An Updated Taylor Swift Album Ranking + Taylor’s Version Vs The Original

By Kayla Harper

Love her or hate her, Taylor Swift is the biggest artist in the world right now and has reached the status of greats and legacy acts such as The Beatles, Rolling Stones, Pink Floyd, etc.  Her impact on the industry and the influence of her artistry will continue to inspire fans for years to come and will be her legacy living on long after she’s finished releasing music.

Not only has Swift inspired a lot of positive change in the industry such as: her open letter to Apple Music and withholding her music from Spotify until they fairly compensated their artists; or her re-recording project and fight to own her own masters and for other artists to own their own masters. But she has also evoked a lot of positivity in the world, donating large sums across her career openly and silently to urgent causes, or individual cases -Swift scrolls GoFundMe like a social media app, meeting people’s goals like it’s a hobby; she gives back to every community she tours in -donating to their food banks, visiting their hospitals to make unfortunate fan’s dreams come true; using her music as a way to raise money for critical issues and raise awareness, such as “Ronan” in which all the proceeds go towards Childhood Cancer research and funding; “Wildest Dreams” in which all the proceeds go towards the wild animal conservation efforts through the African Parks Foundation of America; or her political statement and cry for change in “Only The Young”; and finally, “You Need To Calm Down” in which proceeds go towards LGBTQ+ foundations and Swift created a petition for the Equality Act, demanding the attention of the Senate.

On top of all of this, Swift’s expert storytelling and musical composition has allowed her to explore and excel in various different genres including country, country-pop, pop-punk, pop, pop-rock, rock, alternative, alternative rock, folk pop, etc. Starting out so young, you can really watch Swift grow up through her music which represents so many different stages of girlhood and womanhood, as a result, creating  a safe space for women and girls around the world to grow up and express themselves in.

With such a vast discography, it’s difficult to pick and choose favourites, especially when Swift does every style so well. It’s also something that changes based on the day and what’s going on in life, but here is a ranking of all twelve of Swift’s studio albums, from least favourite to favourite, plus the battle between Taylor’s Version and the original…which one is better?

 

*Disclaimer: Of course I love all of these albums. I grew up with them and they acted as the soundtrack to different stages of my life for nearly all stages of my life.  This is my personal opinion that I tried to look at subjectively, but objective takes helped me to make my final decisions.  This is a ranking of the albums of a whole taking into consideration the cohesivity, impact and project as a whole.  Also there is not a single Taylor album I do not love and connect with on a deep level.  I grew up with Taylor’s music and it’s always been deeply comforting for me.  It makes me feel close to my aunt and my younger purest self.

 

14. Fearless (Original) | November 11, 2008

“Love Story” was the first Taylor Swift song I became obsessed with after discovering her through “Crazier” in the Hannah Montana Movie when I was a young girl.  I really feel like I grew up with Swift because of Fearless, but the album did not continue to resonate as strongly with me as the rest of her discography does.  Fearless is very much written from the perspective of a teenage girl dealing with teenage girl problems. Unfortunately even as a teenage girl, a lot of my problems were much bigger than the stereotypical boys and fitting in.  Additionally, the re-recording of Fearless was so greatly improved vocally that the original just can’t compete, ever since I haven’t listened to the original much because I prefer Fearless (Taylor’s Version). 

Top Five Songs (in no particular order): 

“The Way I Loved You”, “Love Story”, “Forever & Always”, “Fearless”, “You Belong With Me”

 

13. Speak Now (Taylor’s Version) | July 7, 2023

It hurts to be putting Speak Now so low, but this is just Taylor’s Version.  Although the album itself falls much higher on this list, Swift’s re-recording of Speak Now was disappointing.  It sufficed at the time, but felt rushed compared to the first two (Fearless and Red).  Somehow the album lost all the angst, emotion and personality that made the original so special.  Even in the production where the harp and organ on “Last Kiss” were switched out for a midi plug in, many people won’t notice this, but I did immediately.  Additionally, most of the vault tracks, while not bad, were forgettable, or became old fast, with the exception of “Timeless” which truly is timeless.  Swift should’ve included the popular unreleased songs “Battle” and “Drama Queen” as vault tracks instead of songs like “When Emma Falls In Love” and “Foolish One” as they fit in with the angsty and confrontational tone of the Speak Now album.

