Nat King Cole’s “Joy to the World” and the tied ninth-place tracks “Here Comes Santa Claus” by Gene Autry and “Sleigh Ride” by The Ronettes, reveal how rhythm, tempo and volume blend to shape distraction.
Bublé’s entry stands out with one of the faster BPMs in the top tier, while Cole’s smoother arrangement still carries enough rhythmic stability to subtly influence pacing.
Meanwhile, Autry’s vintage 1947 recording makes the list partly because its extremely low volume encourages drivers to turn the music up, and “Sleigh Ride’s” bouncy orchestration delivers a tempo that naturally syncs with driving speed.