These are indeed the waning days of the scripted basic cable juggernaut. That may be a strange thing to point out when once again, the most-watched entertainment show of the just-completed 2022-2023 TV season was “Yellowstone,” the modern western that airs on Paramount Network. But “Yellowstone” is wrapping up sometime in the next year, and the only other scripted series from a basic cabler to consistently be ranked among TV’s top shows, AMC’s “The Walking Dead,” has already ended its run.
“The Walking Dead,” of course, dominated the season-ender charts for years — even beating football in the 2014-2015 TV season with a whopping 13.2 rating among adults 18-49. But as basic cable is almost completely out of the original scripted series business now (unscripted hits like “Vanderpump Rules” still abound, of course), those brief halcyon days are coming to an end.
For now, Taylor Sheridan can enjoy his moment at the top of the heap. “Yellowstone” ended the season as the only non-sports show to average over 10 million viewers a week — at 11.6 million. (CBS’ “NCIS,” next in line, is just shy of that, at 9.8 million). And it continues to be the only entertainment series to average a 2.0 rating or better among adults 18-49 — the next closest shows are half that. Even sneak linear previews of his new entries “1923” and “Tulsa King” made it on the top 100 of this season’s top series. (They’re not in our charts, however, since only two episodes of each were aired before moving to their Paramount+ streaming home.)
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As the TV season ends, CBS took the overall crown for total viewers, averaging 5.9 million (down 5% from last year), while Fox was tops among adults 18-49 with a 1.1 rating. According to CBS, this marks its 15th consecutive win in viewers, a streak that ties its dominance from 1955 to 1970. And Fox, aided this year by the Super Bowl, notes that its +22% margin of victory in the demo is largest for any network since it last broadcast the big game in 2020.
Football, of course, remains the dominant story in broadcast and cable. The most-watched program in primetime continues to be NBC’s “Sunday Night Football,” averaging 18 million viewers. Here’s a look at this TV season’s final stats.
WINNERS
“Fire Country”: The year’s hottest new show is appropriately about an elite group of firefighters and the prison release program that assists in extinguishing massive wildfires in Northern California. Max Thieriot stars in the show, from Jerry Bruckheimer, and created it with Tony Phelan and Joan Rater. The CBS drama is the season’s No. 1 new drama in total viewers (8.3 million) and adults 18-49 (0.8).
Amazon: In a first, this year’s series ranker includes one program found on streaming: Amazon Prime Video’s “Thursday Night Football,” which is the No. 6 show of the year in total viewers, and No. 2 in adults 18-49. That’s due to a deal Amazon struck with Nielsen to measure “Thursday Night Football,” which is part of the same panel measurement that is used for all national TV ratings. The “TNF” number includes Prime Video viewing, as well as local over-the-air stations in the markets of the teams playing.
Broadcast sitcoms: Wait, this can still happen? There are shows actually improving on their year-to-year ratings? In the 2020s? It’s true — and in this case, they’re comedies! The year’s most-watched half-hour is “Young Sheldon,” which averaged 9.3 million viewers (up from 9.2 million last year). And breakout hit “Ghosts” continues to spook up stellar ratings, with 9.1 million viewers, a leap from 8.4 million last year. Other comedies on the rise include ABC’s “The Conners” (5 million from 4.8 million) and “Abbott Elementary” (3.9 million, from 3.8 million).
LOSERS
“East New York”: It’s the tough truth of being on CBS: Even its canceled dramas do better than many of its rivals’ best shows. And so went “East New York,” axed by the Eye net this May despite averaging 6.8 million viewers and a 0.6 rating. Despite ending the season in a solid No. 24 slot, CBS said “fuggedaboutit” to “East New York” after one season.
Anything premium not “House of the Dragon”: Pay networks are available in a fraction of U.S. TV homes — and these days, most of those shows are probably watched on streaming anyway. That’s why it’s impressive that HBO’s “House of the Dragon” made the full season ranker, averaging 2.7 million viewers in linear alone. But it was also the only premium cable series to make the grade.
