Posted in: ABC, CBS, Fox, NBC, TV | Tagged: ABC, broadcast, cable, cbs, fox, nbc, networks

2023's Most-Watched Television Networks Ranking Offers Some Concerns

NBC, CBS, ABC & Fox hold the top spots when it comes to 2023's most-watched networks - but the ranking also offers some concerning insights.

To many, the growth of streaming has been seen as the death knell for broadcast & cable networks moving forward. Based on the ranking of this year's "Most-Watched Television Networks" by Variety's Michael Schneider, it seems like those folks would be right. While the four major broadcasters took the top four spots (NBC, CBS, ABC & Fox, respectively), the rankings that follow tell some very interesting stories – and it's not all doom-n-gloom. But it's also a dramatically different landscape than ever before. If you want to succeed and make sure that the ground beneath your feet stays as steady as possible? Having live sports is a great (but pricey) way to go. Also, you can't go wrong catering your programming fair to an older audience that still looks to linear television for entertainment (like Grit and MeTV). Following up on that, it also looks like networks that focus on building & cultivating a specialized viewership can see their work pay off. And then there's another factor to consider – as streamers & studios look to course-correct some serious business mistakes on the streaming side, the linear networks are being utilized more and more as either a dumping ground for streaming series that have some age to them as well as a marketing tool to boost up streaming subscribers.

2023's Most-Watched Networks (By Total Viewers)

Here's a look at how the Top 50 networks ranked for this year (with the complete list ranking 150+ networks as well as how the networks ranked among Adults 18-49). In addition, Variety also offered links to the rankings from previous years for folks who want to do some deep diving into what it all means: 2022, 2021, 2020, 2019, 2018, 2017, 2016 & 2015.

Rank / NETWORK VIEWERS (000)  / % CHANGE FROM 2022

1. NBC / 4,537 / -12%

2. CBS / 4,508 / -12%

3. ABC / 3,888 / +1%

4. Fox / 3,353 / +4%

5. Fox News / 1,899 / -20%

6. ESPN / 1,705 / -9%

7. Univision / 1,265 / -4%

8. MSNBC / 1,220 / +2%

9. Ion / 997 / -3%

10. HGTV / 943 / -13%

11. TNT / 938 / -3%

12. Hallmark Channel / 929 / -10%

13. Telemundo / 859 / -8%

14. TBS / 786 / -10%

15. History / 775 / -7%

16. TLC / 749 / -23%

17. INSP / 709 / -9%

18. Discovery Channel / 702 / -14%

19. USA Network / 688 / -7%

20. Food Network / 672 / -14%

21. Me TV / 631 / -8%

22. CNN / 591 / -20%

23. Bravo / 571 / -4%

24. Investigation Discovery / 546 / -4%

25. Grit / 513 / +18%

26. TV Land / 467 / -10%

27. Hallmark Movie & Mysteries / 454 / -8%

28. The CW / 453 / -21%

29. Lifetime / 443 / -25%

30. A&E / 432 / -15%

31. FX / 389 / -16%

32. Unimás / 372 / -24%

33. AMC / 369 / -21%
       WE TV / 369 / -14%

35. Paramount Network / 346 / -30%

36. Game Show Network / 340 / -6%

37. Reelzchannel / 337 / +34%

38. BET / 335 -7%

39. ESPN 2 / 323 / -4%

40. Oxygen / 312 / -7%

41. Fox Sports 1 / 308 / +13%

42. Nat Geo / 301 / -15%

43. Syfy / 285 / -21%

44. MTV / 256 / -11%

45. Freeform / 254 / -16%

46. Bounce TV 253 / 0%

47. Nick at Nite / 245 -13%

48. Comedy Central / 233 / -12%

49. Family Entertainment TV / 231 / -4%

50. Travel / 226 / -33%

Source: Nielsen, NPM (12/26/2022-12/3/2023, Live+7 and 12/4/2023-12/17/2023, Live+SD vs. 12/27/2021-12/4/2022, Live+7 and 12/5/2022-12/18/2022, Live+SD) Mon-Sat 8pm-11pm/Sun 7pm-11pm, ad-supported and premium pay networks. Nat Geo Mundo based on NPM-H. Excluded are Amazon and Amazon Spanish as these two networks only have programming on Thursday nights. Ranked by 2023 Year-To-Date.

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