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MG01MusicGOAT Index

The short answer

Are The Rolling Stones greater than The Who?

Yes: The Rolling Stones leads by 1.0 points.

Quick verdict

Yes

The Rolling Stones opens with a 1.0-point lead in the all-time score.

The Rolling Stones

94.5

The Who

93.5

Leads

The Rolling Stones

#6 all-time · Classification under review

All-time score94.5

The Rolling Stones appears in the provisional Music GOAT Index. Ranking scores remain visible while biographical and classification details are under review.

Opening verdict

The Rolling Stones

Leads by 1.0 points

The Who

#13 all-time · Classification under review

All-time score93.5

The Who appears in the provisional Music GOAT Index. Ranking scores remain visible while biographical and classification details are under review.

The plain case

Why the answer lands here

Yes: The Rolling Stones leads by 1.0 points. The result is still open to argument: inspect the full breakdown, move the weights and see whether it survives your version of greatness.

Biggest category edge

Current

The Rolling Stones

owns a 9.0-point edge here

9.0

The current leader at a Current weight of 15.0% is The Rolling Stones. Changing Current from 15.0% to 3.7% flips the lead to The Who; all other unlocked weights are rebalanced proportionally to keep the total at 100%.

The Rolling Stones leads The Who by 1.0 points in All-Time Ranking.

Current leader

The Rolling Stones

Classification under review

Scoring result94.5

Wins 2 of 6 active categories · 2 level

Current margin

1.0

The Rolling Stones leads this version.

The Who

Classification under review

Scoring result93.5

Wins 2 of 6 active categories · 2 level

The verdict

The Rolling Stones wins this scorecard.

The edge is 1.0 points in All-Time Ranking. The Who still has category wins worth arguing below.

The strongest weighted drivers for The Rolling Stones are Current (9.0 raw gap at 15% weight) and Longevity (5.0 raw gap at 15% weight). 2 zero-weight context lenses are outside this verdict.

All-time list
MGI model 3.3.0July 2026 · MGI v3.3 archive6 factors counted2 context lenses

Commercial, Live are outside this verdict. Unavailable values stay N/A and are never treated as zero.

The current leader at a Current weight of 15.0% is The Rolling Stones. Changing Current from 15.0% to 3.7% flips the lead to The Who; all other unlocked weights are rebalanced proportionally to keep the total at 100%.

Verdict logicWhy this verdict: The Rolling StonesAll-time list: Influence, Public attention, Longevity · 1.0 pts from The Who
All-time listNot counted here: Commercial + LiveUnavailable: Commercial + Live

The Rolling Stones lands here because Influence, Public attention and Longevity do most of the work in this view. Commercial and Live are unavailable until reviewed evidence exists and cannot change this verdict.

The Rolling Stones sits 1.0 points from The Who in this scorecard; the next move would most likely come through Public attention and Catalog. Commercial and Live remain unavailable until reviewed evidence exists; this verdict is not recalculated with hidden replacement values.

What helps

Influence20.5% of this score
Influence score97.0
Provisional evidenceEditorial judgment · 1/5 fieldsModel confidence highWeight 20

Provisional score retained from the published edition. Supporting narrative is withheld while classification and source context are reviewed.

Public attention19% of this score
Public attention score90.0
Provisional evidenceDerived evidence · 1/5 fieldsModel confidence highWeight 20

Provisional score retained from the published edition. Supporting narrative is withheld while classification and source context are reviewed.

Longevity15.9% of this score
Longevity score100.0
Provisional evidenceDerived evidence · 4/6 fieldsModel confidence highWeight 15

Provisional score retained from the published edition. Supporting narrative is withheld while classification and source context are reviewed.

What could move it

Public attention and Catalog are the softest scoring factors; movement there matters most near The Who.

More checking on Influence, Public attention and Peak would improve confidence before it changes the public score.

Commercial and Live remain unavailable until reviewed observation records pass; no alternate rank is published.

What decided it

The strongest weighted gaps

Current+1.4 pts

9.0 raw gap × 15% weight · edge to The Rolling Stones

Longevity+0.8 pts

5.0 raw gap × 15% weight · edge to The Rolling Stones

Peak+0.6 pts

4.0 raw gap × 15% weight · edge to The Who

Active score parts

What decides this verdict

2-2 · 2 level
CurrentShort-window current-interest context derived from a dated Wikimedia Pageviews observation; it is not listening, sales or artistic quality.Open The Rolling Stones profile
The Rolling Stones95.0
The Who86.0
LongevityActive years, persistence and legacy after the first peak.Open The Rolling Stones profile
The Rolling Stones100.0
The Who95.0
PeakHow dominant the strongest era felt relative to peers.Open The Who profile
The Rolling Stones94.0
The Who98.0
CatalogDepth, spread and durability of the catalog.Open The Who profile
The Rolling Stones92.0
The Who95.0
InfluenceCurated cultural and peer influence tier.Level
The Rolling Stones97.0
The Who97.0
Public attentionLong-horizon editorial cultural-footprint judgment. The frozen v3.3 compatibility score historically used a retired short-window Wikimedia Pageviews proxy; it remains provisional until replaced in a reviewed edition.Level
The Rolling Stones90.0
The Who90.0

Context only · zero weight

Useful context, outside this verdict

These gaps are visible for the debate, but they do not count until you raise their sliders or choose another view.

CommercialCommercial tier, sales evidence, certifications and scale.Not comparable
The Rolling StonesN/A
The WhoN/A
LiveLive/touring reputation and durable concert draw.Not comparable
The Rolling StonesN/A
The WhoN/A

Keep arguing

Best next moves

FAQ

The Rolling Stones vs The Who questions

The Rolling Stones or The Who: who leads the All-Time score?

Yes: The Rolling Stones leads by 1.0 points. The published score is 94.5 vs 93.5; unavailable values remain N/A and are never scored as zero.

What is the biggest active category edge in The Rolling Stones vs The Who?

Current is the biggest available active edge, with a 9.0-point gap for The Rolling Stones.

Can the answer change?

Yes, when you change available score parts. A formula that gives positive weight to unavailable Commercial or Live evidence is rejected rather than silently rewritten.

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