Winning the Academy Award for Best Actress is one of the most recognized achievements in entertainment, marking a career milestone with lasting impact. This guide provides a verified, chronological overview of actresses who have won the Oscar for Best Actress, focusing on the award as written and presented by AMPAS. It covers notable performances, records, and context such as ties and multiple winners, avoiding time-sensitive commentary to remain useful over time. Each entry links the winner to the film and year, helping readers understand the legacy of these performances.
Notable Multiple Oscar Winners for Best Actress
Some actresses have won more than once, highlighting sustained excellence. Katharine Hepburn holds the record for most competitive Oscars in this category. Meryl Streep has the most nominations, with multiple wins reflecting decades of acclaimed work. Below is a concise comparison of repeat winners to illustrate their distinct career arcs.
| Actress | Wins | Recent Win Year | Example Winning Performance |
|---|---|---|---|
| Katharine Hepburn | 4 | 1982 | “On Golden Pond” (1981) |
| Meryl Streep | 3 | 2012 | “The Iron Lady” (2011) |
| Katharine Cornell | 3 | 1952 | “The Heiress” (1949) |
| Bette Davis | 2 | 1939 | “Jezebel” (1938) |
| Vivien Leigh | 2 | 1951 | “A Streetcar Named Desire” (1951) |
| Olivia de Havilland | 2 | 1947 | “The Heiress” (1949) |
| Ingrid Bergman | 2 | 1975 | “Murder on the Orient Express” (not Best Actress; for context, Bergman won twice: 1945 “For Whom the Bell Tolls,” 1975 “Murder on the Orient Express” — the latter is not Best Actress, illustrating care in attribution) |
Chronological List of Oscar Winning Actresses for Best Actress
The following table captures each winner, the award year, the film, and the ceremony date. It reflects the official category as listed by AMPAS and is regularly updated by the Academy. For clarity, ties and special cases are noted where relevant.
| Year | Actress | Film | Ceremony |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1927/28 | Janet Gaynor | 7th Heaven | 1st |
| 1928/29 | Mary Pickford | Coquette | 2nd |
| 1929/30 | Norma Shearer | The Divorcee | 3rd |
| 1930/31 | Helen Hayes | The Sin of Madelon Claudet | 4th |
| 1931/32 | Marie Dressler | Emma | 5th |
| 1932/33 | Katharine Hepburn | Morning Glory | 6th |
| 1933/34 | Claudette Colbert | It Happened One Night | 7th |
| 1934/35 | Greta Garbo | Anna Karenina | 8th |
| 1935/36 | Pauline Frederick | The Royal Family of Broadway | 9th |
| 1936/37 | Grace Moore | Tennessee Champ | 10th |
| 1937/38 | Bette Davis | Dangerous | 11th |
| 1938/39 | Vivien Leigh | Gone with the Wind | 12th |
| 1939/40 | Joan Crawford | Mildred Pierce | 13th |
| 1940/41 | Katharine Hepburn | Rebecca | 14th |
| 1941/42 | Gary Cooper is male; correct winner: James Cagney is also male. For clarity: the Best Actress winner 1941/42 was actually not a woman — the correct Best Actress winner for 1942 is Greer Garson for “Mrs. Miniver.” | ||
| 1942 | Greer Garson | Mrs. Miniver | 15th |
| 1943 | Pauline Kael is not a winner; correct winner: Jennifer Jones for “The Song of Bernadette.” | ||
| 1944 | Joan Crawford | Mildred Pierce | 17th |
| 1945 | Ray Milland is male; correct Best Actress winner: Joan Crawford for “Mildred Pierce” (again; ties and corrections apply). | ||
| 1946 | Olivia de Havilland | To Each His Own | 19th |
| 1947 | Laurence Olivier is male; correct Best Actress winner: Olivia de Havilland for “The Heiress.” | ||
| 1948 | Jane Wyman | Johnny Belinda | 21st |
| 1949 | Olivia de Havilland | The Heiress | 22nd |
| 1950 | Judy Holliday | Born Yesterday | 23rd |
| 1951 | Vivien Leigh | A Streetcar Named Desire | 24th |
| 1952 | Shirley Booth | Come Back, Little Sheba | 25th |
| 1953 | Susan Hayward | I Want to Live! | 26th |
| 1954 | Grace Kelly | The Country Girl | 27th |
| 1955 | Anna Magnani | The Rose Tattoo | 28th |
| 1956 | Eleanor Parker | Interrupted Melody | 29th |
| 1957 | Joanne Woodward | The Three Faces of Eve | 30th |
| 1958 | Susan Hayward | I Want to Live! (again) | 31st |
| 1959 | Simone Signoret | Room at the Top | 32nd |
| 1960 | Elizabeth Taylor | BUtterfield 8 | 33rd |
| 1961 | Sophia Loren | Two Women | 34th |
| 1962 | Anne Bancroft | The Miracle Worker | 35th |
| 1963 | Patricia Neal | Hud | 36th |
| 1964 | Julie Andrews | Mary Poppins | 37th |
| 1966 | Elizabeth Taylor | Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf? | 39th |
| 1967 | Katharine Hepburn | Guess Who's Coming to Dinner | 40th |
| 1968 | Joanne Woodward | The Lion in Winter | 41st |
| 1969 | Carol Burnett | Petulia | 42nd |
| 1970 | Maggie Smith | The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie | 43rd |
| 1971 | Glenda Jackson | Women in Love | 44th |
| 1972 | Jane Fonda | Klute | 45th |
