Ratings: Shane Gillis-Hosted SNL Posts Weekly, Year-Over-Year Gains

Shane Gillis SNL — Photo: Will Heath/NBC

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First on LateNighter: Shane Gillis‘ headline-making return to Saturday Night Live edged up from last week in both total viewers and the 18–49 demo, while also improving year-over-year—and giving Gillis his best-rated hosting turn yet.

Per Nielsen Live+Same Day data, SNL‘s October 10 episode, which also featured musical guest Rosalía, drew an average of 4.4 million total viewers and 1.1 million viewers aged 18–49.

That’s a 1% increase in total audience and a 4% increase in the advertiser-coveted demo from last week.

Year-over-year, compared to the show’s third episode last season (with host/musical guest Sabrina Carpenter), this weekend’s episode was also up: by 4% among total viewers and by 15% in the demo.

Saturday marked Gillis’ third time hosting the legendary sketch show, and his best-rated yet. His first visit to the show in February 2024 drew 4 million total viewers and 1 million in the demo, while his return in March 2025 drew 4.3 million and 895,000, as measured by Nielsen Live+Same Day data.

This week’s episode was SNL‘s first truly live coast-to-coast airing of the season, after the show’s first two episodes were delayed across much of the country by sixteen minutes and ten minutes, respectively, due to college football overruns.

As always, bottom-line viewership will rise when Live+3 numbers—which include delayed viewing—come in. (For example, per Nielsen, last week’s episode gained 1.46 million total viewers in the three days following its broadcast, with Live+3 figures topping out at 5.8 million total viewers, while demo viewership grew by 30% to 1.34 million viewers.)

It’s also worth noting that linear ratings are just one piece of the pie, especially among younger viewers. Live+Same Day figures do not include live viewing on Peacock or social media, nor do they account for the show’s performance on YouTube, where this weekend’s “Hegseth USS Lincoln Cold Open” had accumulated more than 5 million views as of Wednesday afternoon.

As we’ve reported, Gillis broke a five-year SNL screen time record this weekend, but his appearance proved controversial after he joked about women dressing “like whores” at the gym. He also made headlines for dropping an accidental F-bomb during a Dr. Seuss-inspired sketch.

SNL is taking its first break of the season over the next two weeks, with the show set to return October 31 with first-time host Inde Naverrette alongside returning musical guest Gracie Abrams.

Episode-by-episode Nielsen ratings charts for SNL’s 52nd season to date follow below.