Every Network Primetime Series Ranked
No one would argue that broadcast TV is booming in 2022, but on a show by show basis, things don’t look quite as bleak as they did a year ago.
Whereas in 2020-21, only one network series — The CW’s All American — grew both its total audience and adults 18-49 rating, several shows managed the feat in the 2021-22 season, according to Nielsen’s final seven-day ratings for the season. The gainers were led by the top two shows on TV, NBC’s Sunday Night Football (18 million viewers, 5.0 rating in 18-49) and Fox’s Thursday Night Football (15.4 million, 4.3), which posted decent improvements in both measures.
The Monday edition of American Idol (6.99 million viewers, 1.0 in 18-49) and several other sports franchises, including ABC’s Saturday college football and NBA showcases, also had gains in both viewers and the key ad demographic. NBC’s Law & Order: SVU and CBS’ The Amazing Race, Undercover Boss, SWAT and Bob Hearts Abishola all posted total-viewer growth, though they dipped some in the 18-49 demo.
Among entertainment programs, CBS’ NCIS led the viewer charts with 10.9 million people per episode. The swan song for NBC’s This Is Us finished first among adults 18-49 with a 1.6 rating; it was the top network drama in the demo for each of its six seasons.
The charts below are seven-day averages for the full 2021-22 TV season (Sept. 20, 2021 to May 25, 2022). Series that aired fewer than three episodes during the season, continuations of summer shows from the previous season and sports pre- and postgame shows are excluded. The numbers below also don’t include streaming, which makes up a significant portion of the audience for a number of shows.
Total Viewers
vs. 2020-21 | |||||
Rank | Show | Network | Viewers (millions) | Gain/loss | % gain/loss |
1 | Sunday Night Football | NBC | 18 | 1.5 | 9.1% |
2 | Thursday Night Football | Fox | 15.4 | 1.98 | 14.8% |
3 | NCIS | CBS | 10.9 | -1.68 | -13.4% |
4 | FBI | CBS | 10.29 | -0.69 | -6.3% |
5 | Chicago Fire | NBC | 9.84 | -0.39 | -3.8% |
6 | Blue Bloods | CBS | 9.78 | -0.38 | -3.7% |
7 | The Equalizer | CBS | 9.42 | -2.65 | -22% |
8 | Young Sheldon | CBS | 9.21 | -0.24 | -2.5% |
9 | 60 Minutes | CBS | 9.19 | -1.54 | -14.4% |
10 | Chicago PD | NBC | 9.18 | -0.55 | -5.7% |
11 | Chicago Med | NBC | 9.11 | -0.63 | -6.5% |
12 | FBI: Most Wanted | CBS | 8.75 | -0.08 | -0.9% |
13 | Ghosts | CBS | 8.41 | n/a | |
14 | NCIS: Hawai’i | CBS | 8.28 | n/a | |
The Voice – Tuesday | NBC | 8.28 | -0.02 | -0.2% | |
