Fox Tops Q1 Cable News Ratings, But CNN And MS NOW See Year-Over-Year Viewership Uptick

Fox News again had a lopsided victory in the first quarter and March cable news ratings, but the network generally saw a year-over-year viewership decline, while CNN and MS NOW gained.

CNN saw the biggest viewership percentage increases during the time frame, reflecting an extraordinary few months of news.

In primetime in March, Fox News averaged 2.99 million total viewers, down 4% from the same month last year. MS NOW averaged 1.26 million, up 7%, and CNN posted 898,000, up 52%. In the 25-54 demo, Fox News averaged 323,000, down 18%, while CNN averaged 175,000, up 45%, and MS NOW was at 130,000, up 19%.

In total day in March, Fox News averaged 1.9 million viewers, up 2%, compared to MS NOW with 759,000, up 21%, and CNN with 641,000, up 48%. In the 25-54 demo, Fox News averaged 198,000, down 17%, compared to CNN with 111,000, up 42% and MS NOW with 81,000, up 35%.

In primetime in the first quarter, Fox News averaged 2.59 million total viewers, down 14% from the same period last year. MS NOW averaged 1.11 million, up 9%, and CNN posted 797,000, up 43%. In the 25-54 demo, Fox News averaged 265,000, down 30%, compared to CNN with 156,000, up 29%, and MS NOW with 114,000, up 19%.

In total day in Q1, Fox News averaged 1.71 million, down 11% from 2025, compared to MS NOW with 691,000, up 17%, and CNN with 577,000, up 35%. In the 25-54 demo, Fox News averaged 172,000, down 30%, compared to CNN with 101,000, up 28%, and MS NOW with 72,000, up 26%.

Fox News continued to dominate the top regularly scheduled cable news shows. The Five was the most watched show in March, averaging 4.08 million, followed by Jesse Watters Primetime with 3.72 million, Special Report with Bret Baier with 3.2 million, Gutfeld! with 3.18 million and Hannity with 3.12 million.

In the 25-54 demo, Jesse Watters Primetime was on top, averaging 387,000, folllowed by Gutfeld! with 381,000, The Five with 377,000, Hannity with 343,000 and Special Report with Bret Baier with 309,000.

In the first quarter, The Five was on top with 3.97 million, followed by Jesse Watters Primetime with 3.44 million, Special Report with Bret Baier with 3.03 million, Gutfeld! with 3.03 million and Hannity with 2.89 million. In the 25-54 demo, The Five averaged 354,000, compared to Gutfeld! with 351,000, Jesse Watters Primetime with 338,000, Hannity with 301,000 and Special Report with Bret Baier at 289,000.

MS NOW’s top show in the first quarter was The Rachel Maddow Show, averaging 2.27 million viewers, while CNN’s top show was Anderson Cooper 360, averaging 878,000. While the other networks gained, Fox News noted that its viewership picked up month-over-month in March, as well as quarter over quarter.

Among other networks, NewsNation averaged 191,000 total primetime viewers in March, up 85% from the same period a year earlier. In the 25-54 demo, it averaged 30,000, double from the same month in 2025. Its top show was Cuomo, which averaged 289,000 viewers, up 65%, and 45,000 among adults 25-54, up 114%.

The figures are from Nielsen via the networks.