TOP 100 SHOWS OF 2022-23, TOTAL VIEWERS
America’s most-watched series of the 2022-2023 season are …
| Rank | Title (Network) | VIEWERS (000) |
| 1. | NFL Sunday Night Football (NBC) | 18,136 |
| 2. | Yellowstone (Paramount Network) | 11,550 |
| 3. | NFL Monday Night Football (ESPN) | 10,138 |
| 4. | NCIS (CBS) | 9,833 |
| 5. | FBI (CBS) | 9,524 |
| 6. | NFL Thursday Night Football (Amazon) | 9,446 |
| 7. | Young Sheldon (CBS) | 9,287 |
| 8. | Chicago Fire (NBC) | 9,253 |
| 9. | Blue Bloods (CBS) | 9,242 |
| 10. | Ghosts (CBS) | 9,085 |
| 11. | 60 Minutes (CBS) | 8,805 |
| 12. | Chicago Med (NBC) | 8,486 |
| 13. | The Equalizer (CBS) | 8,286 |
| 14. | Chicago PD (NBC) | 8,272 |
| 15. | Fire Country (CBS) | 8,252 |
| 16. | FBI: Most Wanted (CBS) | 8,006 |
| 17. | FBI: International (CBS) | 7,726 |
| 18. | NCIS: Hawai’i (CBS) | 7,507 |
| 19. | The Voice — Monday (NBC) | 7,306 |
| 20. | The Voice —Tuesday (NBC) | 7,213 |
| 21. | 9-1-1 (Fox) | 7,092 |
| 22. | Law & Order: SVU (NBC) | 6,873 |
| 23. | American Idol (ABC) | 6,798 |
| 24. | East New York (CBS) | 6,791 |
| 25. | Survivor (CBS) | 6,714 |
| 26. | S.W.A.T. (CBS) | 6,681 |
| 27. | The Rookie (ABC) | 6,484 |
| 28. | The Neighborhood (CBS) | 6,456 |
| 29. | So Help Me Todd (CBS) | 6,378 |
| 30. | Jeopardy! Masters (ABC) | 6,359 |
| 31. | The Good Doctor (ABC) | 6,236 |
| 32. | NCIS: Los Angeles (CBS) | 6,152 |
| 33. | Bob Hearts Abishola (CBS) | 6,107 |
| 34. | American Idol — Monday (ABC) | 6,063 |
| 35. | NBA Playoffs: Conference Semis (ESPN) | 6,014 |
| 36. | Will Trent (ABC) | 5,989 |
| 37. | Law & Order (NBC) | 5,867 |
| 38. | 9-1-1: Lone Star (Fox) | 5,646 |
| 39. | CSI: Vegas (CBS) | 5,640 |
| 40. | AGT All Stars (NBC) | 5,499 |
| 41. | Law & Order: Organized Crime (NBC) | 5,390 |
| 42. | NBA Playoffs: Round 2 (TNT) | 5,309 |
| 43. | Station 19 (ABC) | 5,215 |
| 44. | Night Court (NBC) | 5,209 |
| 45. | The Masked Singer (Fox) | 5,142 |
| Grey’s Anatomy (ABC) | 5,142 | |
| 47. | New Amsterdam (NBC) | 5,118 |
| 48. | The Price is Right at Night (CBS) | 4,966 |
| 49. | The Conners (ABC) | 4,964 |
| 50. | Big Sky (ABC) | 4,818 |
| 51. | La Brea (NBC) | 4,758 |
| 52. | The Amazing Race (CBS) | 4,647 |
| 53. | America’s Funniest Home Videos (ABC) | 4,619 |
| 54. | The Resident (Fox) | 4,396 |
| 55. | The Rookie: Feds (ABC) | 4,310 |
| 56. | Celebrity Jeopardy! (ABC) | 4,304 |
| 57. | Shark Tank (ABC) | 4,275 |
| 58. | Saturday Night Football (ABC) | 4,020 |
| 59. | Abbott Elementary (ABC) | 3,947 |
| 60. | Accused (Fox) | 3,936 |
| 61. | Celebrity Wheel of Fortune (ABC) | 3,921 |
| 62. | Quantum Leap (NBC) | 3,892 |
| 63. | 20/20 (ABC) | 3,873 |
| 64. | Alert: MPU (Fox) | 3,787 |
| The Bachelor (ABC) | 3,787 | |