16 | FBI: International | CBS | 8.23 | n/a | |
17 | This Is Us | NBC | 8.13 | -1.19 | -12.8% |
18 | The Voice – Monday | NBC | 8.12 | -0.28 | -3.3% |
911 | Fox | 8.12 | -1.5 | -15.6% | |
20 | La Brea | NBC | 7.43 | n/a | |
911: Lone Star | Fox | 7.43 | -1.28 | -14.7% | |
22 | Bull | CBS | 7.37 | -1.22 | -14.2% |
23 | Survivor | CBS | 7.36 | n/a | |
24 | Magnum P.I. | CBS | 7.34 | -0.14 | -1.9% |
25 | American Idol – Sunday | ABC | 7.29 | -0.13 | -1.8% |
26 | NCIS: Los Angeles | CBS | 7.28 | -0.52 | -6.7% |
27 | The Good Doctor | ABC | 7.05 | -1.11 | -13.6% |
28 | American Idol – Monday | ABC | 6.99 | 0.75 | 12% |
29 | Law & Order: SVU | NBC | 6.83 | 0.05 | 0.7% |
30 | CSI: Vegas | CBS | 6.8 | n/a | |
31 | The Neighborhood | CBS | 6.73 | -0.03 | -0.4% |
32 | Bob Hearts Abishola | CBS | 6.66 | 0.09 | 1.4% |
33 | The Rookie | ABC | 6.44 | -0.67 | -9.4% |
34 | Grey’s Anatomy | ABC | 6.42 | -1.74 | -21.3% |
35 | SWAT | CBS | 6.41 | 0.45 | 7.6% |
36 | Dancing With the Stars | ABC | 6.36 | -0.73 | -10.3% |
37 | Station 19 | ABC | 6.16 | -0.95 | -13.4% |
38 | New Amsterdam | NBC | 6.09 | -0.87 | -12.5% |
39 | Law & Order | NBC | 5.92 | n/a | |
40 | The Masked Singer | Fox | 5.85 | -1.71 | -22.6% |
41 | United States of Al | CBS | 5.84 | -0.1 | -1.7% |
42 | SEAL Team | CBS | 5.83 | -0.61 | -9.5% |
43 | B Positive | CBS | 5.69 | 0.01 | 0.2% |
44 | Big Sky | ABC | 5.65 | -1.7 | -23.1% |
45 | Law & Order: Organized Crime | NBC | 5.51 | -2.32 | -29.6% |
46 | The Amazing Race | CBS | 5.5 | 0.09 | 1.7% |
47 | The Cleaning Lady | Fox | 5.17 | n/a | |
48 | America’s Funniest Home Videos | ABC | 5.13 | -0.19 | -3.6% |
49 | The Resident | Fox | 4.93 | -0.71 | -12.6% |
50 | The Blacklist | NBC | 4.77 | -0.7 | -12.8% |
51 | The Conners | ABC | 4.76 | -0.88 | -15.6% |
52 | Saturday Night Football | ABC | 4.62 | 0.85 | 22.5% |
53 | Shark Tank | ABC | 4.53 | -0.44 | -8.9% |
The Bachelor | ABC | 4.53 | -1.93 | -29.9% | |
55 | The Thing About Pam | NBC | 4.46 | n/a | |
56 | Judge Steve Harvey | ABC | 4.26 | n/a | |
57 | Celebrity Wheel of Fortune | ABC | 4.24 | -2.91 | -40.7% |
58 | 20/20 | ABC | 4.23 | 0.12 | 2.9% |
59 | Dateline – Friday | NBC | 4.16 | even | |
60 | How We Roll | CBS | 4.1 | n/a | |
61 | Undercover Boss | CBS | 4.09 | 0.93 | 29.4% |
62 | A Million Little Things | ABC | 4.06 | -1.18 | -22.5% |
63 | AGT: Extreme | NBC | 4 | n/a | |
64 | Next Level Chef | Fox | 3.92 | n/a | |
The Goldbergs | ABC | 3.92 | -0.45 | -10.3% | |
66 | Abbott Elementary | ABC | 3.84 | n/a | |
