50 Best Rock Songs About an Ex You Still Love

Rock Songs That Capture Loving an Ex You Can’t Let Go

There’s a strange kind of ache that lingers when someone’s gone but still manages to show up in your head at 2 a.m. It’s not heartbreak in the dramatic way the movies show it. It’s quieter, heavier, the kind that hums through a half-finished text or an old playlist you forgot to delete. You think you’re fine until that one riff drops and you remember how they used to sing it under their breath. The best tracks for that feeling don’t smooth it over. They lean in, messy and raw, like someone picking at a scab they don’t want to heal yet.

Some of these songs spill out like confessions, others hide the hurt behind distortion and noise. The ones that hit hardest sound like they were recorded in the middle of trying to move on, not after. They sit in that limbo where love still lingers but pride keeps quiet. The guitars sound too loud, the lyrics too honest, the drums like a heartbeat you can’t turn off. Not every track here literally fits the theme, but the feeling’s there—the one that sneaks up in a parking lot or after a few drinks when you’re scrolling through photos you swore you deleted.

There’s something universal about that tension, the way pop, rock, country, and R&B songs keep circling the same story from different corners. Everyone’s trying to make sense of that leftover affection, the kind that won’t fade on command. These songs catch that awkward, hopeful, haunted middle ground and play it at full volume. Here are the best rock songs about an ex you still love.

1. 'Still Loving You' by Scorpions

2. 'Every Breath You Take' by The Police

3. 'I Hate Myself for Loving You' by Joan Jett and the Blackhearts

4. 'Love Bites' by Def Leppard

5. 'Black' by Pearl Jam

6. 'With or Without You' by U2

7. 'Don't Speak' by No Doubt

8. 'Wicked Game' by Chris Isaak

9. 'Hemorrhage (In My Hands)' by Fuel

10. 'I Miss You' by Blink-182

11. 'Iris' by The Goo Goo Dolls

12. 'Last Goodbye' by Jeff Buckley

13. 'Silver Springs' by Fleetwood Mac

14. 'Pictures of You' by The Cure

15. 'Nothing Compares 2 U' by Sinéad O'Connor

16. 'Love Hurts' by Nazareth

17. 'High and Dry' by Radiohead

18. 'Angie' by The Rolling Stones

19. 'Layla' by Derek and the Dominos

20. 'Creep' by Radiohead

21. 'Used to Love Her' by Guns N' Roses

22. 'Glycerine' by Bush

23. 'Total Eclipse of the Heart' by Bonnie Tyler

24. 'I Want You' by Elvis Costello

25. 'Soma' by The Smashing Pumpkins

26. 'The Great Pretender' by Freddie Mercury

27. 'You Know My Name' by Chris Cornell

28. 'Drive' by The Cars

29. 'Broken' by Seether featuring Amy Lee

30. 'Since U Been Gone' by Kelly Clarkson

31. 'Without You' by Harry Nilsson

32. 'Is This Love' by Whitesnake

33. 'Where Did You Sleep Last Night' by Nirvana

34. 'I Don't Love You' by My Chemical Romance

35. 'The Flame' by Cheap Trick

36. 'Love Will Tear Us Apart' by Joy Division

37. 'Dream On' by Aerosmith

38. 'Casanova Lament' by Frank Turner

39. 'Torn' by Natalie Imbruglia

40. 'Maps' by Yeah Yeah Yeahs

41. 'Don't Look Back in Anger' by Oasis

42. 'The District Sleeps Alone Tonight' by The Postal Service

43. 'Love Song' by The Damned

44. 'Yesterday' by The Beatles

45. 'My Friends Over You' by New Found Glory

46. 'I'm Not Okay (I Promise)' by My Chemical Romance

47. 'Hello Sadness' by Los Campesinos!

48. 'The Last Time' by The Verve

49. 'Tornado of Souls' by Megadeth

50. 'Go Your Own Way' by Fleetwood Mac