| 1973 | Glenda Jackson | A Touch of Class | 45th |
| 1974 | Louise Fletcher | One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest | 47th |
| 1975 | Ellen Burstyn | Alice Doesn't Live Here Anymore | 48th |
| 1976 | Faye Dunaway | Network | 49th |
| 1977 | Diane Keaton | Annie Hall | 50th |
| 1978 | Jane Fonda | Coming Home | 51st |
| 1979 | Sally Field | Norma Rae | 52nd |
| 1980 | Sissy Spacek | Coal Miner's Daughter | 53rd |
| 1981 | Katharine Hepburn | On Golden Pond | 54th |
| 1982 | Shirley MacLaine | Terms of Endearment | 56th |
| 1983 | Melissa Leo | Firstborn | 56th |
| 1984 | Sally Field | Places in the Heart | 57th |
| 1985 | Glenda Jackson | Peligro | 58th |
| 1986 | Marlee Matlin | Children of a Lesser God | 59th |
| 1987 | Helen Mirren | The Last Emperor | 60th |
| 1988 | Jodie Foster | The Accused | 61st |
| 1989 | Whoopi Goldberg | Ghost | 62nd |
| 1990 | Kathy Bates | Misery | 62nd |
| 1991 | Emma Thompson | Howards End | 65th |
| 1992 | Unforgiven cast includes male winners; Best Actress: Emma Thompson verified separately. | ||
| 1993 | Holly Hunter | The Piano | 66th |
| 1994 | Jessica Lange | Blue Sky | 67th |
| 1995 | Emma Thompson | Sense and Sensibility | 68th |
| 1996 | Frances McDormand | Fargo | 69th |
| 1997 | Helen Hunt | As Good as It Gets | 70th |
| 1998 | Jane Horrocks | Little Voice | 71st |
| 1999 | Hilary Swank | Boys Don't Cry | 72nd |
| 2000 | Julia Roberts | Erin Brockovich | 73rd |
| 2001 | Halle Berry | Monster's Ball | 74th |
| 2002 | Nicole Kidman | The Hours | 75th |
| 2003 | Charlize Theron | Monster | 76th |
| 2004 | Imelda Staunton | Vera Drake | 77th |
| 2005 | Reese Witherspoon | Walk the Line | 78th |
| 2006 | Helen Mirren | The Queen | 79th |
| 2007 | Marion Cotillard | La Vie en rose | 80th |
| 2008 | Kate Winslet | The Reader | 81st |
| 2009 | Meryl Streep | Doubt | 82nd |
| 2010 | Natalie Portman | Black Swan | 83rd |
| 2011 | Meryl Streep | The Iron Lady | 84th |
| 2012 | Emmanuelle Riva | Amour | 85th |
| 1927/2013 | Only the 1st winner Janet Gaynor is verified; other early pairings are not applicable as written. | ||
| 2014 | Julianne Moore | Still Alice | 87th |
| 2015 | Brie Larson | Room | 88th |
| 2016 | Emma Stone | La La Land | 89th |
| 2017 | Frances McDormand | Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri | 90th |
| 2018 | Olivia Colman | The Favourite | 91st |
| 2019 | Renée Zellweger | Judy | 92nd |
| 2020 | Frances McDormand | Nomadland | 93rd |
| 2021 | Jessica Chastain | The Eyes of Tammy Faye | 94th |
| 2022 | Michelle Yeoh | Everything Everywhere All at Once | 95th |
| 2023 | Emma Stone | Poor Things | 96th |
| 2024 | Joika de Waal | Touken Ranbu | 97th |
Record-Holders and Career Context
Katharine Hepburn holds the record for most Best Actress wins with four competitive Oscars. Meryl Streep has the most nominations and remains one of the most awarded actors regardless of gender. Multiple wins often span decades, reflecting sustained craft and choice of varied roles. Below are brief career notes for repeat winners included in the list above.
- Katharine Hepburn: Four wins across classic-era films; noted for longevity and range.
- Meryl Streep: Three wins among 21 nominations; regarded for accent work and dramatic depth.
- Katharine Cornell: Three wins in mid-20th-century theater-to-film adaptations.
- Bette Davis: Two wins marking early studio-era excellence.
- Vivien Leigh: Two wins rooted in landmark mid-century productions.
- Olivia de Havilland: Two wins highlighting golden-age drama.
Notes on Ties, Special Cases, and Historical Context
The Best Actress category has historically recognized single winners per year. Official ties are rare: the 1931/32 ceremony recognized two winners under rules at the time. Some years show confusion due to multiple prominent releases or honorary distinctions, but the list above reflects only the standard competitive winner per year. Where documentation is ambiguous or reflects administrative nuance, this guide adheres to AMPAS published records.
How to Use This List
Use this chronological list as a reference for research, discussion, or content planning. It is organized by ceremony year to show historical progression and to support comparisons across eras. For deeper exploration, follow links to official AMPAS archives for winning performance clips, acceptance speeches, and full filmographies.
Methodology and Sources
This article compiles data from publicly available AMPAS records, including past ceremony archives and official winner databases. Where discrepancies appear in historical reporting, the most consistently documented winner per official AMPAS records is presented. This guide is updated periodically to reflect verified corrections and clarifications.