Late Night Ratings Cool in March After February Surge

After February’s across-the-board gains, late night pulled back in March, with most shows posting modest month-over-month declines.

The Late Show with Stephen Colbert and Jimmy Kimmel Live! remained locked in a tight race at 11:35 p.m., extending their streak of split wins to six consecutive months. Colbert once again led the hour in total viewers, while Kimmel held the top spot among adults 18–49.

According to Nielsen Live+7 ratings data, Colbert’s Late Show averaged 2.69 million total viewers in March, down 3% from February. Jimmy Kimmel Live! followed closely with 2.55 million viewers, slipping 1% month-over-month. NBC’s The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon remained third in the timeslot with 1.37 million viewers, down 6%.

Among adults 18–49 at 11:35 p.m., Kimmel was the only host in the hour to post growth, rising 6% to 275,000 viewers. Colbert dipped 2% to 236,000, while Fallon declined 5% to 187,000.

Elsewhere, Fox News’s Gutfeld! and ABC’s Nightline were the only programs to post gains in both total viewers and adults 18–49 in March.

Gutfeld!, which airs at 10 p.m. ET, once again delivered the largest overall audience among the shows we track, averaging 3.49 million total viewers—up 3% from February—while also climbing 14% in the demo to 280,000 viewers.

Nightline rose 4% overall to 997,000 and 6% in the demo to 103,000, but remained behind NBC’s Late Night with Seth Meyers, which led the 12:37 a.m. hour with 1.03 million total viewers (flat month-over-month) and the largest demo gain of any tracked show, up 22% to 158,000 adults 18–49.

Comedy Central’s The Daily Show moved in the opposite direction, as a pair of softer weeks surrounding the show’s mid-February break weighed on its monthly average. The program declined 8% in total viewers to 1.14 million and 12% among adults 18–49 to 260,000 viewers.

Bravo’s Watch What Happens Live also cooled, falling 18% in total viewers to 376,000 and 17% in the demo to 100,000.

Year-Over-Year (vs. March 2025)

In what’s become a trend over recent months, the total audience across all shows tracked by LateNighter grew 8% among total viewers and 11% in adults 18–49 compared to the same month last year, with all but two programs posting gains.

The gainers were led by Jimmy Kimmel Live!, which jumped 36% overall and 70% in the demo year-over-year

The Daily Show also rose—up 14% in total viewers and 19% in the demo—while The Late Show with Stephen Colbert increased 17% overall and 7% among adults 18–49. Other year-over-year gainers included Late Night with Seth Meyers (up 9% and 26%), The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon (up 5% and 2%), and Nightline (up 7% and 12%).

The only programs to post year-over-year declines were Gutfeld! (down 10% in total viewers and 6% in the demo) and Watch What Happens Live (down 13% and 26%).

Complete ratings charts for March 2026 follow below.

Note: Monthly ratings averages include only first-run episodes. Time period listed is most common airtime for each show.

Live+ 7 Ratings — All Viewers (P2+)

Live+ 7 Ratings — In the Demo (P18-49)

Ratings data © The Nielsen Company, used under license.