The late-night pecking order at 11:35 p.m. remained unchanged the week of January 11, 2026, as The Late Show with Stephen Colbert again led the hour in both total viewers and adults 18–49.
Colbert averaged 2.25 million viewers and 235,000 adults 18–49, comfortably leading the hour, while Jimmy Kimmel Live! held firm in second place with 2.07 million viewers and 207,000 in the demo.
That’s according to Nielsen Live+3 data.
Overall, younger viewership rebounded almost across the board, aided in part by a pair of high-profile Monday night broadcasts. Kimmel benefited from his final Monday Night Football lead-in of the season, while NBC’s Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon posted one of the week’s biggest demo gains behind a Monday episode featuring Kristen Wiig, Ashton Kutcher, and Arden Cho and Ahn Hyo-seop—the speaking voices of Rumi and Jinu in K-Pop Demon Hunters—along with musical guest Ty Myers.
At 12:37 a.m., NBC’s Late Night with Seth Meyers continued its post-holiday rebound, climbing to 943,000 total viewers (+12 percent) and 142,000 adults 18–49 (+21 percent), marking one of the stronger demo gains of the week among broadcast late night.
ABC’s Nightline also posted modest growth, averaging 920,000 total viewers (+2 percent) and 96,000 adults 18–49 (+21 percent), as its younger audience benefited in particular from a strong Monday night performance.
On cable at 11:00 p.m., The Daily Show held steady in total viewers at 882,000, while adding 8 percent in the demo to reach 194,000 adults 18–49. The Comedy Central staple returned to a more typical performance after airing alternate programming during the holiday break.
At 10:00 p.m., Fox News’ Gutfeld! continued its strong run, rising to 3.16 million total viewers (+4 percent) while remaining flat week to week in the demo at 234,000 adults 18–49.
Bravo’s Watch What Happens Live saw a notable bounce among younger viewers, climbing 31 percent in the demo to 87,000 adults 18–49, alongside 341,000 total viewers (+11 percent).
Complete ratings charts for the week of Jan. 11, 2026, follow below
Note: Time period listed is the most common airtime for each show.
Live+ 3 Ratings — All Viewers (P2+)
| Avg Share (%) | Avg Viewers (000’s) | Vs Last Wk | |
| 10:00 PM | |||
| Gutfeld! (FNC)† 5 first-run episodes | 7.30 | 3,162 | +4% |
| Watch What Happens Live (Bravo)* 5 first-run episodes | 0.73 | 341 | +11% |
| 11:00 PM | |||
| The Daily Show (COM)* 4 first-run episodes | 2.67 | 882 | flat |
| 11:35 PM | |||
| Jimmy Kimmel Live! (ABC) 4 first-run episodes, 1 repeat | 8.40 | 2,072 | -3% |
| The Late Show with Stephen Colbert (CBS) 4 first-run episodes, 1 repeat | 9.16 | 2,249 | -3% |
| The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon (NBC) 4 first-run episodes, 1 repeat | 5.10 | 1,251 | +15% |
| 12:37 AM | |||
| Nightline (ABC)* 5 first-run episodes | 5.17 | 920 | +2% |
| Late Night with Seth Meyers (NBC) 4 first-run episodes, 1 repeat | 5.78 | 943 | +12% |
Live+ 3 Ratings — In the Demo (P18-49)
| US Share (%) | US AA Proj (000’s) | Vs Last Wk | |
| 10:00 PM | |||
| Gutfeld! (FNC)† 5 first-run episodes | 2.93 | 234 | flat |
| Watch What Happens Live (Bravo)* 5 first-run episodes | 0.94 | 87 | +31% |
| 11:00 PM | |||
| The Daily Show (COM)* 4 first-run episodes | 3.01 | 194 | +8% |
| 11:35 PM | |||
| Jimmy Kimmel Live! (ABC) 4 first-run episodes, 1 repeat | 4.33 | 207 | +19% |
| The Late Show with Stephen Colbert (CBS) 4 first-run episodes, 1 repeat | 4.93 | 235 | +16% |
| The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon (NBC) 4 first-run episodes, 1 repeat | 3.63 | 172 | +25% |
| 12:37 AM | |||
| Nightline (ABC)* 5 first-run episodes | 2.67 | 96 | +21% |
| Late Night with Seth Meyers (NBC) 4 first-run episodes, 1 repeat | 4.25 | 142 | +21% |
Ratings data © The Nielsen Company, used under license.
NY Post:
Even CBS’ “Late Night with Stephen Colbert” is on track to turn in its worst-performing January ever among viewers in the 25- to 54-year-old demo, averaging just 285,000 viewers.
The Rupert Murdoch owned New York post is a bastion of truth, eh Mucky Boy you lame and pathetic Drumpf licking loser?🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣
And I’m sure you’ll respond with another one of your whiny bitch rebuttals that makes you look more lame and pathetic, as usual!🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣
They’re from Nielsen, you ret*rd.
And the NY Post # of 285K is higher than Jed’s 235K for P25-54
Nothing that comes from you deserves to be taken seriously! All you do is lie about the late night hosts being tools for Democrats, when, in reality, it was your Dear Toddler Drumpf that got Colbert pulled off the air, because his delicate fee-fees bruised!
You all are nothing but whiny snowflakes! Grow the fuck up, you hole!🖕😠🖕
Colbert is still airing shows, you dumb moron. He wasn’t pulled off the air….can you get any more stupid?
Colbert is limping to his finish in four months…oh wait, he’s going to take his hate-filled show off the air during the Winter Olympics…thankfully.
It’s ok…shit-face Colbert can do more stupid cameos on Paramount shows to avoid being homeless, the putrick prick.
Who’s boasting? Not me….Colbert only got himself fired, and he should take it like a man and admit he’s to blame for his crap show losing tens of millions per year.
The low ratings prove that out….he’s horrible, and viewers have tuned out. 16 more weeks of his crap and then it ends…oh wait, 15 weeks. Yee-hah!
Well, sourcing NY Post, the right-wing outlet desperately trying to find excuses to complain about Mamdani, says a lot about your doomer stances on late night.
Why don’t you just comment there instead of LateNighter? UNLESS: you’re really a subscriber helping fund this for the sake of trolling something you hate~
Uh…it’s Nielsen data and it’s about Colbert getting record-low ratings.
It explains why his show is losing tens of millions per year and why he was cancelled.
Late-Nighter has access to Nielsen data, maybe they can confirm the NY Post
Well, at least you admit that Colbert’s putrid ratings are real…and the real reason Colbert has been taken off the air. Perhaps then he can stop begging Trump for his job back. LOL.