"Single Ladies (Put a Ring on It)" is a song by American singer Beyoncé Knowles, composed by Christopher Stewart, Terius Nash, Kuk Harrell and Knowles for her third solo album, I Am... Sasha Fierce. The song was released as the album's second single after her worldwide hit "If I Were a Boy". It was a critical and commercial success, becoming Knowles' fifth solo single to peak at number one on the Hot 100, and peaking in the top 10 in various countries.

The song gained popularity for its catchy hook and theme of female empowerment, and it was ranked #1 on Rolling Stonemagazine's list of the Best 100 Singles of 2008 and number two on MTV's list of the Best Songs of 2008. The choreography-driven video achieved great success, prompting a legion of imitations and parodies, and, according to the Toronto Star, became known for starting the first major dance craze of the millennium and of the Internet.

The song's music video was nominated in nine categories for the 2009 MTV Video Music Awards and won three, including Best Choreography and Video of the Year. It also won Video of the Year at the 2009 BET Awards, the 2009 MOBO awards, and the 2009 MTV Europe Music Awards. It won the Song of the Year at the 2009 Soul Train Awards, and won Song of the Year, Best R&B Song, and Best Female R&B Vocal Performance at the 52nd Grammy Awards ceremony.

"Single Ladies" is ranked as the number two Best Song of the Decade in Rolling Stonemagazine's Reader's Poll. The song appeared at number 50 on the magazine's critics' list of the 100 Best Songs of the Decade.

"Single Ladies (Put a Ring on It)", alongside "If I Were a Boy", was initially targeted to debut on radio stations on October 7, 2008, with aims at rhythmic formats for the former. However, the song premiered the following day on the mainstream urban radio station Power 105.1.

The song was performed on November 9, 2008 at the 2008 World Music Awards and at Saturday Night Liveon November 15, 2008; that night, Knowles was also featured in a parody of the "Single Ladies (Put a Ring On It)" music video, where the two female backup dancers from the video were replaced by three men. One of the three men was Justin Timberlake, who showed up unexpectedly at the dressing room in a leotard before filming. The other two were SNLcast members Andy Samberg and Bobby Moynihan. On November 16, 2008, Knowles performed the song during the final episode of Total Request Live. Knowles performed the song on November 18, 2008 at BET's 106 & Park. She also performed "Single Ladies (Put a Ring on It)" during the 2008 AMA Awards on November 23, 2008. On November 25, 2008, she performed the song on The Ellen DeGeneres Show. On November 26, 2008, she performed the song at Rockefeller Plaza on The Today Show. Knowles also performed the song on The Tyra Banks Showwith two male dancers.

This song has been included in many television shows, including J.J. Abrams' Fringe, Cougar Town, and was used at least three times in Glee.

The song received generally positive critical response. Bill Lamb of About.com, stated that: "Stylistically, the pair ['If I Were a Boy'/'Single Ladies'] are very distinctive from each other, but both are pure Beyoncé. To my ears, 'If I Were a Boy' sounds like an 'Irreplaceable' size smash. However, that is only if it doesn't get overshadowed by the power bounce of 'Single Ladies,' an extension of the style of 'Get Me Bodied' from B'Day." Allmusic had a negative view of the similarities between the two songs, saying the song is "a dire 'Get Me Bodied' retread". Leah Greenblatt of Entertainment Weeklymagazine said the song "is all bouncy hand claps and post-breakup sass, a giddy, high-stepping hybrid of lyrical kiss-off and fizzy jump-rope jam". Mariel Concepcion of Billboardmagazine was not impressed with the song, calling it "standard screech-thump fare".