| 66. | Next Level Chef (Fox) | 3,699 |
| 67. | A Million Little Things (ABC) | 3,671 |
| 68. | Dateline-Friday (NBC) | 3,600 |
| 69. | NBA Playoffs Round 1 (TNT) | 3,597 |
| 70. | The Cleaning Lady (Fox) | 3,494 |
| 71. | Not Dead Yet (ABC) | 3,352 |
| 72. | College Football Pac12 Prime (Fox) | 3,228 |
| 73. | That’s My Jam (NBC) | 3,225 |
| 74. | MLB NL Division Series L (FS1) | 3,207 |
| 75. | The Goldbergs (ABC) | 3,115 |
| 76. | Bachelor in Paradise — Tuesday (ABC) | 3,045 |
| 77. | Hell’s Kitchen (Fox) | 2,948 |
| 78. | Bachelor in Paradise — Monday (ABC) | 2,942 |
| 79. | Home Economics (ABC) | 2,923 |
| 80. | NBA Saturday Primetime (ABC) | 2,847 |
| 81. | House of the Dragon (HBO) | 2,717 |
| 82. | Special Forces (Fox) | 2,692 |
| 83. | WWE Friday Night Smackdown (Fox) | 2,594 |
| 84. | Sister Wives (TLC) | 2,575 |
| 85. | The Walking Dead (AMC) | 2,493 |
| 86. | 90 Day Fiancé: Happily Ever After: Tell All: No Limits (TLC) | 2,394 |
| 87. | Lego Masters (Fox) | 2,246 |
| 88. | College Football Prime L (ESPN) | 2,177 |
| 89. | 90 Day Fiancé: Happily Ever After (TLC) | 2,171 |
| 90. | The Simpsons (Fox) | 2,089 |
| 91. | WWE Monday Night Raw (USA) | 2,059 |
| 92. | Real Housewives of Beverly Hills (Bravo) | 1,975 |
| 93. | Below Deck (Bravo) | 1,779 |
| 94. | Vanderpump Rules (Bravo) | 1,727 |
| 95. | Family Guy (Fox) | 1,653 |
| 96. | Monday Night Football — Manningcast (ESPN2) | 1,477 |
| 97. | NHL Conference Semi-Finals L (ESPN) | 1,457 |
| 98. | NHL Playoffs Quarter Finals (TNT) | 1,438 |
| 99. | NBA Basketball (TNT) | 1,409 |
| 100. | Bob’s Burgers (Fox) | 1,402 |
| Source: Nielsen. 09-19-2022 – 05-14-2023. Preliminary Live+7 Days, Prime (after 7 p.m.), Original telecasts only, three episodes or more. Top 100 shown based on total viewers. Excludes: Spanish-language programming, children’s networks, specials and movies. |
THE 100 TOP-RATED SERIES OF 2022-23 (ADULTS 18-49)
| Rank | PROGRAM (NETWORK) | RATING /SHARE | 18-49 VIEWERS (000) |
| 1. | NFL Sunday Night Football (NBC) | 4.9/36 | 6,342 |
| 2. | NFL Thursday Night Football (Amazon) | 3.5/29 | 4,595 |
| 3. | NFL Monday Night Football (ESPN) | 3.0/24 | 3,899 |
| 4. | Yellowstone (Paramount Network) | 2.1/15 | 2,763 |
| NBA Playoffs – Conference Semis L (ESPN) | 2.1/23 | 2,712 | |
| 6. | NBA Playoffs – Round 2 L (TNT) | 1.9/19 | 2,424 |
| 7. | NBA Playoffs – Round 1 L(TNT) | 1.3/14 | 1,701 |
| NBA Playoffs – 1st Round L(ESPN) | 1.3/15 | 1,645 | |
| 9. | Survivor (CBS) | 1.0/10 | 1,365 |
| Chicago PD (NBC) | 1.0/10 | 1,316 | |
| Chicago Fire (NBC) | 1.0/9 | 1,301 | |
| 9-1-1 (Fox) | 1.0/8 | 1,298 | |
| 13. | Ghosts (CBS) | 0.9/8 | 1,230 |
| Saturday Night Football (ABC) | 0.9/9 | 1,225 | |
| Law & Order: SVU (NBC) | 0.9/8 | 1,224 | |