67 | The Bachelorette | ABC | 3.83 | -2.22 | -36.7% |
68 | Women of the Movement | ABC | 3.69 | n/a | |
69 | Good Sam | CBS | 3.61 | n/a | |
70 | Tough as Nails | CBS | 3.57 | -0.27 | -7.0% |
71 | The Endgame | NBC | 3.55 | n/a | |
48 Hours | CBS | 3.55 | even | ||
73 | Ordinary Joe | NBC | 3.33 | n/a | |
74 | Holey Moley | ABC | 3.15 | n/a | |
75 | Beyond the Edge | CBS | 3.07 | n/a | |
76 | NBA Saturday Primetime | ABC | 3.03 | 0.73 | 31.7% |
77 | That’s My Jam | NBC | 3.01 | n/a | |
78 | Let the World See | ABC | 3 | n/a | |
79 | Call Me Kat | Fox | 2.94 | -1.22 | -29.3% |
The Chase | ABC | 2.94 | -2.66 | -47.5% | |
81 | The Wonder Years | ABC | 2.92 | n/a | |
82 | Home Economics | ABC | 2.87 | -0.63 | -18% |
83 | Masterchef Junior | Fox | 2.86 | n/a | |
84 | The Wall | NBC | 2.8 | -0.67 | -19.3% |
85 | Supermarket Sweep | ABC | 2.78 | -1.1 | -28.4% |
86 | American Auto | NBC | 2.73 | n/a | |
Black-ish | ABC | 2.73 | -0.38 | -12.2% | |
88 | Promised Land | ABC | 2.69 | n/a | |
89 | Alter Ego | Fox | 2.63 | n/a | |
I Can See Your Voice | Fox | 2.63 | -2.21 | -45.7% | |
91 | Young Rock | NBC | 2.6 | -1.25 | -32.5% |
92 | To Tell the Truth | ABC | 2.53 | -1.96 | -43.7% |
93 | Dateline Mystery | NBC | 2.46 | -0.28 | -10.2% |
94 | WWE Smackdown | Fox | 2.44 | -0.08 | -3.2% |
95 | Come Dance With Me | CBS | 2.36 | n/a | |
96 | Transplant | NBC | 2.32 | -3.13 | -57.4% |
97 | Mr. Mayor | NBC | 2.3 | -2.16 | -48.4% |
98 | The Simpsons | Fox | 2.25 | -0.11 | -4.7% |
99 | Weakest Link | NBC | 2.24 | -2.22 | -49.8% |
100 | Kenan | NBC | 2.12 | -0.81 | -27.6% |
101 | American Song Contest | NBC | 2.06 | n/a | |
Our Kind of People | Fox | 2.06 | n/a | ||
103 | Domino Masters | Fox | 2.05 | n/a | |
104 | The Big Leap | Fox | 2.03 | n/a | |
105 | Name That Tune | Fox | 2.01 | -1.27 | -39% |
106 | Fox College Football | Fox | 2 | 0.13 | 7.0% |
107 | Grand Crew | NBC | 1.97 | n/a | |
Joe Millionaire: For Richer or Poorer | Fox | 1.97 | n/a | ||
109 | Who Do You Believe? | ABC | 1.92 | n/a | |
The Real Dirty Dancing | Fox | 1.92 | n/a | ||
111 | Family Guy | Fox | 1.9 | -0.29 | -13.2% |
112 | Queen | ABC | 1.86 | n/a | |
113 | Pivoting | Fox | 1.85 | n/a | |
114 | Walker | CW | 1.65 | -0.89 | -35% |
115 | Superman & Lois | CW | 1.6 | -0.84 | -34.4% |
116 | Bob’s Burgers | Fox | 1.59 | -0.15 | -8.6% |
117 | PBC Fight Night | Fox | 1.47 | 0.43 | 41.3% |
118 | Home Sweet Home | NBC | 1.46 | n/a | |
119 | The Great North | Fox | 1.3 | -0.44 | -25.3% |
120 | All American | CW | 1.06 | n/a | |
