The addition of streaming to existing on-air TV ratings means there are more ways to parse the numbers. Already in recent weeks, lists of the season’s best-performing shows over 28 days and 35 days, covering most — but not all — of the 2025-26 season have been released.
Now comes the first set of numbers covering the entirety of the Nielsen-designated season (Sept. 14, 2025-May 20, 2026). They include seven days of multi-platform ratings; another set of 35-day numbers will likely come in another few weeks, also covering the full season.
What all these multi-platform numbers (which come from Nielsen via the PR shops of their network and streamer clients) have in common is that they focus on entertainment programming. Live sports and news programs are usually left out. But The Hollywood Reporter decided to add them in.
Below are the top 30 shows with seven days of multi-platform viewing, were that data was available. Even without full streaming data, however, four primetime sports and news programs made the rankings. In those cases, they’re ranked by linear audiences only or, for NBC’s Sunday Night Football, the combination of its Nielsen linear average and streaming data from Adobe Analytics.