| The Masked Singer (Fox) | 0.9/8 | 1,200 | |
| American Idol (ABC) | 0.9/8 | 1,170 | |
| Next Level Chef (Fox) | 0.9/8 | 1,153 | |
| MLB NL Division Series L (FS1) | 0.9/9 | 1,153 | |
| Young Sheldon (CBS) | 0.9/8 | 1,133 | |
| 60 Minutes (CBS) | 0.9/7 | 1,132 | |
| Chicago Med (NBC) | 0.9/8 | 1,110 | |
| 23. | College Football: Pac-12 Prime (Fox) | 0.8/8 | 1,088 |
| Grey’s Anatomy (ABC) | 0.8/7 | 1,075 | |
| The Voice – Monday (NBC) | 0.8/7 | 1,057 | |
| Fire Country (CBS) | 0.8/8 | 1,040 | |
| Abbott Elementary (ABC) | 0.8/7 | 1,037 | |
| The Voice – Tuesday (NBC) | 0.8/7 | 1,028 | |
| The Bachelor (ABC) | 0.8/7 | 1,025 | |
| The Bachelor in Paradise – Tuesday (ABC) | 0.8/7 | 1,018 | |
| FBI (CBS) | 0.8/7 | 1,014 | |
| 32. | The Bachelor in Paradise – Monday (ABC) | 0.7/6 | 965 |
| Law & Order: Organized Crime (NBC) | 0.7/7 | 965 | |
| NBA Saturday Primetime (ABC) | 0.7/8 | 959 | |
| 9-1-1: Lone Star (Fox) | 0.7/7 | 957 | |
| American Idol – Monday (ABC) | 0.7/6 | 950 | |
| The Amazing Race (CBS) | 0.7/7 | 944 | |
| The Rookie (ABC) | 0.7/6 | 936 | |
| The Conners (ABC) | 0.7/7 | 931 | |
| Night Court (NBC) | 0.7/7 | 920 | |
| The Equalizer (CBS) | 0.7/6 | 915 | |
| Station 19 (ABC) | 0.7/6 | 906 | |
| NCIS (CBS) | 0.7/5 | 893 | |
| The Neighborhood (CBS) | 0.7/6 | 878 | |
| WWE Friday Night Smackdown (Fox) | 0.7/7 | 876 | |
| Law & Order (NBC) | 0.7/6 | 862 | |
| FBI: Most Wanted (CBS) | 0.7/7 | 855 | |
| S.W.A.T. (CBS) | 0.7/7 | 854 | |
| Vanderpump Rules (Bravo) | 0.7/6 | 849 | |
| 50. | Blue Bloods (CBS) | 0.6/7 | 843 |
| The Simpsons (Fox) | 0.6/5 | 840 | |
| Jeopardy! Masters (ABC) | 0.6/6 | 829 | |
| Real Housewives of Beverly Hills (Bravo) | 0.6/6 | 808 | |
| The Good Doctor (ABC) | 0.6/6 | 808 | |
| The Walking Dead (AMC) | 0.6/4 | 799 | |
| Hell’s Kitchen (Fox) | 0.6/5 | 788 | |
| AGT All-Stars (NBC) | 0.6/5 | 786 | |
| WWE Monday Night Raw (USA) | 0.6/5 | 781 | |
| Family Guy (Fox) | 0.6/5 | 775 | |
| FBI: International (CBS) | 0.6/5 | 774 | |
| Shark Tank (ABC) | 0.6/6 | 773 | |
| House of the Dragon (HBO) | 0.6/4 | 766 | |
| College Football Prime L (ESPN) | 0.6/6 | 766 | |
| Accused (Fox) | 0.6/5 | 766 | |
| Will Trent (ABC) | 0.6/6 | 756 | |
| Lego Masters (Fox) | 0.6/5 | 755 | |
| The Price is Right at Night (CBS) | 0.6/5 | 755 | |
| Quantum Leap (NBC) | 0.6/5 | 743 | |
| New Amsterdam (NBC) | 0.6/6 | 730 | |
| NCIS Hawai’i (CBS) | 0.6/5 | 723 | |
| East New York (CBS) | 0.6/4 | 719 | |
| 72. | So Help Me Todd (CBS) | 0.5/5 | 708 |
| The Resident (Fox) | 0.5/5 | 707 | |
| Celebrity Jeopardy! (ABC) | 0.5/4 | 705 | |
| La Brea (NBC) | 0.5/5 | 703 | |
| Home Economics (ABC) | 0.5/5 | 700 | |
| Special Forces (Fox) | 0.5/5 | 698 | |