Top Five Songs (in no particular order): 

“Never Grow Up”, “Timeless”, “Long Live”, “Electric Touch”, “Castles Crumbling”

12. 1989 (original) | October 27, 2014

Despite my low ranking, there is no doubt that 1989 is iconic and was a monumental album in the pop music scene.  Officially marking Swift’s shift from country to pop, 1989 is the life of the party. From front to back it’s flawless with a cohesive sonic flow, lyrical stories and bold vocals.  However, I previously stated some of my reasons for 1989’s low place in my ranking, but it simply is just the album of Swift’s I come back to the least, maybe because I overplayed it so much all those years?  Or because it just doesn’t seem to connect with me the same way the others do.  Regardless, 1989 is a pop masterpiece. 

Top Five Songs (in no particular order): 

“I Wish You Would”, “You Are In Love”, “Style”, “Clean”, “This Love”

11. 1989 (Taylor’s Version) | October 27, 2023

1989  being so low is probably my most controversial take, but I overplayed it so much when it came out and in the three years between 1989 and reputation to the point that I barely listened to it anymore. Similar to The Life Of A Showgirl, Lover and Midnights in a lyrical sense –the songs are generally more digestible and fun, however, Swift continues to cleverly utilize figurative elements, vivid imagery and descriptive storytelling throughout the lyrics creating deeper layers and meaning.  However, overall there’s a lot of skips on 1989 for me, 1989 (Taylor’s Version) was one of the best done re-recordings and revived the album for me. It even made me like songs that I previously hadn’t cared for at all such as “Welcome To New York” and “Wonderland”. The production feels fuller from the drums to the backup vocals!  The vault tracks are also some my favourites! Although there are still certain songs I prefer on the original like “Bad Blood” and “Style”. 

Top Five Songs (in no particular order):

 “I Wish You Would”, “You Are In Love”, “Slut!’, “Is It Over Now?”, “Suburban Legends”

 

10. The Life Of A Showgirl | October 3, 2025

Swift’s latest album, The Life Of A Showgirl sparked quite the controversy when it came out. Fans and nonfans got aggressive towards each other’s opinions of the album, with many false and harmful claims made about each other and Swift herself, stemming from far-fetched theories. Despite the controversy and its low placement in my ranking, The Life Of A Showgirl is really on equal grounds with 1989, Midnights and Lover for me, all of which have some songs I really love and some I really dislike. It has a lot of strong tracks that are classic Swift, with lyrical allusions, careful diction and figurative elements, but it also has a lot of weak tracks. Perhaps some better production could have saved some of these tracks, but either way I think it’s place in my ranking would stay the same, interchanging with 1989 and Midnights depending on the day.  

Top Five Songs (in no particular order):

 “Honey”, “Father Figure”, “The Fate Of Ophelia”, “Opalite”, “Ruin The Friendship”

09. Fearless (Taylor’s Version) | April 9, 2021

No album screams girlhood, fairytales and hopeless romance quite like Swift’s Fearless. Although not one I revisit in full often, Fearless is so nostalgic for me because I used to listen to it so much as a young girl and it was one of the first CDs I ever bought. Fearless (Taylor’s Version) was by far the most improved of all the re-recorded albums.  Swift was so young when she first recorded this album and she has grown and learned so much since so, I’m really glad she revisited it. Swift’s mature vocals were able to bring the songs to new levels.  The production was on point, utilizing real instruments rather than midi replacements to evoke the same smalltown vibe of the original album.  However, it’s still not one that resonates with me at this current stage of my life as much as others, but I still love Fearless. 

