The Golden Globe Award for Best Actor - Motion Picture Musical or Comedy was first awarded by the Hollywood Foreign Press Association as a separate category in 1951. Previously, there was a single award for "Best Actor in a Motion Picture" but the splitting allowed for recognition of it and the Best Actor - Drama.

The formal title has varied since its inception and as of 2005 is officially called: "Best Performance by an Actor in a Motion Picture- Musical or Comedy ".

• 1951 - Fred Astaire, Three Little Words
• 1952 - Danny Kaye, On the Riviera
• 1953 - Donald O'Connor, Singin' in the Rain
• 1954 - David Niven, The Moon is Blue
• 1955 - James Mason, A Star Is Born
• 1956 - Tom Ewell, Seven Year Itch
• 1957 - Cantinflas, Around the World in Eighty Days
• 1958 - Frank Sinatra, Pal Joey
• 1959 - Danny Kaye, Me and the Colonel
• 1960 - Jack Lemmon, Some Like It Hot
• 1961 - Jack Lemmon, The Apartment
• 1962 - Glenn Ford, Pocketful of Miracles
• 1963 - Marcello Mastroianni, Divorce - Italian Style
• 1964 - Alberto Sordi, To Bed or Not to Bed
• 1965 - Rex Harrison, My Fair Lady
• 1966 - Lee Marvin, Cat Ballou
• 1967 - Alan Arkin, The Russians are Coming, The Russians are Coming
• 1968 - Richard Harris, Camelot
• 1969 - Ron Moody, Oliver!
• 1970 - Peter O'Toole, Goodbye, Mr. Chips
• 1971 - Albert Finney, Scrooge
• 1972 - Topol, Fiddler on the Roof
• 1973 - Jack Lemmon, Avanti
• 1974 - George Segal, A Touch of Class
• 1975 - Art Carney, Harry and Tonto
• 1976 - Walter Matthau, The Sunshine Boys
• 1977 - Kris Kristofferson, A Star is Born
• 1978 - Richard Dreyfuss, The Goodbye Girl
• 1979 - Warren Beatty, Heaven Can Wait
• 1980 - Peter Sellers, Being There
• 1981 - Ray Sharkey , The Idolmaker
• 1982 - Dudley Moore, Arthur
• 1983 - Dustin Hoffman, Tootsie
• 1984 - Michael Caine, Educating Rita
• 1985 - Dudley Moore, Micki and Maude
• 1986 - Jack Nicholson, Prizzi's Honor
• 1987 - Paul Hogan, Crocodile Dundee
• 1988 - Robin Williams, Good Morning, Vietnam
• 1989 - Tom Hanks, Big
• 1990 - Morgan Freeman, Driving Miss Daisy
• 1991 - Gérard Depardieu, Green Card
• 1992 - Robin Williams, The Fisher King
• 1993 - Tim Robbins, The Player
• 1994 - Robin Williams, Mrs. Doubtfire
• 1995 - Hugh Grant, Four Weddings and a Funeral
• 1996 - John Travolta, Get Shorty
• 1997 - Tom Cruise, Jerry Maguire
• 1998 - Jack Nicholson, As Good As It Gets
• 1999 - Michael Caine, Little Voice
• 2000 - Jim Carrey, Man on the Moon
• 2001 - George Clooney, O Brother, Where Art Thou?
• 2002 - Gene Hackman, The Royal Tenenbaums
• 2003 - Richard Gere, Chicago (2002 movie)
• 2004 - Bill Murray, Lost in Translation
• 2005 - Jamie Foxx, Ray