From Adweek · Mark Mwachiro · · 2m
ABC Dominates Evening News Ratings for 2025-2026
World News Tonight extends its decade-long reign while NBC gains ground and CBS struggles.
In brief
World News Tonight extends its decade-long reign while NBC gains ground and CBS struggles. ABC World News Tonight remains America's most-watched evening newscast with 8.47 million viewers, but NBC Nightly News is closing the gap faster than any time in seven years. Originally reported by Adweek.
ABC News Tops Evening Ratings
ABC World News Tonight with David Muir finished the 2025-2026 season as America's most-watched newscast in both total viewers and the key Adults 25-54 demographic.
A Decade at Number One
World News Tonight celebrated 10 years as the top-rated evening newscast and drew its largest audience in five years, since the 2020-2021 season.
ABC Surges Year Over Year
ABC News' World News Tonight had 8.472 million total viewers, up 12% in total viewers and up 2% in the Adults 25-54 demo with 1.071 million viewers compared to the prior season.
NBC Closes the Gap
NBC Nightly News with Tom Llamas averaged 6.54 million total viewers and 949,000 Adults 25-54 viewers, up 9% in total viewers and up 8% in the demo. It recorded its closest gap with ABC in seven years.
CBS Loses Ground
CBS Evening News with Tony Dokoupil averaged 4.04 million total viewers and 525,000 Adults 25-54 viewers, down 3% in total viewers and down 11% in the demo. It was the only newscast with double-digit declines.
Q3 Gains Across the Board
In the third quarter of 2026, World News Tonight and NBC Nightly News both gained in total viewers and the Adults 25-54 demo, while CBS Evening News grew only in total viewers.
Major News Events Drive Viewership
America's 250th birthday celebration, the second half of the FIFA World Cup 2026, economic concerns, and Middle East unrest kept viewers engaged with evening news during the third quarter.
ABC Leads Week of September 14
For the week of September 14, ABC World News Tonight averaged 8.167 million total viewers and 1.151 million Adults 25-54 viewers, up 17% in total viewers and up 37% in the demo year over year.
NBC Stays Competitive
NBC Nightly News averaged 6.582 million total viewers and 1.065 million Adults 25-54 viewers for the week of September 14, separated from ABC by only 86,000 demo viewers.
CBS Shows Modest Growth
CBS Evening News had 4.003 million total viewers and 599,000 Adults 25-54 viewers for the week of September 14, up 6% in total viewers and up 13% in the demo year over year.
The big picture
ABC World News Tonight remains America's most-watched evening newscast with 8.47 million viewers, but NBC Nightly News is closing the gap faster than any time in seven years.