Top Five Songs (in no particular order):

“Love Story”, “You’re Not Sorry”, “Hey Stephen”, “Fearless”, “Tell Me Why”

08. Lover | August 23, 2019

I remember the summer Lover came out vividly, the suspicious mural that turned out to be where Taylor would announce her new single “ME!” – I immediately loved “ME!” when it came out because I was bullied badly at the time and still trying to find myself…14 what a great age. I was painting rocks with my sister while watching Swift’s livestream announcing the album and listening to “The Archer” for the first time.  And I was staying at my grandparents the night the album came out so Kaitie and I had to adjust our usual listening party routine.  Lover beautifully explores the intricacies of love in all its forms and complexities, although it would benefit from some tracklist rearranging. 

Top Five Songs (in no particular order):

“Soon You’ll Get Better”, “Cornelia Street”, “It’s Nice To Have A Friend”, “Cruel Summer”, “ME!”

 

07. Midnights | October 21, 2022

Midnights was probably my favourite album roll-out since reputation -Midnights Mayhem With Me, the lyric snippets, the clock vinyl/cds, etc.  Midnights is exactly what I expected it to sound like -a melancholic, but sparkly retelling of many sleepless nights; scattered, but vivid memories strewn across moody synths. A lot of my favourite Swift songs are on Midnights and I believe it’s one of, if not her most cohesive pop album, however, there are a lot of skips for me which is why it’s a little bit lower.  While we’re here, I do want to mention, Midnights would be receiving the same backlash as The Life Of A Showgirl if it was released this year instead of 2022…

Top Five Songs (in no particular order):

“Maroon”, “Labyrinth”, “Would’ve, Could’ve, Should’ve”, “The Great War”, “You’re On Your Own, Kid”

06. reputation | November 11, 2017

reputation has always been my favourite of Swift’s pop albums and my favourite era, there might be slight bias because it was the first (and so far only) time I got to see Swift live, but I felt this way even before that. The album rollout and era was truly iconic to experience first hand, after three years of no new album, and a year of silence after becoming the world’s most hated celebrity, Swift had to completely reinvent herself like never before on reputation.  The most beautiful thing about the album, is that through all of the darkness, revenge, angst, anger and sadness, is the most pure form of love and self-acceptance.  Sometimes what brings us closest to ourselves, steers us away from everyone else. The production of reputation is unlike anything we’d heard on a Swift album prior or since, I hope that if she doesn’t make a rock album, she at least makes an album similar production-wise to reputation one day -there are so many layers! 

Top Five Songs (in no particular order):

“New Years Day”, “Call It What You Want”, “Don’t Blame Me”, “Delicate”, Dress”… I can’t do it, I can’t leave her out…”King Of My Heart”

05. Taylor Swift | October 24, 2006

 Nothing hits quite like the intro to “Picture To Burn” and sassily singing the words into a hairbrush.  There’s a charming authenticity and innocence on Swift’s self-titled debut album along with the early signs of what a genius musician and writer she would become. The lyricism and genius of Swift’s first album is often overlooked because she was so young (14-16 when most of the songs were written and recorded).  While they sound her age, there is also a maturity and true artistry put into crafting not just songs, but time capsules of specific emotions and experiences. Also the GUITARS!! It’s easily her best guitar album. I’ve always loved debut and find myself revisiting it quite often actually.  It’s strange, but I’ve found that a lot of the songs have started to resonate more strongly as I’ve gotten older.  I can’t wait to hear Taylor’s version (she said she’s still planning to release) maybe for the 20th anniversary next year?

Top Five Songs (in no particular order):

“Mary’s Song (Oh My My My)”, “Picture To Burn”, “Our Song”, “Cold As You”, “Tied Together With A Smile”

04. Speak Now | October 25, 2010

It’s difficult to place Speak Now to be so low, but Swift also has so many albums now that sixth place really isn’t that low.  Speak Now is definitely one of Swift’s best albums, both delicately whimsical and bluntly confrontational. There was a sonic shift in Speak Now, Swift started moving away from the small town country twang of her previous two albums and adopted a pop-rock/pop-punk sound blended with her sweet country-pop style. Speak Now is one of my favourite albums vocally from Swift, it’s the perfect balance of her young voice with a more mature tone.  Next to debut, Speak Now easily has some of the best guitar riffs and solos in Swift’s entire discography.  It’s vulnerable;  it’s angsty; it’s emotional; it’s perfect.

