Trick question, SONAR would not be on the list, it is not a "cross platform DAW".

LA2A
So, Pro Tools, then Reason, my oh my, and apparently it has been exactly this way for the last 8 years, very interesting. Does anyone know where Sonar is on the list?

You sound concerned.

LA2A 
So, Pro Tools, then Reason, my oh my, and apparently it has been exactly this way for the last 8 years, very interesting. Does anyone know where Sonar is on the list?

For certain, someone knows where Sonar is on the list. Does it benefit them to announce it? No. What's the point? In marketing, the only position a company would want to advertise is Number 1. Don't expect anyone to run around saying, "We're Number Four, We're Number Four!"
 
If Sonar is not in the Top 5, will I quit using it out of shame? No way. 
 
If it's #3, will my self esteem go up? Again, no.
 
Here's a question for you, LA2A. Do you own Sonar X3? 
 
 

Sonar is my personal "best daw" and I have quite a few. 
 
If there was a survey of hotshot producers in million dollar studios ProTools would clean house though. There's not many of those guys however and I don't think they would hang around the KVR forums. 

Best selling by quantity (and hence number in use to some extent) or by revenue?

Potentially - and quite likely - very different answers and very different conclusions to be drawn.

LA2A
Apparently the managers of the KVR audio forum are privy to actual DAW sales-figures...
 
At an interview over at KVR with Ernst Nathorst, who is one of the head honchos over at Reason DAW land 
 
The interview starts-out with this statement... "What is the second best-selling cross platform DAW in the world (after Pro Tools)? OK, Pencils down. The answer is  Reason from Propellerhead software" 
 
So, Pro Tools, then Reason, my oh my, and apparently it has been exactly this way for the last 8 years, very interesting. Does anyone know where Sonar is on the list?

this has troll written all over it but I will ignore tha trollish aspects and go straight to what matters:
 
https://yourlogicalfallacyis.com/appeal-to-authority
 
I won't go into all the details as to why this logical fallacy sucks so hard but left you a link that does it for me.   I have no idea if Reason is the second best selling cross-platform DAW and i doubt you do either. It would seem if there are people who have accurate info into actual sales numbers of every DAW it would likely  leak.
 
Furthermore raw sales numbers comparing these products are somewhat meaningless.  Apple computers still have a small market share compared to PCs but who uses them and what they are used for makes that smaller percentage a lot more significant.  I would actually be shocked if Pro Tools is number one in raw sales, especially if you are talking about flagship products and not including le type editions..  I would be more surprised if an expensive product that is best used with expensive hardware is somehow outselling cheaper products that work on modestly powered laptops.
 
I think people who care too much about polls like this have a deep seeded psychological need to be on bandwagons as if the results of a poll somehow justify their purchases.  The best DAW is the one that works for you.  All solutions do not fit all needs. I would not use FL Studio to mix a symphony but it is easily the preferred DAW for certain styles of pop music. Truth be told, many producers end up using several DAWs.  A song produced in Reason for an artist on a major label is likely to end up in Pro tools for final mixing and mastering anyway. Bottomline, these polls can either be a fun thing or a bunch of insecure people making themselves feel better.

The irony in all of this is that Avid is struggling mightily despite being the standard bearer for film editing and audio production.
 

I myself much prefer Sonar and Cubase. Both Sonar X3 and Cubase 7.5 have a lot of maturity, refinement and features plus relevant music-making tools, these two DAWs are certainly refined and good bang-for-buck, not to mention highly capable.
 
I do look forward to Sonar X4 and Cubase 8, these should be something to be reckoned with. To some extent it seems that Pro Tools might be overpriced, even the standalone version. Sonar and Cubase are more complete packages, either of these can do the job and do it well. But i must say that official DAW popularity as stated by KVR is interesting. How is it that AVID is struggling financially when they have the world's most popular DAW? In raw numbers it sells more than any other DAW, and Reason is not far behind. Mere curiosity leads me to wonder where Sonar stands in the official sales-figures list. One thing is for sure from an industry insider, Presonus Studio One is higher up the list than Sonar apparently, and maybe the upcoming Studio One ver III will cement its position.
 
What do you think Cakewalk opps i mean Gibson could do to increase Sonar sales, it is surely a worthy DAW. Actually, that begs the question... why do users here find they prefer Sonar over every other DAW? The fact it is bristling with features and competent plugins is the gem for me, and the Pro Channel is the icing on the cake, but things like the grid-sequencer and the matrix view are also compelling reasons to stay with Sonar, these are very handy...

LA2A
What do you think Cakewalk opps i mean Gibson could do to increase Sonar sales

Focus on stability, and maximize exploiting the single platform

LA2AWhat do you think Cakewalk oops i mean Gibson could do to increase Sonar sales?

Return to functionality being the #1 priority instead of GUI cosmetics.  e.g. less reliance on menu diving and long lists of keybindings, returning to the old select tool which was smarter than the "smart tool" - and etc.  Potential customers are wanting solid, intuitive functionality - not pretty graphics.
 
Randy B.