Top ten grossing documentaries

1 Fahrenheit 9/11 

is a 2004 documentary by American filmmaker, director and a political commentator called Michael Moore. The film takes a critical look at the presidency of George Bush, the 'War on terror', and its coverage in the news media. The film is the highest grossing documentary of all time. 
Budget: $6 million
Box Office: $222.4 million
2 March of the Penguins
is a 2005 French nature documentary directed and co-written by Luc Jacquet, and co-produced by Bonne Pioche.The documentary depicts the yearly journey of the emperor penguins of Antartica. In autumn, all the penguins of breeding age  leave the ocean, their normal habitat, to walk inland to their ancestral breeding grounds.
Budget: $8 million
Box office: $127.4 million
3 Michael Jackson this is it
is a 2009 American Documentary directed by Kenny Ortega that documents Michael Jacksons rehearsals and preparation for his Concert at the time that was originally scheduled to start on July 13, 2009, but cancelled due to his unfortunate death eighteen days prior on June 25. The film consists of Jackson rehearsing musical numbers, directing his team, and additional behind-the-scenes footage including dancer auditions and costume design. The film's director confirmed that none of this footage was originally intended for release, but after Jackson's death it was agreed that the film be made. The footage was filmed in LA at the Staples centre and features a clip from the O2 arena in London where Jackson publicly announced the concert series.
Budget: $60 million
Box office: $261.2 million 
4 Sicko 
is a 2007 documentary film by American filmmaker Michael Moore. The film investigates healthcare in the US, focusing on its health insurance and the pharmaceutical industry. The movie compares the for-profit, non-universal U.S. system with the non-profit health care around the world systems of Canada, the United Kingdom, France and Cuba. This is the second time Michael Moore has been on this list
Budget: $9 million
Box Office: $36,088,109
5 An Inconvenient Truth 

is a 2006 documentary directed by Davis Guggenheim about former United States Vice President Al Gore's campaign to educate citizens about global warming via a comprehensive slide show that, by his own estimate made in the film, he has given more than a thousand times.

Premiering at the 2006 Sundance Film Festival and opening in New York City and Los Angeles on May 24, 2006, the documentary was a critical and box-office success, winning two Academy Awards for Best Documentary Feature and Best Original Song.The film grossed $24 million in the U.S. and $26 million in the foreign box office, becoming the tenth highest grossing documentary film to date in the United States.
Budget: $1 million
Box Office: $49.7 million
6 Bowling for Columbine 

is a 2002 American documentary film written, produced, directed, and narrated by Michael Moore. The film explores what Moore suggests are the main causes for the Columbine High School massacre on April 20, 1999, and other acts of violence with guns. Moore focuses on the background and environment in which the massacre took place and some common public opinions and assumptions about related issues. The film also looks into the nature of violence in the United States.

A critical and commercial success, the film brought Moore international attention as a rising filmmaker and won numerous awards, including the Academy Award for Best Documentary Feature, the Independent Spirit Award for Best Documentary Feature, at the 2002 Cannes Film Festival,and the César Award for Best Foreign Film. The film is considered one of the greatest documentary films of all-time.
Budget: $4 million
Box office: $58 million
7 Madonna: Truth or Dare 
is a 1991 American documentary the life of American singer-songwriter Madonna during her 1990 Blond Ambition World Tour. The film was generally well received by critics and was successful at the box office, at that point becoming the highest-grossing documentary of all time with a worldwide gross of $29,012,935. It was screened out of competition at the 1991.
Budget: $4.5 million
Box office: $29,012,935
8 Religious 
Commentator-comic Bill Maher plays devil's advocate with religion as he talks to believers about their faith. Traveling around the world, Maher examines the tenets of Christianity, Judaism and Islam and raises questions about homosexuality, proof of Christ's existence, Jewish Sabbath laws, violent Muslim extremists.
Budget: $2.5 million
Box office: $13.4 million
9 Winged Migration
Winged migration is about the journey of birds throughout their migration. It is directed by Jacques Perrin,Jacques Claud, Michel Debats
Budget: $23.6 million
Box office: $52.8 million
10 Super Size Me 
is a 2004 American documentary directed by and starring Morgan Spurlock, an American independent filmmaker. Spurlock's film follows a 30-day period from February 1 to March 2, 2003, during which he ate only McDonald's food. The film documents this lifestyle's drastic effect on Spurlock's physical and psychological well-being, and explores the fast food industry's corporate influence, including how it encourages poor nutrition for its own profit.

Spurlock ate at McDonald's restaurants three times per day, eating every item on the chain's menu at least once. Spurlock consumed an average of 5,000 kcal  per day during the experiment. An intake of around 2,500 kcal within a healthy balanced diet is more generally recommended for a man to maintain his weight.

The reason for Spurlock's investigation was the increasing spread of obesity throughout U.S. society, which the Surgeon General declared "epidemic", and the lawsuit brought against McDonald's on behalf of two overweight girls, who, it was alleged, became obese as a result of eating McDonald's food.

The documentary was nominated for an Academy Award for Documentary Feature.

Budget: $65,000

Box office: $22,233,808