Most Receiving Touchdowns in NFL History

Jerry Rice holds the NFL record for the most receiving touchdowns, with 197 caught over 20 seasons from 1985 to 2004. That total sits 41 clear of second-place Randy Moss, a margin that captures Rice’s standing as the most productive pass-catcher the game has ever seen.

Reaching the end zone on a catch is the receiver’s ultimate reward, and the career leaderboard for doing it is one of football’s defining lists. A quick note on what it measures: this counts only touchdowns caught, not rushing or return scores, which is why Rice’s receiving figure of 197 is a little below his all-time record of 208 total touchdowns. Here is the full leaderboard of the NFL’s top touchdown receivers and why Rice’s mark stands so far above the rest. All figures are as of the 2025 season.

The record holder: Jerry Rice and 197 receiving touchdowns

Rice spent the bulk of his career with the San Francisco 49ers, where his precise routes, sure hands and relentless conditioning made him almost impossible to cover. He scored in every kind of situation, from short slants to long bombs, and kept finding the end zone into his 40s. The overwhelming majority of his 208 total touchdowns, 197 of them, came on receptions.

The scale of the lead is what secures the record. At 41 receiving touchdowns clear of the field, Rice’s total would demand that a future receiver combine elite scoring with two full decades of durability, a pairing no one has come close to matching since.

The full leaderboard of career receiving touchdowns

The table below ranks the NFL’s all-time leaders in receiving touchdowns.

Rank	Receiving TDs	Player	Career
1	197	Jerry Rice	1985-2004
2	156	Randy Moss	1998-2012
3	153	Terrell Owens	1996-2010
4	130	Cris Carter	1987-2002
5	128	Marvin Harrison	1996-2008
6	121	Larry Fitzgerald	2004-2020
7	116	Antonio Gates	2003-2018
8	111	Tony Gonzalez	1997-2013
9	100	Tim Brown	1988-2004
9	100	Steve Largent	1976-1989

The list is dominated by wide receivers, but two tight ends stand out: Antonio Gates, whose 116 are the most by a player at his position, and Tony Gonzalez on 111. Among active players, no one is inside the top 10, though the nearest are climbing toward the 100 mark held by Tim Brown and Steve Largent.

Randy Moss, Terrell Owens and the chasing pack

Randy Moss and Terrell Owens, second and third with 156 and 153, were the era-defining deep threats who followed Rice. Moss set the single-season receiving touchdown record with 23 in 2007, a mark that still stands, while Owens combined size and speed across a long, prolific career. Cris Carter and Marvin Harrison round out the top five, each a metronomic scorer over more than a decade.

Receiving touchdowns versus total touchdowns

This list is a subset of the broader scoring picture. Rice leads both the receiving list here and our most touchdowns in NFL history leaderboard, which adds rushing and return scores. Running backs like Emmitt Smith and LaDainian Tomlinson rank high on that total list but do not appear here, because their scores came on the ground rather than through the air. Yardage tells a related story on our most receiving yards of all time ranking, where many of these same names reappear.

Why the record matters

A receiving touchdown depends on more than the receiver: it needs a quarterback, protection and the right play call, all executed inside a defense’s most crowded space. Rice reaching 197 reflects both historic skill and rare longevity, the combination that keeps his record out of reach. It is the receiving equivalent of the durability that defines the game’s other great career marks.

The short version: Jerry Rice holds the NFL record for receiving touchdowns with 197, well ahead of Randy Moss (156) and Terrell Owens (153). The list counts only catches, not rushing or return scores. As of the 2025 season, no active player is within 90 of Rice, leaving the record among the safest in football.