Rolling Stonemagazine named "Single Ladies (Put a Ring On It)" the best song of 2008 writing, "The beat, courtesy of The-Dream and Tricky Stewart, is irresistible and exuberant, the vocal hook is stormy and virtuosic." The song also landed at number two on MTV's list of "The Best songs of 2008": "'Single Ladies' is hyperactive and supercharged in ways I never thought possible. It's epic and sexy and even a bit sad (because, you know, he didn't put a ring on it)...there is absolutely zero chance Beyoncé ever releases a single like this ever again." Timemagazine's critic Josh Tyrangiel, who called the song "ludicrously infectious", ranked it the seventh best song of 2008. "Single Ladies (Put A Ring On It)" has also been named Song of the Year by Fuse TV.

"Single Ladies (Put a Ring on It)" debuted at number 78 on the Hot 100 and steadily ascended the charts, entering the top 40 at number 28 on the Billboardissue date of November 29; the following week, "Single Ladies" surged to number two on the Hot 100. With strong digital sales of 204,000 "Single Ladies" topped the Hot Digital Songs chart, pushing Knowles' other single "If I Were a Boy" to number two with a tally of 160,000 copies sold. The song sold 228,000 downloads the following week, a twelve percent increase over the last week's tally of 204,000, and spent two weeks at number one on the Hot Digital Songs. "Single Ladies" fourth week at number one was prompted by a massive surge of 157% on downloads, which gave her 382,000 downloads for the week alone. The single's performance on the Hot 100 was also boosted by heavy rotation, as the song also topped the Hot 100 Airplay chart for a number of weeks. "Single Ladies" became Knowles' fifth number one single on the Hot 100, eventually topping the chart for four non-consecutive weeks, interrupted at the top in its second week by T.I. and Rihanna's "Live Your Life". It was certified 2x Platinum by the RIAA on February 13, 2009. As of September, 2009, this song has so far sold over 3,000,000 digital downloads in the United States, becoming Knowles' highest-selling song in the U.S to date.

As Knowles' fifth number one song, she is now second, behind R&B singer Rihanna, for most number one singles this decade by a solo female artist (excluding three of her number one hits with Destiny's Child from this decade). The song spent four non-consecutive weeks atop the Hot 100, becoming Knowles' second Christmas and New Year number-one single, the first one being "Irreplaceable" in 2006-2007. "Single Ladies" was also a crossover success, topping both the Hot Dance Club Play and Hot Dance Airplay charts. It was well received by an R&B audience, where it debuted at number 20 on the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart and spent twelve consecutive weeks at the summit. It is Knowles' fifth number-one R&B single in her solo career.

Internationally, the song performed well. It debuted at number 81 on the Canadian Hot 100 based on downloads alone, and jumped to number 17 the following week based on strong sales, eventually peaking at number two. In the UK. "Single Ladies" was not initially released as an independent single, and was released instead as the b-side to "If I Were A Boy". However, the song achieved great success, entering UK Singles Chart at number 67 on November 23, 2008, based on downloads alone, and slowly climbed to a peak of number seven (and number one on the UK R&B Chart for three consecutive weeks), giving Knowles her twelfth UK top ten hit. To date "Single Ladies" has spent 60 weeks on the UK Singles Chart (top 100) making it her longest charting single ever in the country, beating nine of her other higher charting singles (including every one of her #1 singles). As of March 2010, it still remains on the chart, well over a year after it was released. It's sales have exceeded 400,000 making it her third gold single in the UK. The song peaked at number 4 on the Irish Singles Chart.

On November 24, 2008, "Single Ladies" debuted at number 15 on the Australian ARIA Singles Chart and peaked at number 5. The song was certified 3x Platinum, selling over 210,000 copies. In New Zealand, the song debuted at number thirty-two on November 24, 2008, and peaked at number two in its fourth week where it stayed for three weeks. It was certified Platinum, selling over 15,000 copies. The single began charting in 2008 and is only the second single to chart over three consecutive years, as it sat at number 36 in the top 40 going into 2010. In the Netherlands, "Single Ladies" became a top 10 hit based on downloads and airplay, eventually peaking at number 8.