121 | Welcome to Flatch | Fox | 1.05 | -0.35 | -25.0% |
122 | The Flash | CW | 1.04 | -0.54 | -34.2% |
123 | Penn & Teller: Fool Us | CW | 0.94 | -0.08 | -7.8% |
124 | Kung Fu | CW | 0.93 | -0.77 | -45.3% |
125 | Naomi | CW | 0.92 | n/a | |
The Courtship | NBC | 0.92 | n/a | ||
127 | Legends of Tomorrow | CW | 0.86 | 0.04 | 4.9% |
128 | Whose Line Is It Anyway | CW | 0.78 | -0.32 | -29.1% |
129 | Batwoman | CW | 0.76 | -0.16 | -17.4% |
130 | Legacies | CW | 0.75 | -0.26 | -26% |
131 | Nancy Drew | CW | 0.74 | -0.12 | -14.0% |
132 | 4400 | CW | 0.73 | n/a | |
133 | All American: Homecoming | CW | 0.66 | n/a | |
134 | Duncanville | Fox | 0.65 | n/a | |
135 | Charmed | CW | 0.62 | -0.07 | -10.1% |
136 | World’s Funniest Animals | CW | 0.54 | -0.24 | -30.8% |
137 | Great Chocolate Showdown | CW | 0.52 | n/a | |
138 | Riverdale | CW | 0.46 | -0.55 | -54.5% |
139 | MLS Soccer | Fox | 0.44 | n/a | |
140 | Dynasty | CW | 0.39 | -0.01 | -2.5% |
Masters of Illusion | CW | 0.39 | -0.24 | -38.1% | |
142 | Two Sentence Horror Stories | CW | 0.33 | -0.2 | -37.7% |
Would I Lie to You? | CW | 0.33 | n/a | ||
144 | Legends of the Hidden Temple | CW | 0.3 | n/a | |
145 | March | CW | 0.23 | n/a | |
146 | Killer Camp | CW | 0.21 | n/a |
Adults 18-49
vs. 2020-21 | |||||
Rank | Show | Network | 18-49 rating | Gain/loss | % gain/loss |
1 | Sunday Night Football | NBC | 5.0 | 0.3 | 6.4% |
2 | Thursday Night Football | Fox | 4.3 | 0.4 | 10.3% |
3 | This Is Us | NBC | 1.6 | -0.4 | -20% |
4 | Chicago PD | NBC | 1.3 | -0.3 | -18.8% |
911 | FOX | 1.3 | -0.4 | -23.5% | |
Chicago Fire | NBC | 1.3 | -0.2 | -13.3% | |
Survivor | CBS | 1.3 | n/a | ||
8 | Grey’s Anatomy | ABC | 1.2 | -0.7 | -36.8% |
Law & Order: SVU | NBC | 1.2 | -0.2 | -14.3% | |
The Masked Singer | Fox | 1.2 | -0.8 | -40% | |
11 | Chicago Med | NBC | 1.1 | -0.3 | -21.4% |
American Idol – Sunday | ABC | 1.1 | even | ||
The Bachelor | ABC | 1.1 | -0.7 | -38.9% | |
Dancing WIth the Stars | ABC | 1.1 | even | ||
Saturday Night Football | ABC | 1.1 | 0.2 | 22.2% | |
16 | Law & Order: Organized Crime | NBC | 1.0 | -0.5 | -33.3% |
The Amazing Race | CBS | 1.0 | -0.1 | -9.1% | |
Ghosts | CBS | 1.0 | n/a | ||
911: Lone Star | Fox | 1.0 | -0.5 | -33.3% | |
American Idol – Monday | ABC | 1.0 | 0.1 | 11.1% | |
The Bachelorette | ABC | 1.0 | -0.8 | -44.4% | |
FBI | CBS | 1.0 | -0.3 | -23.1% | |
Young Sheldon | CBS | 1.0 | -0.2 | -16.7% | |
Next Level Chef | Fox | 1.0 | n/a | ||
The Voice – Monday | NBC | 1.0 | -0.1 | -9.1% | |
The Voice – Tuesday | NBC | 1.0 | -0.1 | -9.1% | |
