Country Music Association Award for Entertainer of the Year

The Country Music Association Awards is a major awards show in country music, with the highest honor being the award for Entertainer of the Year. It is the final award presented at the ceremony and recognizes the artist "displaying the greatest competence in all aspects of the entertainment field", with consideration to not only recorded performance but also "in-person performance, public acceptance, leadership, and overall contribution to country music" they have exhibited throughout the eligibility period. It is generally considered the highest competitive honor presented at the CMA Awards.

The inaugural recipient of the award was Eddy Arnold in 1967, with Loretta Lynn becoming the first female winner in 1972, and Alabama being the first group awarded in 1982. Garth Brooks holds the record for most wins in the category, with seven, while three-time recipient George Strait has a leading nineteen nominations. To date, Barbara Mandrell and Taylor Swift are the only women to have won twice. Chris Stapleton holds the record for most nominations without a win, with seven. The current holder of the award is Lainey Wilson, who won in 2023.

Recipients
In the following tables, the years correspond to the date of the ceremony. Artists are eligible based on their work of the previous calendar year. Entries with a blue ribbon next to the artist's name have won the award; those with a white background are the nominees on the short-list.



Artists with multiple nominations

 * 19 nominations
 * George Strait


 * 13 nominations
 * Garth Brooks
 * Keith Urban


 * 12 nominations
 * Alan Jackson


 * 11 nominations
 * Brooks & Dunn
 * Kenny Chesney


 * 10 nominations
 * Reba McEntire


 * 9 nominations
 * Merle Haggard


 * 8 nominations
 * Brad Paisley
 * Vince Gill


 * 7 nominations
 * Chris Stapleton


 * 6 nominations


 * Barbara Mandrell
 * Carrie Underwood
 * Charley Pride
 * Luke Bryan
 * Miranda Lambert
 * Tim McGraw
 * Willie Nelson


 * 5 nominations


 * Alabama
 * Eric Church
 * Kenny Rogers
 * Loretta Lynn
 * Ronnie Milsap


 * 4 nominations


 * Blake Shelton
 * Jason Aldean
 * Luke Combs
 * Randy Travis
 * Ricky Skaggs
 * Taylor Swift
 * Toby Keith


 * 3 nominations


 * Dixie Chicks
 * Dolly Parton
 * Eddy Arnold
 * Glen Campbell
 * Hank Williams Jr.
 * Johnny Cash
 * Oak Ridge Boys
 * Roy Clark
 * The Judds
 * Waylon Jennings


 * 2 nominations


 * Clint Black
 * Conway Twitty
 * Crystal Gayle
 * Jerry Reed
 * Lee Greenwood
 * Mel Tillis
 * Morgan Wallen
 * Rascal Flatts
 * Ricky Van Shelton

Won on First nomination

 * Eddy Arnold (1967)
 * Roy Clark (1973)
 * Charlie Rich (1974)
 * John Denver (1975)
 * Mel Tillis (1976)
 * Hank Williams Jr. (1987)
 * Garth Brooks (1991)
 * Shania Twain (1999)
 * Keith Urban (2005)
 * Taylor Swift (2009)
 * Lainey Wilson (2023)