On November 16, 2009, "Single Ladies" had spent 52 weeks (a year) in the Top 50 Australian ARIA Singles Chart, before dropping out the next week.

The music video for "Single Ladies" was shot concurrently with "If I Were a Boy", as both singles were released together to emphasize the duality of the singer and her more aggressive alter ego Sasha Fierce. However, Knowles revealed that the budget for the videos was spent almost entirely on "If I Were a Boy", and the producers were forced to downgrade for "Single Ladies". Like "If I Were a Boy", "Single Ladies" is shot in black and white, and was directed by Jake Nava, with whom Knowles had worked on her previous music videos including "Crazy in Love" and "Beautiful Liar". According to Nava, the styling was inspired by a Voguephoto shoot.

Choreographed by Frank Gatson and JaQuel Knight, Knowles performs as her alter ego, Sasha Fierce. It shows her in asymmetrical leotard and high-heels, with two look-alike backup dancers (Ebony Williams and Ashley Everett). The video features Knowles dancing inside an infinity cove (which alternates between black and white), placing focus on the complex choreography. The dance routine incorporates various styles, including jazz, tap and hip hop, and is credited with popularizing J-Setting, a flamboyant lead-and-follow dance style prominent in many African American gay clubs across Atlanta (which in turn was borrowed from the moves of the all-female J-Sette dance troupe of Jackson State University). Towards the end of the video, Knowles flashes her $5 million Lorraine Schwartz wedding ring that camouflages with her titanium glove, also made by Schwartz.

Knowles premiered the music video, alongside the video for "If I Were a Boy," also directed by Nava, on MTV's Total Request Liveshow. The video was released to major outlets on October 13, 2008. Upon the video's release, many internet bloggers noticed similarities between the choreography of "Single Ladies" and that of a June 1969 performance by Gwen Verdon on The Ed Sullivan Showentitled "Mexican Breakfast". The latter—choreographed by Broadway legend Bob Fosse—became an internet viral sensation when Unk's "Walk It Out" was dubbed over the original mix. While promoting the song on BET's 106 & Park, Knowles stated that she was inspired by the video after viewing it on YouTube and wanted to see if she could attempt it. In an interview with Entertainment Weeklymagazine, Knowles said she saw an old tape of Verdon and used it as an inspiration for the video to "Single Ladies". The choreography also borrows liberally from Fosse's "There's Gotta Be Something Better Than This" routine from the stage musical and subsequent film Sweet Charity(Verdon played Charity on Broadway, and Shirley MacLaine, the role in the film).

There are gospel and acoustic versions. Toddlers have tackled it. [So have] recreation centre dance classes, sorority sisters in their dorm rooms, suburban teenagers in their basements and high school cheerleaders... There are all-male tributes, an impromptu number in an airport lounge and even some "new 'n' improved" videos of dance teams taking a second try. As with every Internet trend, there are of course the requisite Facebook groups devoted to it ... a couple of years ago, Soulja Boy initiated a short-lived dance craze ... but it remained mainly a male hip-hop dance, whereas the 'Single Ladies' dance has crossed over to all age groups and genders.

"Single Ladies" has gained widespread popularity for its catchy hook and theme of female empowerment, with critics comparing the song to Aretha Franklin's "Respect" or Gloria Gaynor's "I Will Survive". The music video has achieved fame for its intricate choreography, which has been credited as having started the "first major dance craze of both the new millennium and the Internet". It was parodied on Saturday Night Live, where the two female backup dancers from the video were replaced by Justin Timberlake and SNLcastmembers Andy Samberg and Bobby Moynihan. On June 3, 2009, Joe Jonas of the Jonas Brothers did the dance and posted it on their YouTube account for their album countdown. Also, the song and its choreography was used on the popular American TV show Glee, performed by the character Kurt, played by Chris Colfer, who also performed a watered down version of the dance.

