These are the morning show ratings for the first quarter of 2026 and the week of March 23.
First Quarter 2026
The conclusion of the first three months of 2026 continued with the status quo, with NBC News’ Today being the most-watched morning show in total viewers and the Adults 25-54 demo. It’s now back-to-back quarters of Today enjoying the perch in the top spot, finishing with more than 3 million total viewers during the just-concluded quarter.
The biggest stories included the latest news on the search for Savannah Guthrie’s mother, Nancy Guthrie, who went missing in January.
Meanwhile, CBS News’ CBS Mornings finished the quarter continuing a trend, as it was the only news network to lose viewers in both measured categories.
According to the most recent Nielsen data, GMA averaged 2.929 million total viewers and 498,000 in the A25-54 demographic for the just-concluded quarter. Compared to the fourth quarter of 2025, GMA was up +5% in total viewers and +4% in the demo. When looking at the same quarterly period in 2025, GMA saw gains of +9% in total viewers and +6% in the demo.
NBC News’ Today was the No. 1 show in total viewers and the A25-54 demo with 3.099 million viewers and 633,000 viewers, respectively, for Q1 2026. Its performance versus the fourth quarter saw NBC News’ morning show grow by +8% in total viewers and +5% in the demo. Compared to the same quarter in 2025, total viewers were up +15%, but the demo fell -5%.
CBS Mornings ranked third in total viewers and A25-54 during Q4 2025. It had 1.762 million total viewers and 270,000 viewers in the demo. It was down -8% in total viewers and -9% in the demo when comparing its performance to the fourth quarter of 2025. Versus the same quarter in 2025, CBS News’ morning show was down by -13% in total viewers and -27% in the demo—the only morning show to lose viewers across the board and in all comparisons.
First Quarter, 2026
ABC NBC CBS • Total Viewers: 2,929,000 3,099,000 1,762,000 • A25-54: 498,000 633,000 270,000
Week of March 23
A week after it saw its lead shrink to 25,000 total viewers, NBC News’ Today created additional depth between it and ABC News’ Good Morning America as it remained the most-watched morning show for the week of March 23.
The gap between Today and GMA extended to 140,000 total viewers for the just-concluded week. Unfortunately for ABC News’ morning show, it was the only broadcast that finished the week with a dip in total viewers and was the only show with declines.
According to Nielsen’s national live+same-day big data plus program ratings, GMA averaged 2.921 million total viewers and 508,000 viewers in the A25-54 demo for the week of March 23. Compared to the previous week, ABC News’ morning show was down by -1% in total viewers but up by +2% in the demo—it was the only morning show with a loss in either of the measured categories. When looking at its performance to the same week in 2025, GMA was up by +12% in total viewers and +9% in the demo.
Today continued its win streak in total viewers and the demo with 3.061 million and 670,000 viewers, respectively, for the just-concluded week. The broadcast saw gains of +2% in total viewers and the A25-54 demo compared to the previous week. When put up against the same week in 2025, Today was up +21% in total viewers and +10% in the demo.
CBS Mornings had 1.791 million total viewers and 283,000 viewers in the A25-54 demo for the week of March 23. Compared to the previous week, CBS News’ morning show was up by +5% in total viewers and +7% in the demo. Versus the same week in 2024, CBS Mornings was down -11% in total viewers and -22% in the demo—the only morning show with declines within this yearly comparison.
March 23, 2026
ABC NBC CBS • Total Viewers: 2,921,000 3,061,000 1,791,000 • A25-54: 508,000 670,000 283,000
Source: Nielsen, NTI Total Viewers, Adults 25-54, and Adults 18-49 National Live + Same Day Big Data Plus Panel Program Ratings.; Current Week (w/o 3/23/26), Previous Week (w/o 3/16/26) and Year-Ago Week (w/o 3/24/25). Season to date: Most Current Data Stream: 2025-2026 Season (9/22/25–3/29/26) and 2024-2025 Season (9/23/24–3/30/25). Season averages based on Big Data Plus Panel ratings start with the 2023-2024 season. Most Current Data Stream – 1Q26: 12/29/25 – 3/29/26, 4Q25: 9/22/25 – 12/28/25 and 1Q25: 12/30/24 – 3/30/25.