Archive · 16 Sep 2026
Emmy Awards Viewership Falls as Social Media Reach Surges
The Emmy Awards are a television ceremony that honors television shows and performers.
This year's ceremony was watched by about 6.7 million people on NBC and Peacock.
That was fewer viewers than last year's show.
The exact percentage drop is unclear because news outlets used different versions of last year's audience number.
The show was held on a Monday instead of its usual Sunday night.
NBC made that change because Sunday Night Football needed the Sunday time slot.
The Emmys also competed with a Monday night football game.
Even though fewer people watched on television, many more people watched related videos and interacted with the show on social media.
The ceremony was still the most-watched entertainment program on television that Monday.
The 78th Primetime Emmy Awards drew 6.7 million viewers across NBC and Peacock, according to preliminary Nielsen figures.
Viewership was down from last year's 7.59 million final audience, although the size of the decline depends on which comparison figure is used.
The ceremony moved to Monday because NBC needed Sunday for Sunday Night Football and faced additional NFL competition that night.
The Emmys remained Monday's most-watched entertainment program and posted Peacock's highest-ever simulstream reach for a non-holiday NBC entertainment special.
Social media video views rose 90 percent to 133 million, while total interactions reached 17 million.
- Who
- The 78th Primetime Emmy Awards, hosted by Mariska Hargitay and broadcast by NBC and Peacock.
- What
- The ceremony drew 6.7 million preliminary viewers, a decline from last year's audience, while social media engagement increased.
- When
- Monday, September 14, 2026.
- Where
- The Peacock Theater in Los Angeles.
- Why
- The broadcast moved to Monday because NBC needed Sunday for Sunday Night Football; it also faced competition from a Monday night NFL game.
Decline-Based Assessment
Broader-Performance Assessment
Size of the ratings drop
Decline-Based Assessment
Using last year's final adjusted audience of 7.59 million, this year's 6.7 million viewers represent a decline of close to 12 percent.
Broader-Performance Assessment
Using last year's initial audience figure of 7.42 million, the decline is closer to 9 percent, the comparison cited in Variety's headline.
Television performance
Decline-Based Assessment
The 2026 ceremony broke the recent upward trend in overall Emmys viewership and attracted fewer viewers than the prior ceremony.
Broader-Performance Assessment
The ceremony was Monday's top entertainment show, grew 10 percent over NBC's last Emmys broadcast in 2022, and had the highest-ever simulstream reach for a non-holiday NBC entertainment special on Peacock.
Audience engagement
Decline-Based Assessment
Traditional television viewership fell to 6.7 million, pending final Nielsen figures.
Broader-Performance Assessment
Online engagement was substantially stronger, with 133 million video views and 17 million interactions, both making the Emmys the most talked-about program of the night on social media.
- Preliminary audience
- 6.7 million viewers across NBC and Peacock
- Last year's final audience
- 7.59 million viewers
- Social video views
- 133 million, up 90 percent from last year's ceremony
- Social interactions
- 17 million across Facebook, Instagram, X and YouTube
- Host
- Mariska Hargitay
- Venue
- Peacock Theater, Los Angeles
- Monday ranking
- The most-watched entertainment program on television that night