Below is a list of popular metal bands in alphabetical order. This is a great place to start if you are looking for new bands to listen to. Check out our list of Top Ten albums in each genre, for a more detailed gateway into the world of metal music.
| Accept | Dream Theater | Megadeth | Scorpions |
| Alice in Chains | DRI | Mercyful Fate | Sepultura |
| Annihilator | Edge of Sanity | Meshuggah | Skid Row |
| Anthrax | Emperor | Metal Church | Slayer |
| At the Gates | Entombed | Metallica | Slipknot |
| Atheist | Exodus | Ministry | Sodom |
| Bathory | Faith No More | Morbid Angel | Soundgarden |
| Black Sabbath | Fates Warning | Mötley Crüe | St. Vitus |
| Blind Guardian | Fear Factory | Motörhead | Stratovarius |
| Budgie | Gamma Ray | My Dying Bride | Suffocation |
| Burzum | HammerFall | Napalm Death | Suicidal Tendencies |
| Candlemass | Helloween | Neurosis | Symphony X |
| Cannibal Corpse | Iced Earth | Nevermore | System of a Down |
| Carcass | Immortal | Opeth | Terrorizer |
| Celtic Frost | In Flames | Overkill | Testament |
| Children of Bodom | Iron Maiden | Ozzy Osbourne | Therion |
| Cradle of Filth | Judas Priest | Pantera | Tool |
| Danzig | King Diamond | Pentagram | Trouble |
| Darkthrone | Korn | Possessed | Twisted Sister |
| Death | Kreator | Queensrÿche | Type O Negative |
| Deicide | Lamb of God | Rage Against the Machine | Venom |
| Diamond Head | Machine Head | Rainbow | Voivod |
| Dimmu Borgir | Manowar | Raven | W.A.S.P. |
| Dio | Mastodon | Savatage | White Zombie |
| Dokken | Mayhem | Saxon | Yngwie J. Malmsteen |
