Late-Night TV Ratings For 2019-2020

In case you’re wondering who still watches late-night TV talk shows on TV when they air, here are some updated numbers for you to chew on…

As the TV season wound down this month, The Late Show with Stephen Colbert on CBS had solidified its hold as the most-watched show for a fourth consecutive year, attracting more than 1.55 million viewers (3.6 million versus 2.05 million) than his nearest competition, The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon on NBC.

But NBC, which added Rebecca Drysdale as Fallon’s new head writer in April, touted more recent metrics and spun the news digitally, announcing that The Tonight Show leads all comers on YouTube in our new quarantine age where each of the show’s hosts have been broadcasting from home. NBC cited stats revealing 403 million YouTube views for Fallon’s clips since March 17, compared to Jimmy Kimmel Live‘s 281+ million YouTube views in second place.

Through the first week of May 2020, here were the season averages:

ADULTS 18-49

  • CBS, The Late Show with Stephen Colbert, 0.43 rating/3 share
  • NBC, The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon, 0.40/3
  • Adult Swim, 11:30 p.m.-12:30 a.m. ET, 0.35
  • ABC, Jimmy Kimmel Live, 0.34/3
  • Adult Swim, 12:30-1:30 a.m. ET, 0.28
  • NBC, Late Night with Seth Meyers, 0.24/3
  • CBS, The Late Late Show with James Corden, 0.19/2
  • Comedy Central, The Daily Show with Trevor Noah, 0.18
  • NBC, A Little Late with Lilly Singh, 0.15/2
  • TBS, Conan, 0.13

TOTAL VIEWERS

  • Stephen Colbert: 3.566 million viewers
  • Jimmy Fallon: 2.047 million viewers
  • Jimmy Kimmel: 1.97 million viewers
  • Seth Meyers: 1.293 million viewers
  • James Corden: 1.228 million viewers
  • Adult Swim, 11:30 p.m.-12:30 a.m. ET, 726,000 viewers
  • Lilly Singh: 672,000 viewers
  • Trevor Noah: 600,000 viewers
  • Adult Swim, 12:30-1:30 a.m. ET, 535,000 viewers
  • Conan O’Brien: 349,000 viewers

Sean L. McCarthy

Editor and publisher since 2007, when he was named New York's Funniest Reporter. Former newspaper reporter at the New York Daily News, Boston Herald and smaller dailies and community papers across America. Loves comedy so much he founded this site.

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8 thoughts on “Late-Night TV Ratings For 2019-2020

  1. These are terrible numbers. Carson could pull in 9 million viewers a night back when the population was 100 million fewer than it is now. But, he steered clear of politics. These clowns are all hyperpolitical, far-left jerks with nothing good to say about anyone. Nobody wants to deal with that right before they go to bed.

    1. Carson was iconic and brilliant! He was purely entertainment 100% of the time and never used politics to divide people. No comparison to these clowns! You’re too young to understand…wisdom may come to you later in life, hopefully!

    1. These are the ratings for 2020, not 2021. That’s what kind of screwball I am! 😉

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