60 Minutes | CBS | 1.0 | -0.2 | -16.7% | |
28 | FBI: Most Wanted | CBS | 0.9 | -0.1 | -10% |
Station 19 | ABC | 0.9 | -0.4 | -30.8% | |
The Equalizer | CBS | 0.9 | -0.8 | -47.1% | |
NCIS | CBS | 0.9 | -0.3 | -25% | |
La Brea | NBC | 0.9 | n/a | ||
33 | The Good Doctor | ABC | 0.8 | -0.4 | -33.3% |
The Rookie | ABC | 0.8 | -0.2 | -20% | |
Blue Bloods | CBS | 0.8 | -0.1 | -11.1% | |
CSI: Vegas | CBS | 0.8 | n/a | ||
The Conners | ABC | 0.8 | -0.3 | -27.3% | |
The Goldbergs | ABC | 0.8 | -0.1 | -11.1% | |
FBI: International | CBS | 0.8 | n/a | ||
NCIS: Hawai’i | CBS | 0.8 | n/a | ||
SWAT | CBS | 0.8 | -0.1 | -11.1% | |
Abbott Elementary | ABC | 0.8 | n/a | ||
The Neighborhood | CBS | 0.8 | -0.2 | -20% | |
NBA Saturday Primetime | ABC | 0.8 | 0.2 | 33.3% | |
45 | 20/20 | ABC | 0.7 | even | |
Magnum P.I. | CBS | 0.7 | -0.1 | -12.5% | |
SEAL Team | CBS | 0.7 | -0.2 | -22.2% | |
The Resident | Fox | 0.7 | -0.3 | -30% | |
New Amsterdam | NBC | 0.7 | -0.3 | -30% | |
Shark Tank | ABC | 0.7 | -0.2 | -22.2% | |
Bob Hearts Abishola | CBS | 0.7 | -0.1 | -12.5% | |
NCIS: Los Angeles | CBS | 0.7 | -0.2 | -22.2% | |
The Cleaning Lady | Fox | 0.7 | n/a | ||
Family Guy | Fox | 0.7 | -0.2 | -22.2% | |
Law & Order | NBC | 0.7 | n/a | ||
The Simpsons | Fox | 0.7 | -0.1 | -12.5% | |
57 | Big Sky | ABC | 0.6 | -0.5 | -45.5% |
A Million Little Things | ABC | 0.6 | -0.4 | -40% | |
Bull | CBS | 0.6 | -0.2 | -25% | |
Supermarket Sweep | ABC | 0.6 | -0.3 | -33.3% | |
B Positive | CBS | 0.6 | -0.2 | -25% | |
Bob’s Burgers | Fox | 0.6 | -0.1 | -14.3% | |
Women of the Movement | ABC | 0.6 | n/a | ||
Call Me Kat | Fox | 0.6 | -0.3 | -33.3% | |
Masterchef Junior | Fox | 0.6 | n/a | ||
Dateline – Friday | NBC | 0.6 | even | ||
That’s My Jam | NBC | 0.6 | n/a | ||
Judge Steve Harvey | ABC | 0.6 | n/a | ||
United States of Al | CBS | 0.6 | -0.1 | -14.3% | |
WWE Smackdown | Fox | 0.6 | -0.1 | -14.3% | |
AGT: Extreme | NBC | 0.6 | n/a | ||
America’s Funniest Home Videos | ABC | 0.6 | -0.1 | -14.3% | |
73 | Home Economics | ABC | 0.5 | -0.2 | -28.6% |
Queens | ABC | 0.5 | n/a | ||
Our Kind of People | Fox | 0.5 | n/a | ||
The Blacklist | NBC | 0.5 | -0.2 | -28.6% | |
Ordinary Joe | NBC | 0.5 | n/a | ||
The Thing About Pam | NBC | 0.5 | n/a | ||
Black-ish | ABC | 0.5 | -0.1 | -16.7% | |
Holey Moley | ABC | 0.5 | n/a | ||
The Wonder Years | ABC | 0.5 | n/a | ||
Tough as Nails | CBS | 0.5 | -0.1 | -16.7% | |
Undercover Boss | CBS | 0.5 | even | ||
Alter Ego | Fox | 0.5 | n/a | ||
I Can See Your Voice | Fox | 0.5 | -0.8 | -61.5% | |
