Late Night TV Ratings: Colbert Tops, Kimmel Gains, Gutfeld Steady

At 11:35 PM, Jimmy Kimmel Live! emerged as the week’s standout performer, surging nearly 42% in total viewers week-over-week and gaining 15% among the coveted 18-49 demographic. The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon also saw gains compared to the prior week’s reruns, though its uptick was more modest—up 7% in total viewers and barely moving the needle (less than 1%) among younger adults.

Ratings Graphic Courtesy of ROADMN

Latenighter.com reports the growth for both Kimmel and Fallon appeared to come at the expense of The Late Show with Stephen Colbert, which dropped 15% in total viewers and 21% in the 18-49 demo. Despite the declines, The Late Show—which had a unique advantage last week as the only 11:35 PM broadcast network show airing fresh episodes—maintained its lead in the timeslot, topping both total viewers and the key demo. Kimmel and Fallon battled for second place, with Jimmy Kimmel Live! edging out in total audience size and The Tonight Show attracting slightly more 18-49 viewers.

Elsewhere, Nightline posted a solid 28% increase among younger viewers, though this boost only secured it second place in its slot, trailing a week of Late Night with Seth Meyers reruns.

After Midnight, hosted by Taylor Tomlinson, landed second in total viewers for its timeslot but slipped to third among the 18-49 crowd, with week-over-week dips of 6% and 18%, respectively.

On cable, Fox News’ Gutfeld! held firm in its 10 PM ET/7 PM PT slot, showing resilience with a negligible drop in total viewers and a slight uptick among younger adults. Greg Gutfeld’s late-night-style program continues to dominate as the most-watched show among those tracked, with its audience share—representing the proportion of active TV viewers in its slot—nearly matching Colbert’s.