Nielsen Reports 14.41M Viewers for The Grammys

The 2026 Grammy Awards drew 14.41 million viewers on CBS and Paramount+, marking a slight 6.4% decline from last year's 15.4 million but still ranking as the most-watched awards show since the 2025 Oscars.

The live telecast from Los Angeles' Crypto.com Arena (5 p.m. PT/8 p.m. ET) represented the final Grammys on CBS before shifting to a 10-year Disney deal starting in 2027. 

Viewership also trailed the 16.9 million peak in 2024, the highest since 2020.Despite the dip, the show dominated Sunday night as the week's top primetime broadcast and outperformed other recent awards: the Golden Globes (8.66 million), Emmys (7.42 million), and VMAs (5.5 million).Socially, it led as the No. 1 most-engaged TV program (including sports) over the past six months, with 74.8 million interactions and 302.5 million video views per Social Content Ratings.

The ceremony featured historic wins: Bad Bunny became the first Spanish-language artist to take Album of the Year (for DeBÍ TiRAR MáS FOToS), while Kendrick Lamar's victories for Record of the Year and Best Rap Album for “GNX” made him the most-awarded hip-hop artist ever. Other winners included Lady Gaga, Billie Eilish, Olivia Dean, and Lola Young.

The night carried a strong political edge amid protests against ICE, with many artists wearing “ICE OUT” pins on the red carpet and addressing immigration enforcement in speeches—Bad Bunny, Olivia Dean, Billie Eilish, SZA, and others called for humanity and change.