The music video has inspired a legion of imitators who have posted videos of themselves on to YouTube attempting to perform the choreography. One of the more popular viral videos is that of Shane Mercado, who appeared on The Bonnie Hunt Show to perform the choreography and later got the chance to meet Beyonce Knowles. In one of the videos on the internet, filmed by American singer John Legend, the American president Barack Obama can be seen doing a small part of the "Single ladies" dance, while talking to Knowles. In London, 100 dancers wearing leotards similar to the one worn by Knowles performed the choreography on April 20, 2009 to promote Trident Unwrapped, a gum company. The music video for "Single Ladies" is also parodied on a 2009 television commercial in the United Kingdom for the new Doner Kebab flavoured Pot Noodle.

The video has generated interest in j-setting, the dance form that choreographer JaQuel Knight highlights in the video, and is credited as bringing the dance style to the mainstream. Like the histories of many popular dances, there are several versions of the development of J-setting (named after the "Prancing J-Settes" of Jackson State University in Jackson, MS). In a radio interview on NPR's All Things Considered, Knight shared his excitement about the popularity of the video's one-take dance sequence as an inspiration for anyone to get up off the couch and try out the moves.

The popularity of the video on YouTube has been in turn reflected by Knowles; during her concert tour, excerpts from many of the YouTube videos play on the video screens in the background. In the music video for "Dancin on Me" by DJ Webstar and Jim Jones, it features three females in the background imitating the "Single Ladies" dance.

"Single Ladies" won the 2009 BET Awards Video of the Year. In addition, it was nominated for a total of nine awards at the 2009 MTV Video Music Awards, and ultimately won the award for Video of the Year, and an additional two awards as well, though its loss in the Best Female Video category to Taylor Swift's "You Belong with Me" led to controversy during the ceremony; Swift's award acceptance speech was interrupted by singer/rapper Kanye West, who grabbed her microphone to declare the "Single Ladies" video as "one of the best videos of all time". When Knowles won the Video of the Year award, she stated, "I remember being 17 years old, up for my first MTV award with Destiny's Child, and it was one of the most exciting moments in my life" and that she would like for Swift to "come out and have her moment".

The song is covered by The Chipettes, which also topped several charts, in the film Alvin and the Chipmunks: The Squeakquel, and is available on the film's soundtrack.

A Sunday edition of Stone Soupfeatures Val Stone watching the video on YouTube to learn the dance, with her daughter Holly stating that she will "never show her anything on YouTube again" in reaction to seeing her doing the dance. Entertainment Weeklyput it on its end-of-the-decade, "best-of" list, saying, "Sorry, Taylor. Kanye was right. With choreography that had everyone flashing their bling-free ring fingers, Beyoncé's fierce female anthem really is "one of the best videos of all time."

The music video was parodied on an SNL sketch, which included Beyonce herself.

In Nov 2009, Australian Band 'The Pigs' released a country version with John Williamson (singer) on Jaw Harp. It is the first single off The Pigs’ second album, Horses. The music video; first aired on ABC's rage music program as Indie Video Of The Week;The pigs official website

In the 2009 film, " Alvin and the Chipmunks: The Squeakquel", The Chipettes (Brittany, Jeanette, and Eleanor) sing the song, and this version was released on the film's soundtrack.

The band - The Fray - also 'covered' the song "Single Ladies" and "Hips Don't Lie" for laughs at concerts.

The band Pierce The Veil often starts their song "Yeah Boy and Doll Face" with "Single Ladies" when performing live.

Naomi, the fictional Alter ego of romanian actor and singer Mihai Bendeac from satire TV show "Mondenii" (Prima TV) parodied the song, intitling it "Super Sexy & Sensimbile" - Super-Hot and Sensitive.

It was parodied on Australian sketch show Double Take as 'It's Humiliating'. The lyrics are changed to make fun of Beyonce's outfit and dancing in the original video

It is featured twice in the 'Preggers' episode of Glee, most notably when it is danced to by the school football team