RESEARCH
Streaming Tops Broadcast and Cable Combined: US TV Viewing Share Reaches 44–60% in 2025
For the first time in US television history, streaming platforms captured a larger share of viewing time than broadcast and cable combined, with the milestone confirmed by Nielsen in May 2025 data. Independent measurement firms now report streaming accounts for 44.8% to 60% of all US TV consumption in 2025, depending on methodology. The spread between Nielsen’s panel-based peak of 47.5% and Samba TV’s ACR-based 60% figure reflects genuine measurement heterogeneity — not disagreement on the conclusion. All four sources confirm streaming is now the dominant US television format by a clear margin.
Findings
- Nielsen's The Gauge measured streaming at 44.8% of US TV viewing in May 2025 — surpassing broadcast (20.1%) and cable (24.1%) combined (44.2%) for the first time ever.
- By December 2025, streaming reached 47.5% of total US TV viewing — an all-time record — with broadcast at 21.4% and cable at 20.2%.
- Samba TV's ACR-based measurement places streaming higher, at 60% of all US TV time as of October 2025, reflecting methodological differences in how streaming is counted.
- Comscore reports US households spent nearly 5 hours per day streaming in 2025, with 13.9 billion monthly hours — confirming streaming as the default viewing experience.
- Parks Associates finds 91% of US internet households subscribe to at least one streaming service, while traditional pay-TV has fallen to 41% of households.
- YouTube alone accounted for 12.5% of all US television viewing in May 2025 — more than any individual broadcast network.
Delta Engine result
↔ Divergence Detected — Δ 0.425 (threshold 0.05)
- Nielsen The Gauge T2 97
- Samba TV T0 93
- Comscore T0 80
- Parks Associates T0 63
Evidence quality
avg 32.5 · min 25 · max 55 · spread 30