State of the Business: TV ratings, attendance and more

For the week ending April 18, 2025

Apr 19, 2025

Rankings for TV ratings

While TV viewership -- offset by changes in household coverage -- may be a reasonable indicator of fan engagement, the ranking of these programs are a more reliable indicator of a program’s media value.

Weekly primetime ranking: P18-49 among cable originals & broadcast
Moving 52-week median, smoothed. Preemptions excluded.

Ranking: Median weekly P18-49 primetime among cable originals & broadcast

Top 100 Primetime telecasts, sorted by P18-49: 7 days beginning Fri Apr 11, 2025 through Thu Apr 17, 2025

Data from Nielsen via Programming Insider

1.) 0.91 - 60 MINUTES | CBS, Sun Apr 13
2.) 0.80 - SURVIVOR | CBS, Wed Apr 16
3.) 0.70 - NBA PLAYOFFS (Play-In: Miami Heat at Chicago Bulls) | ESPN, Wed Apr 16
4.) 0.58 - SATURDAY NIGHT LIVE (• 4.293 million viewers) | • 4.293 MILLION VIEWERS, Sat Apr 12
5.) 0.54 - AMERICAN IDOL | ABC, Sun Apr 13
6.) 0.53 - NBA PLAYOFFS (Play-In: Atlanta Hawks at Orlando Magic) | TNT, Tue Apr 15
7.) 0.52 - MLB SUNDAY NIGHT BASEBALL (Chicago Cubs/LA Dodgers) | ESPN, Sun Apr 13
8.) 0.51 - TRACKER | CBS, Sun Apr 13
9.) 0.48 - MATLOCK | CBS, Thu Apr 17
10.) 0.46 - GEORGIE & MANDY’S FIRST MARRIAGE | CBS, Thu Apr 17
11.) 0.45 - WWE FRIDAY NIGHT SMACKDOWN | USA, Fri Apr 11
12.) 0.42 - THE MASKED SINGER | FOX, Wed Apr 16
13.) 0.40 - FBI | CBS, Tue Apr 15
13.) 0.40 - GHOSTS | CBS, Thu Apr 17
13.) 0.40 - AMERICAN IDOL | ABC, Mon Apr 14
16.) 0.38 - LAW & ORDER: SVU | NBC, Thu Apr 17
16.) 0.38 - UFC PPV PRELIMS | ESPN, Sat Apr 12
18.) 0.36 - 9-1-1 | ABC, Thu Apr 17
18.) 0.36 - NEXT LEVEL CHEF | FOX, Thu Apr 17
20.) 0.34 - FBI: MOST WANTED | CBS, Tue Apr 15
20.) 0.34 - THE FLOOR | FOX, Wed Apr 16
22.) 0.33 - CHICAGO FIRE | NBC, Wed Apr 16
22.) 0.33 - THE VOICE | NBC, Mon Apr 14
22.) 0.33 - LAW & ORDER | NBC, Thu Apr 17
22.) 0.33 - THE NEIGHBORHOOD | CBS, Mon Apr 14
22.) 0.33 - THE AMERICAS | NBC, Sun Apr 13
27.) 0.32 - WATSON | CBS, Sun Apr 13
27.) 0.32 - FBI: INTERNATIONAL | CBS, Tue Apr 15
27.) 0.32 - THE ROOKIE | ABC, Tue Apr 15
27.) 0.32 - WNBA DRAFT | ESPN, Mon Apr 14
31.) 0.31 - THE LAST OF US (10: Episode 10) | HBO, Sun Apr 13
32.) 0.30 - CHICAGO MED | NBC, Wed Apr 16
32.) 0.30 - CHICAGO PD | NBC, Wed Apr 16
32.) 0.30 - THE AMAZING RACE | CBS, Wed Apr 16
32.) 0.30 - ABBOTT ELEMENTARY | ABC, Wed Apr 16
36.) 0.29 - WILL TRENT | ABC, Tue Apr 15
36.) 0.29 - SHARK TANK | ABC, Fri Apr 11
38.) 0.27 - FIRE COUNTRY | CBS, Fri Apr 11
38.) 0.27 - LAW & ORDER: ORGANIZED CRIME | NBC, Thu Apr 17
40.) 0.26 - NCIS | CBS, Mon Apr 14
40.) 0.26 - POPPA’S HOUSE | CBS, Mon Apr 14
40.) 0.26 - THE CONNERS | ABC, Wed Apr 16
40.) 0.26 - ST. DENIS MEDICAL | NBC, Tue Apr 15
44.) 0.25 - S.W.A.T. | CBS, Fri Apr 11