American Auto | NBC | 0.5 | n/a | ||
Young Rock | NBC | 0.5 | -0.4 | -44.4% | |
Celebrity Wheel of Fortune | ABC | 0.5 | -0.5 | -50% | |
Fox College Football | Fox | 0.5 | 0.1 | 25% | |
90 | Good Sam | CBS | 0.4 | n/a | |
All American | CW | 0.4 | -0.1 | -20% | |
The Big Leap | Fox | 0.4 | n/a | ||
Pivoting | Fox | 0.4 | n/a | ||
Weakest Link | NBC | 0.4 | -0.4 | -50% | |
The Chase | ABC | 0.4 | -0.5 | -55.6% | |
To Tell the Truth | ABC | 0.4 | -0.3 | -42.9% | |
48 Hours | CBS | 0.4 | even | ||
Beyond the Edge | CBS | 0.4 | n/a | ||
How We Roll | CBS | 0.4 | n/a | ||
Domino Masters | Fox | 0.4 | n/a | ||
Joe Millionaire: For Richer or Poorer | Fox | 0.4 | n/a | ||
Name That Tune | Fox | 0.4 | -0.3 | -42.9% | |
American Song Contest | NBC | 0.4 | n/a | ||
The Endgame | NBC | 0.4 | n/a | ||
Grand Crew | NBC | 0.4 | n/a | ||
Kenan | NBC | 0.4 | -0.2 | -33.3% | |
Mr. Mayor | NBC | 0.4 | -0.4 | -50% | |
The Wall | NBC | 0.4 | -0.2 | -33.3% | |
The Great North | Fox | 0.4 | -0.2 | -33.3% | |
Let the World See | ABC | 0.4 | n/a | ||
111 | The Flash | CW | 0.3 | -0.2 | -40% |
Promised Land | ABC | 0.3 | n/a | ||
Superman & Lois | CW | 0.3 | n/a | ||
The Real Dirty Dancing | Fox | 0.3 | n/a | ||
PBC Fight Night | Fox | 0.3 | 0.1 | 50% | |
Dateline Mystery | NBC | 0.3 | -0.1 | -25% | |
117 | All American: Homecoming | CW | 0.2 | n/a | |
Batwoman | CW | 0.2 | even | ||
Legends of Tomorrow | CW | 0.2 | even | ||
Legacies | CW | 0.2 | -0.1 | -33.3% | |
Naomi | CW | 0.2 | n/a | ||
Walker | CW | 0.2 | -0.3 | -60% | |
The Courtship | NBC | 0.2 | n/a | ||
Who Do You Believe? | ABC | 0.2 | n/a | ||
Come Dance With Me | CBS | 0.2 | n/a | ||
Duncanville | Fox | 0.2 | n/a | ||
Welcome to Flatch | Fox | 0.2 | n/a | ||
Home Sweet Home | NBC | 0.2 | n/a | ||
Transplant | NBC | 0.2 | -0.5 | -71.4% | |
130 | 4400 | CW | 0.1 | n/a | |
Charmed | CW | 0.1 | -0.1 | -50% | |
Great Chocolate Showdown | CW | 0.1 | n/a | ||
Kung Fu | CW | 0.1 | -0.2 | -66.7% | |
Legends of the Hidden Temple | CW | 0.1 | n/a | ||
Nancy Drew | CW | 0.1 | -0.1 | -50% | |
Penn & Teller: Fool Us | CW | 0.1 | -0.1 | -50% | |
Riverdale | CW | 0.1 | -0.3 | -75% | |
Whose Line Is It Anyway | CW | 0.1 | -0.1 | -50% | |
World’s Funniest Animals | CW | 0.1 | even | ||
Would I Lie to You? | CW | 0.1 | n/a | ||
MLS Soccer | FOX | 0.1 | n/a | ||
Dynasty | CW | 0.1 | even | ||
Killer Camp | CW | 0.1 | n/a | ||
March | CW | 0.1 | n/a | ||
Masters of Illusion | CW | 0.1 | even | ||
Two Sentence Horror Stories | CW | 0.1 | even |