Here Are Morning Show Ratings for 2021-’22 TV Season and Q3 2022

By A.J. Katz 

ABC’s Good Morning America and NBC’s Today split first place in the morning show ratings race during the 2021-’22 broadcast TV season.

GMA has officially marked its 10th consecutive season as the most-watched morning show, averaging 3.25 million total viewers during the season, whereas Today averaged 3.02 million and CBS Mornings 2.46 million. GMA increased its total viewership advantage over NBC’s Today versus last season by +124% ( +235,000 from +105,000) to its largest advantage in seven years—since the 2014-2015 season.

Today has traditionally dominated the A25-54 demographic. While the NBC morning offering finished No. 1 in the demo for a record seventh consecutive season, its ABC rival put a significant dent that advantage. The NBC morning show averaged 802,000 A25-54 viewers in 2021-’22, while GMA averaged 771,000 and CBS Mornings averaged 526,000. Today averaged +84,000 more adults 25-54 per original broadcast than GMA in 2020-2021. That number dropped to +31,000 in 2021-2022.

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During the 2021-2022 season, GMA ranked No. 1 in total viewers and among adults 25-54 for 18 weeks, including leading in 16 of the final 20 weeks of the season.

Broadcast TV’s morning shows continue to lose total viewers on an annual basis. GMA, Today and CBS Mornings averaged a combined 8.73 million during the 2021-’22 broadcast season, which is -7% from what “the big three” drew during the 2020-’21 season (9.34 million). GMA shed -4% in total viewers whereas Today and CBS Mornings both lost -8% in total viewers vs. 2020-’21. When it came to adults 25-54, GMA shed -12% , Today lost -17% and CBS Mornings only lost -9%.

CBS Mornings finished the 2021-2022 broadcast season with the tightest gaps in A25-54 against Today and GMA ever (since at least 1991).

2020-2021 |  2019-2020 2018-2019, | 2017-2018 | 2016-2017 | 2015-2016 | 2014-2015 

Numbers for 2021′-22 TV season:

ABC NBC CBS
• Total Viewers: 3,253,000 3,018,000 2,456,000
• A25-54: 771,000 802,000 526,000

 

 

 

Numbers for Q3, 2022:

ABC NBC CBS
• Total Viewers: 3,001,000 2,701,000 2,316,000
• A25-54: 675,000 656,000 486,000

 

 

 

Moving to the summer (Q3 2022), GMA was the most-watched morning show in the 3rd quarter for the 5th consecutive year and the 10th time in the last 11 years—since Q3 2012, only finishing behind Today during its 2016 Summer Olympics-fueled Q3 2016. Overall, GMA has been the most-watched morning show 39 of the last 41 quarters, including the last 18.

Not only did GMA remain the most-watched morning show in Q3 2022, but it managed to capture the key A25-54 demo, a measurement that has eluded the show for years.

GMA averaged 675,000 adults 25-54 in Q3, whereas Today, which traditionally dominates the measurement, averaged 656,000 and CBS Mornings averaged 486,000. The ABC morning show averaged 3 million total viewers for the quarter, whereas Today pulled in a 2.7 million viewer average—and 2.32 million for CBS Mornings.

How do those numbers compare against relative quarters? Well, despite its significant win, GMA shed -11% in adults 25-54 and -8% in total viewers from the prior quarter (Q2 ’22). Today shed -12% in adults 25-54 from the prior quarter. Today also fell -7% in total viewers vs. Q2. CBS Mornings’ quarter-to-quarter losses, on the other hand, were comparatively low. The program fell by -8% in the A25-54 demo and -5% in total viewers.

Compared to Q3 of last year, GMA fell -6% in total viewers and -16% among adults 25-54. Today shed a whopping -15% in total viewers and -25% in A25-54 demo viewers, whereas CBS Mornings gained a lot of ground in Adults 25-54, only -2% in the measurement year-over-year. CBS Mornings shed -7% in total viewers.

Source: The Nielsen Company, NTI Total Viewers, Adults 25-54. Most Current: 2021 -2022 Season (9/20/21 – 9/18/22) and 2020 -2021 Season (9/21/20 – 9/19/21). L+7/Most Current – 3Q22: 6/27 – 9/18/22,.2Q22: 3/28 – 6/26/22. 3Q21: 6/28 – 9/19/21. Beginning 8/31/20, national ratings also include Out of Home (OOH) viewing. Averages based on regular telecasts.

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