44.) 0.25 - CELEBRITY JEOPARDY! | ABC, Wed Apr 16
46.) 0.24 - THE EQUALIZER | CBS, Sun Apr 13
46.) 0.24 - THE $100,000 PYRAMID | ABC, Sun Apr 13
48.) 0.23 - NCIS: ORIGINS | CBS, Mon Apr 14
49.) 0.22 - NCIS: SYDNEY | CBS, Fri Apr 11
49.) 0.22 - CBS SATURDAY ENCORE (Tracker) | CBS, Sat Apr 12
49.) 0.22 - GREY’S ANATOMY | ABC, Thu Apr 17
49.) 0.22 - SATURDAY NIGHT LIVE | NBC, Sat Apr 12
53.) 0.21 - GUTFELD! | FOX NEWS, Wed Apr 16
53.) 0.21 - FAMILY GUY | FOX, Sun Apr 13
55.) 0.20 - JESSE WATTERS PRIMETIME | FOX NEWS, Wed Apr 16
55.) 0.20 - DOCTOR ODYSSEY | ABC, Thu Apr 17
57.) 0.19 - JESSE WATTERS PRIMETIME | FOX NEWS, Tue Apr 15
57.) 0.19 - FOUND | NBC, Mon Apr 14
57.) 0.19 - TOURNAMENT OF CHAMPIONS | FOOD NETWORK, Sun Apr 13
57.) 0.19 - REAL HOUSEWIVES OF BEVERLY HILLS | BRAVO, Tue Apr 15
61.) 0.18 - JESSE WATTERS PRIMETIME | FOX NEWS, Fri Apr 11
61.) 0.18 - GUTFELD! | FOX NEWS, Thu Apr 17
61.) 0.18 - THE TEN COMMANDMENTS (1956) | ABC, Sat Apr 12
61.) 0.18 - EXTRACTED | FOX, Mon Apr 14
65.) 0.17 - JESSE WATTERS PRIMETIME | FOX NEWS, Thu Apr 17
65.) 0.17 - HANNITY | FOX NEWS, Wed Apr 16
65.) 0.17 - FARMER WANTS A WIFE | FOX, Thu Apr 17
65.) 0.17 - SUITS LA | NBC, Sun Apr 13
65.) 0.17 - NIGHT COURT | NBC, Tue Apr 15
65.) 0.17 - AEW DYNAMITE | TBS, Wed Apr 16
65.) 0.17 - NHL REGULAR SEASON (Washington Capitals at Pittsburgh Penguins) | ESPN, Thu Apr 17
65.) 0.17 - RUPAUL’S DRAG RACE (Season 17) | MTV, Fri Apr 11
73.) 0.16 - JESSE WATTERS PRIMETIME | FOX NEWS, Mon Apr 14
73.) 0.16 - MASTERS GOLF TOURNAMENT (R) (Round 2) | ESPN, Fri Apr 11
73.) 0.16 - NCAA DIVISION I MEN’S HOCKEY TOURNAMENT (Boston University/Western Michigan) | ESPN2, Sat Apr 12
73.) 0.16 - THE SIMPSONS | FOX, Sun Apr 13
77.) 0.15 - GUTFELD! | FOX NEWS, Mon Apr 14
77.) 0.15 - GUTFELD! | FOX NEWS, Fri Apr 11
77.) 0.15 - HANNITY | FOX NEWS, Mon Apr 14
77.) 0.15 - HANNITY | FOX NEWS, Tue Apr 15
77.) 0.15 - HANNITY | FOX NEWS, Thu Apr 17
82.) 0.14 - GUTFELD! | FOX NEWS, Tue Apr 15
82.) 0.14 - HANNITY | FOX NEWS, Fri Apr 11
82.) 0.14 - 48 HOURS | CBS, Sat Apr 12
82.) 0.14 - 20/20 | ABC, Fri Apr 11
82.) 0.14 - DATELINE | NBC, Sun Apr 13
82.) 0.14 - BAD ROMANCE | ABC, Tue Apr 15
82.) 0.14 - WHAT WOULD YOU DO? | ABC, Wed Apr 16
82.) 0.14 - WWE NXT | CW, Tue Apr 15
82.) 0.14 - KRAPOPOLIS | FOX, Sun Apr 13
82.) 0.14 - THE VALLEY | BRAVO, Tue Apr 15
92.) 0.13 - 48 HOURS | CBS, Sat Apr 12
92.) 0.13 - 90 DAY: THE LAST RESORT (Tell All) | TLC, Mon Apr 14
92.) 0.13 - 90 DAY FIANCÉ | TLC, Sun Apr 13
92.) 0.13 - UFL ON FOX | FOX, Fri Apr 11
92.) 0.13 - BELOW DECK DOWN UNDER | BRAVO, Mon Apr 14
92.) 0.13 - REAL HOUSEWIVES OF ATLANTA (1606 Peace, Interrupted) | BRAVO, Sun Apr 13
98.) 0.12 - RACHEL MADDOW SHOW | MSNBC, Thu Apr 17
98.) 0.12 - DATELINE | NBC, Fri Apr 11
98.) 0.12 - THE CURSE OF OAK ISLAND | HISTORY, Tue Apr 15