| NFL Monday Night Football: Manningcast (ESPN2) | 0.5/4 | 697 | |
| CSI: Vegas (CBS) | 0.5/5 | 688 | |
| America’s Funniest Home Videos (ABC) | 0.5/5 | 687 | |
| Bob Hearts Abishola (CBS) | 0.5/4 | 687 | |
| Sister Wives (TLC) | 0.5/4 | 685 | |
| 90 Day Fiancé: Happily Ever After: Tell All: No Limits (TLC) | 0.5/4 | 681 | |
| NHL Playoffs – Quarter Finals L (TNT) | 0.5/6 | 669 | |
| Alert: MPU (Bravo) | 0.5/4 | 668 | |
| 20/20 (ABC) | 0.5/5 | 667 | |
| The Rookie: Feds (ABC) | 0.5/5 | 661 | |
| NHL Conference Semifinals (ESPN) | 0.5/5 | 657 | |
| 90 Day Fiancé: Happily Ever After (TLC) | 0.5/4 | 655 | |
| Big Sky (ABC) | 0.5/4 | 708 | |
| NCIS: Los Angeles (CBS) | 0.5/5 | 653 | |
| The Challenge: Ride or Dies (MTV) | 0.5/4 | 651 | |
| That’s My Jam (NBC) | 0.5/5 | 647 | |
| A Million Little Things (ABC) | 0.5/5 | 646 | |
| NBA Basketball (TNT) | 0.5/5 | 636 | |
| Bob’s Burgers (Fox) | 0.5/4 | 624 | |
| Celebrity Wheel of Fortune (ABC) | 0.5/4 | 623 | |
| Dateline Friday (NBC) | 0.5/5 | 622 | |
| NBA Regular Season (ESPN) | 0.5/5 | 614 | |
| The Cleaning Lady (Fox) | 0.5/3 | 597 | |
| Below Deck (Bravo) | 0.5/4 | 595 | |
| Not Dead Yet (ABC) | 0.5/4 | 593 | |
| Source: Nielsen. 09-19-2022 – 05-14-2023. Preliminary Live+7 Days, Prime (after 7 p.m.), Original telecasts only, three episodes or more. Top 100 shown based on A18-49. Excludes: Spanish-language programming, children’s networks, specials and movies. |
THE MOST-WATCHED NETWORKS OF 2022-23 (BY TOTAL VIEWERS)
Network (Total viewer number; Year-to-year comparison)
- CBS (5,888,000; down 5%)
- NBC (5,218,000; down 13%)
- Fox (4,419,000; down 1%)
- ABC (4,111,000; down 1%)
- ESPN (2,186,000; up 2%)
- Fox News (2,109,000; down 15%)
- Univision (1,279,000; down 14%)
- MSNBC (1,185,000; up 2%)
- TNT (1,073,000; down 9%)
- Hallmark (1,012,000; down 13%)
- Ion (964,000; down 6%)
- HGTV (959,000; down 16%)
- Telemundo (936,000; down 6%)
- TBS (881,000; down 19%)
- History (814,000; down 5%)
- TLC (791,000; down 23%)
- Discovery (721,000; down 17%)
- Food Network (720,000; down 15%)
- INSP (708,000; down 14%)
- USA Network (672,000; down 13%)
- Me TV (638,000; down 10%)
- CNN (605,000; down 19%)
- Bravo (551,000; down 16%)
- The CW (543,000; down 16%)
- ID (537,000; down 11%)
THE TOP-RATED NETWORKS OF 2022-23 (BY ADULTS 18-49)
Network — 18-49 rating/share (18-49 viewer number; Year-to-year comparison)
1. Fox — 1.01/9 (1,316,000; down 2%)
2. NBC — 0.83/8 (1,089,000; down 25%)
3. CBS — 0.66/6 (858,000; down 17%)
4. ESPN — 0.64/6 (839,000; up 3%)
5. ABC — 0.64/6 (834,000; down 11%)
6. Univision — 0.36/3 (476,000; down 21%)
7. TNT — 0.34/3 (448,000; down 10%)
8. Telemundo — 0.26/2 (345,000; down 9%)
9. TBS — 0.23/2 (279,000; down 22%)
10. USA — 0.17/2 (218,000; down 8%)
