Top Scorers in Premier League History
Since the Premier League started, many players have scored lots of goals. It takes skill to score, and these players are the best. Mohamed Salah is now in the top 10.
The Premier League started in 1992. It’s one of the best leagues in the world. Every year, the players get better. Here are the top 20 scorers in Premier League history. They are the best finishers ever.
Top 20 Premier League Goalscorers
| Rank | Player | Premier League clubs | Total number of goals |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Alan Shearer | Blackburn Rovers & Newcastle United | 260 |
| 2 | Harry Kane | Norwich City (loan) & Tottenham Hotspur | 213 |
| 3 | Wayne Rooney | Everton & Manchester United | 208 |
| 4 | Andy Cole | Newcastle United, Manchester United, Blackburn Rovers, Fulham, Manchester City, Portsmouth & Sunderland | 187 |
| 5 | Mohamed Salah | Chelsea & Liverpool | 184 |
| 5= | Sergio Aguero | Manchester City | 184 |
| 7 | Frank Lampard | West Ham United, Chelsea & Manchester City | 177 |
| 8 | Thierry Henry | Arsenal | 175 |
| 9 | Robbie Fowler | Liverpool, Leeds United & Manchester City | 163 |
| 10 | Jermaine Defoe | West Ham United, Tottenham, Portsmouth, Sunderland & Bournemouth | 162 |
| 11 | Michael Owen | Liverpool, Newcastle, Manchester Utd & Stoke City | 150 |
| 12 | Les Ferdinand | QPR, Newcastle, Tottenham, West Ham, Leicester & Bolton Wanderers | 149 |
| 13 | Teddy Sheringham | Nottingham Forest, Tottenham, Manchester Utd, Portsmouth and West Ham United | 146 |
| 14 | Robin van Persie | Arsenal and Manchester United | 144 |
| 15 | Jamie Vardy | Leicester City | 143 |
| 16 | Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink | Leeds United, Chelsea, Middlesbrough and Charlton Athletic | 127 |
| 17 | Robbie Keane | Coventry City, Leeds United, Tottenham Hotspur, Liverpool, West Ham United & Aston Villa | 126 |
| 18 | Son Heung-min | Tottenham Hotspur | 126 |
| 19 | Nicolas Anelka | Arsenal, Man City, Chelsea, Bolton and West Brom | 125 |
| 20 | Raheem Sterling | Liverpool, Manchester City, Chelsea & Arsenal | 123 |
10. Jermaine Defoe – 162 goals
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Premier League clubs: West Ham, Tottenham, Portsmouth, Sunderland, and Bournemouth
Defoe played for many clubs. He played until he was 39. He scored at least 10 goals in the Premier League for 3 different clubs. He played for 15 years. He scored most of his goals for Tottenham. He scored 91 goals for them.
Defoe is the player who has scored the most goals as a sub. He scored 24 goals in 149 games as a sub.
His best season was 2015/16. He scored 15 goals in 22 games for Sunderland. Defoe might not be as famous as other players, but he was very consistent. That’s why he’s one of the top scorers in Premier League history.
Jermaine Defoe’s Premier League Goals
| Club | Appearances | Goals |
|---|---|---|
| West Ham | 74 | 18 |
| Tottenham | 276 | 91 |
| Portsmouth | 31 | 16 |
| Sunderland | 87 | 34 |
| Bournemouth | 28 | 4 |
9. Robbie Fowler – 163 goals
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Premier League clubs: Liverpool, Leeds United, Manchester City, and Blackburn Rovers
Fowler was a great finisher. He played well in the early years of the Premier League. In 1994/95, he scored 25 goals. The next season, he scored 28 goals. He scored lots of goals for Liverpool. He also held the record for the fastest hat-trick in the Premier League for over 20 years.
Fowler never scored 20 goals in a season again. But he scored at least 10 goals for Leeds and Manchester City. People will remember him for his early years. He scored great goals.
Robbie Fowler’s Premier League Goals
| Club | Appearances | Goals |
|---|---|---|
| Liverpool | 266 | 128 |
| Leeds United | 30 | 14 |
| Manchester City | 80 | 20 |
| Blackburn Rovers | 3 | 0 |
8. Thierry Henry – 175 goals
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Premier League clubs: Arsenal
Henry is an Arsenal legend. He played for one of the best Premier League teams ever. That was the Arsenal ‘Invincibles’ team of 2003/04. That was his best season. He scored 30 goals. He’s one of the best foreign players to play in England.
Henry kept scoring after that season. He scored 25 and 27 goals in the next 2 seasons. Then he moved to Barcelona. But he came back to Arsenal in 2011/12. He scored 1 goal in 4 games. Henry is one of the best players in Premier League history.
Thierry Henry’s Premier League Goals
| Club | Appearances | Goals |
|---|---|---|
| Arsenal | 258 | 175 |
7. Frank Lampard – 177 goals
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Premier League clubs: West Ham, Chelsea and Manchester City
Lampard is the only midfielder on this list. He started at West Ham but played his best for Chelsea. He help Chelsea win the league in the 2000s. He was great at getting into the box and scoring. He was a master at timing his runs.
