Ed Sheeran has been named the number one artist of the decade by the Official Charts Company.

The singer-songwriter has 12 number ones across the official singles and albums chart between 2010 and 2019, more than any other artist

He has also spent the most weeks at number one across both charts over the last decade, at 79 weeks.

He has become the third recipient of the official record breaker award from the Official Charts Company, after Justin Bieber, who became the first act in history to hold all top three positions in the singles chart simultaneously, and Sir Paul McCartney, who was honoured as the biggest albums act of all time, with 22 number ones across his career.

Sheeran’s 2017 hit Shape Of You was named the biggest song of the decade, which spent 14 weeks at number one and amassed more than 4.5 million chart sales.

It is one of three Sheeran songs in the top five biggest sellers of the decade.

Ed Sheeran (Nic Minns)

It beat Mark Ronson ft Bruno Mars’ Uptown Funk, which came second, and Sheeran’s own track Thinking Out Loud, which came third.

Despacito (remix) by Luis Fonsi ft Daddy Yankee and Justin Bieber is in fourth place and Sheeran’s Perfect came fifth.

Sheeran said: “Thank you to everyone who’s supported me over the past ten years, especially my amazing fans. Here’s to the next ten.”

Martin Talbot, chief executive of the Official Charts Company, comments: “Ed truly has dominated this decade and is a worthy recipient of this amazing new award.

“At the start of the decade, he was a little-known (albeit highly rated) young 18-year-old lad from Suffolk – but his catalogue of achievements since then are genuinely remarkable.

“Today, he is firmly established among the highest level of global music superstars.”

Adele’s album 21 was the biggest selling album of the decade, followed by her record 25, both trumped Sheeran’s x and Divide, and Michel Buble’s Christmas.

The top ten biggest songs of the decade, according to the Official Charts Company, are:

Shape Of You – Ed Sheeran
Uptown Funk – Mark Ronson ft Bruno Mars
Thinking Out Loud – Ed Sheeran
Despacito (remix) – Luis Fonsi ft. Daddy Yankee and Justin Bieber
Perfect – Ed Sheeran
One Dance – Drake ft Wizkid & Kyla
Happy – Pharrell Williams
All Of Me – John Legend
Sorry – Justin Biebe
Rather Be – Clean Bandid

The top ten albums of the decade are:

21 – Adele
25- Adele
x – Ed Sheeran
Divide – Ed Sheeran
Christmas – Michael Buble
In The Lonely Hour – Sam Smith
+ – Ed Sheeran
Our Version Of Events – Emeli Sande
Progress – Take That
The Greatest Showman – Motion picture cast recording