Top Five Songs (in no particular order):

“Never Grow Up”, “Haunted”, “Innocent”, “Long Live”, “Last Kiss”  top five is getting hard… “Enchanted”, “The Story Of Us”

03. The Tortured Poets Department: The Anthology| April 29, 2024

Starting off the top three is the double album: The Tortured Poets Department: The Anthology.  I used to like The Anthology half more, but I’ve found now my favourites are made of an equal mix from both so I’ve decided to keep them together.  The Tortured Poets Department: The Anthology is the Swift album I’ve come back to the most over the past year.  I’ve had a really hard year and been dealing with a lot of grief and found myself far out shore from who I was before it all.  During this time, The Tortured Poets Department has spoken to me like no other. The lyricism throughout the record is introspective and poetically surprising. The mix of poetically clever lyrics, with conversational banter, and then the most out of pocket comments that almost make you uncomfortable is perfect and something I’m still dissecting at an analytic English Literature geek level. On top of this the production is sonically interesting, complimenting each track and varying throughout the album while still being cohesive.  Of course with the two albums collectively being 31 tracks long, there’s a lot of tracks I skip over depending on my mood. However, there aren’t many that I would say I dislike and skip every time (just “I Can Fix Him (No Really I Can)”

Top Songs (in no particular order):

“loml”, “Chloe or Sam or Sophia or Marcus”, “Guilty As Sin?”, “The Tortured Poets Department”, “The Prophecy”, “So Long, London”, “Fresh Out The Slammer”, “The Black Dog”, “I Hate It Here”, “Robin”, “I Look In People’s Windows”

02. folklore and evermore | July 24 and December 11, 2020

Swift’s 2020 sister albums folklore and evermore are so similar and kind of go together as one whole piece in my mind, so it made sense to rank them together.  I also simply can’t choose a favourite, it depends on the time of year for me. Swift collaborated with Jack Antonoff, Aaron Dessner and The National, and Bon Iver on these albums, exploring an alternative, folk-pop sound she had not yet done except for maybe a couple songs on Red. folklore and evermore best highlight Swift’s lyrically abilities as they’re full of detailed vivid stories, some even containing multiple perspectives written in different songs. folklore has always represented the spring-summer and early-fall months for me, with evermore being reminiscent of late-fall/winter months. These albums describe life better than any other of Swift’s, discussing themes across all facets of experience, and the stages of processing each one. These albums continue to be an escape for many into other worlds, or maybe just a world where they can understand their own emotions and what they’re going through.

Top Songs (in no particular order):

folklore: “my tears ricochet”, “seven”, “exile”, “the lakes”, “hoax”

evermore: “cowboy like me”, “ivy”, “tolerate it”, “gold rush”, “evermore”

01. Red and Red (Taylor’s Version) | October 22, 2012 and November 12, 2021

For anyone who knows me at all it should come as no surprise that Red is my favourite Swift album. Red continues to hold my all-time favourite Swift song, “State Of Grace” as well as many others.  Red blends pop, folk-pop, alternative, country and rock; it’s the one album that contains every part of Swift; like a small part of every album Swift has ever made went into it. It was also the first time we got to see a mature version of Swift, one that ditched the curls and prom dresses for a more sophisticated look.  There’s a reason she hasn’t lost the Red era fringe since then, it’s simply the best!

Red (Taylor’s Version) was a flawless re-record, enhancing the original album in the best ways and it has the best vault tracks of all the re-recorded albums.  I love Red and Red (Taylor’s Version) equally and listen to them interchangeably. Even the overplayed radio singles from Red are bangers I’ve just never tired of.  It is “happy, free, confused and lonely in the best way” (“22”, Red).

Top Songs (in no particular order):

“State Of Grace”, “The Lucky One”, “Treacherous”, “Holy Ground”, “The Last Time”, “Sad Beautiful Tragic”, “All Too Well”, “Better Man”, “Nothing New”, “Red”, “Come Back…Be Here”, “I Bet You Think About Me”, “Run”, “Forever Winter”…there’s 30 songs on this album so 15 top songs is totally reasonable…