Lampard scored at least 10 goals in 10 seasons in a row. His best season was 2009/10. He scored 22 goals and won the league with Chelsea. Some people think Lampard is the best midfielder in Premier League history. He scored 6 goals after he left Chelsea. He even scored against his old team.
Frank Lampard’s Premier League Goals
| Club | Appearances | Goals |
|---|---|---|
| West Ham | 150 | 24 |
| Chelsea | 429 | 147 |
| Manchester City | 32 | 6 |
6. Sergio Aguero – 184 goals
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Premier League clubs: Manchester City
Aguero left Manchester City in 2021. He’s one of their all time top scorers. He’s one of the top scorers in Premier League history. He didn’t score many in his last season. But before that, he scored loads. He scored 20+ Premier League goals in 6 seasons.
His best season was 2014/15. He scored 26 goals. He scored 5 goals in one game against Newcastle in 2015. He’s one of the only players to do that in the Premier League. Erling Haaland is a great scorer. But it’s hard to replace Aguero.
Sergio Aguero’s Premier League Goals
| Club | Appearances | Goals |
|---|---|---|
| Manchester City | 275 | 184 |
5. Mohamed Salah – 184 goals
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Premier League clubs: Chelsea and Liverpool
He’s scored 33 goals since he joined Liverpool in 2017. He broke the record for most goals in a 38-game Premier League season. He scored 32 goals. Erling Haaland has now broken that record. Salah has been great since. He scored 19 in 2019/20 and 2022/23. Those were his worst seasons.
He got into the top 10 Premier League scorers in a game against Arsenal in 2023/24. He scored a great goal. He’s always great in big games. He stepped inside and shot the ball in. The goalie had no chance. He’s level with Sergio Aguero and is now the joint 5th all-time leading scorer in the division with 184 goals
Mohamed Salah’s Premier League Goals
| Club | Appearances | Goals |
|---|---|---|
| Chelsea | 13 | 2 |
| Liverpool | 268 | 182 |
4. Andrew Cole – 187 goals
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Premier League clubs: Newcastle, Manchester United, Blackburn Rovers, Fulham, Manchester City, Portsmouth, and Sunderland
You may have forgotten how good Cole was. He played over 20 years ago. He played for Manchester United and Newcastle.
In his first Premier League season, Cole scored 34 goals for Newcastle. He never scored that many again. But he moved to Manchester United. He scored at least 10 goals for United 5 times. He scored at least 10 goals for Blackburn and Fulham once each. He scored for many top clubs.
Andrew Cole’s Premier League Goals
| Club | Appearances | Goals |
|---|---|---|
| Newcastle | 58 | 43 |
| Manchester United | 195 | 93 |
| Blackburn Rovers | 83 | 27 |
| Fulham | 31 | 12 |
| Manchester City | 22 | 9 |
| Portsmouth | 19 | 3 |
| Sunderland | 7 | 0 |
3. Wayne Rooney – 208 goals
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Premier League clubs: Everton and Manchester United
Rooney’s stats for Manchester United are ridiculous. He scored 10+ goals in 11 consecutive seasons. He scored 10 goals when he returned to Everton. He scored more goals for United than anyone else. He scored more goals for England than anyone else till 2023.
Rooney started and ended his Premier League career at Everton. But he played his best at United. He won 5 league titles with them. His best season was 2011/12. He scored 27 goals. But United didn’t win the league that year. Rooney was a great goal scorer. We should remember him for years.
Wayne Rooney’s Premier League Goals
| Club | Appearances | Goals |
|---|---|---|
| Everton | 98 | 25 |
| Manchester United | 393 | 183 |
2. Harry Kane – 213 goals
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Premier League clubs: Norwich City (loan) and Tottenham
Kane is the best goalscorer in the Premier League. He might not be in the league anymore. But he scored a lot for the Spurs. He’s the 2nd highest scorer in league history. He’s scored 10+ in 9 consecutive seasons. 30 in 17/18 and 22/23.
Kane can become the all-time top scorer if he comes back to the league. He needs to score 50 more. He scores a lot. If he hadn’t moved to Bayern, he probably would have broken the record.
Harry Kane’s Premier League Goals
| Club | Appearances | Goals |
|---|---|---|
| Norwich City (loan) | 3 | 0 |
| Tottenham | 317 | 213 |
1. Alan Shearer – 260 goals
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Premier League clubs: Blackburn Rovers and Newcastle
Shearer’s a TV expert now. But he was a great goalscorer in the early Premier League days. He scored more than anyone else. He scored 50+ more than the next player. 30 in 4 seasons with Blackburn.
He scored 20+ four times for Newcastle. If he wasn’t injured, he might have scored 300. He also scored for Southampton before the Premier League.
Alan Shearer’s Premier League Goals
| Club | Appearances | Goals |
|---|---|---|
| Blackburn Rovers | 138 | 112 |
| Newcastle United | 303 | 148 |
All statistics courtesy of the Premier League and Transfermarkt – correct as of 02/11/24.