TV ratings, year-over-year-comparisons

Annual averages through Apr 16 in each year

Total viewership (P2+), live+same-day viewership. Preemptions excluded.

Annual averages through Apr 16 in each year
P18-49, live+same-day viewership. Preemptions excluded.

Year-over-year: Total viewership (P2+), live+same-day
Preemptions are excluded. To account for potential seasonality, the latest data for the current year is compared only to data as of the same day of the prior year (rather than comparing the partial current year to the full prior year).

Year-over-year: P18-49, live+same-day

What's the rate of cord-cutting?

The pay TV universe was down about -5% year-over-year in Q3 (July to September 2024), at about 70,700,000 subscribers, down from about 74,600,000 the year prior.

How fast are cable customers cutting the cord? U.S. subscribers to pay TV by carrier.

*Estimate | **Partial estimate. Frontier reports residential subscribers but not commercial subscribers.

This is an estimate by me based on data reported by publicly-traded pay TV carriers (Charter, Comcast, Altice, Cable One, Cogeco, Dish, Verizon, Frontier, Hulu Live TV, Sling and Fubo), as well as estimates for carriers that don't publicly report customers. Notably, this estimate factors in an assumption that YouTube TV is an outlier as one of the few carriers with a growing customer base, and that the service is continuing to gain subscribers at a trajectory consistent with Google’s occasional disclosures about YouTube TV’s number of subscribers. I estimate that YouTube TV now has about 9.5 million subscribers, or 13% of the pay TV universe in the U.S.

Live event attendance

Data source: WrestleTix estimates of tickets distributed

Estimated tickets distributed trends for WWE and AEW weekly live events

Note: All four charts have the same vertical axis bounds. Unlike the other three, Collision’s horizontal axis starts with its debut in June 2023. The other three start in July 2021 following the end of touring restrictions due to the Covid-19 pandemic.

Events this week

Market-to-market performance over time

WWE: "Was attendance higher or lower than the last time in this city (with the same event type)?"

AEW: "Was attendance higher or lower than the last time in this city (with the same event type)?"

High-performing YouTube highlights

These were selected from WWE and AEW's official YouTube channels, based on being in the top 10 percentile for the channel (WWE or AEW) or the show category (e.g., Raw, Dynamite, etc.) for the trailing 365 days, and having been published within the trailing seven days. Re-release archival matches and full show highlights were excluded (but not full segments).

World Wrestling Entertainment

FULL SEGMENT: Seth Rollins STOMPS CM Punk and Roman Reigns as Heyman watches: Raw, April 14, 2025
Views: 2.759M

WrestleMania 41 set reveal in Las Vegas
Views: 935k

FULL SEGMENT: Cody Rhodes and John Cena verbally destroy each other: SmackDown, April 18, 2025
Views: 852k

All Elite Wrestling

Samoa Joe, Hobbs & Shibata vanquish the Death Riders! And New! | AEW Dynamite, 4/16/25
Views: 437k

Why did FTR try to end Adam Copeland's career?! | 4/12/25, AEW Collision
Views: 268k

Jon Moxley & The Death Riders are NOT happy! | AEW Collision, 4/17/25
Views: 184k

Merchandise

Items that have appeared most frequently in online shops' top sellers listings in the last 7 days.