Best 1990s Alternative and Indie Songs
The best alternative songs of the 1990s (90s), ranked — each one links to the album it came from, on vinyl, CD or Amazon Music.
Reviewed by Callum Ashworth, 247 Album Verdict · Last updated · How we rank
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Tap the artwork or "Listen" to find the track on Amazon Music; "Watch" opens a YouTube search; the song title or "Album" opens its album page. As an Amazon Associate we earn from qualifying purchases and sign-ups.
Is this the same as your grunge coverage?
Grunge is one major strand of 1990s alternative, not the whole picture — this list also covers Britpop, shoegaze, industrial-leaning alternative and the decade's broader post-grunge landscape, since "alternative" was the decade's catch-all radio format covering all of them at once.
Why was "alternative" a radio format in the 1990s specifically?
Grunge's commercial breakthrough around 1991 pushed US radio to create a dedicated "alternative" format almost overnight to capture the sudden audience for guitar music outside classic rock and pop — a format that didn't meaningfully exist before the decade began.
Does this list include Britpop?
Yes — Britpop was the UK's dominant alternative rock movement of the decade, running in parallel with US grunge and post-grunge, and both scenes are represented here rather than treated as entirely separate genres.