The 78th Emmy Awards drew 6.7 million viewers across NBC and Peacock, down 10% from last year even as the broadcast competed with the NFL. Last year’s ceremony on CBS reached an estimated 7.4 million viewers, and the 2024 broadcast on ABC drew 6.9 million, according to the Associated Press.
NBC still called the night a win, saying the Emmys were the most-watched entertainment program of the evening and the most-watched Monday entertainment telecast of 2026 in both total viewers and adults 18-49.
The NBC broadcast was also up 41% from the last time the Emmys aired on a Monday, when Fox’s 2024 telecast drew 4.4 million viewers. On Peacock, the show delivered the service’s biggest reach ever for a non-holiday NBC entertainment special, trailing only previous Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parades.
Social interest was stronger as well. Emmy videos generated 133 million views across Facebook, Instagram, X and YouTube, up 90% from last year, and 17 million interactions, ranking first for the night.
NBC and Peacock scheduled the ceremony on a Monday to avoid Sunday Night Football, a move the network has used before in 2014, 2018 and 2022.