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According to Nielsen, President Joe Biden’s State of the Union speech on Thursday attracted 32.2 million viewers.
This is an 18% increase from last year's 27.3 million viewers and the second-largest audience since 2021, when 38.2 million viewers watched his first address to a Joint Session of Congress. (A president's first address to a joint session is not considered an official State of the Union, as it's customary to wait a full year into a term before the president is officially in a position to report on the state of the nation.)
The viewership count includes 14 networks such as ABC, CBS, Fox, NBC, Telemundo, Univision, PBS, CNN, CNNe, Fox Business, Fox News Channel, MSNBC, Newsmax, and NewsNation.
According to Nielsen, 5% of the audience was 18-34 years old, 19% was 35-54, and 74% was 55 or older. 56% watched on broadcast networks, while 44% watched on cable.
ABC had the largest audience for the State of the Union on broadcast TV with 5.24 million viewers, followed by NBC with 4.47 million viewers. CBS had 4.09 million viewers, while Fox had the smallest audience with 1.77 million viewers.
Among adults 18-49, NBC had the highest ratings for the event with a 0.69 rating, narrowly beating ABC's 0.68 rating. CBS had the third highest rating with 0.49, and Fox had the lowest with 0.30.
During the speech, Biden focused on the economy, the war in Ukraine, and the border. He also promised to 'restore' Roe v. Wade.
Nielsen measured the viewership from around 9:26 p.m. to 10:33 p.m. ET.
