48.6%
of TV watch time went to streaming in May 2026.
Nielsen reported that streaming increased one percentage point from April, beginning its typical summer rise in total television watch time.
Nielsen, The Gauge, May 202682886 Reference
U.S. Entertainment and Streaming Statistics: 2026
A source-led snapshot of how audiences are spending time with television, streaming, and entertainment in the United States.
Last updated November 11, 2026
A changing screen
The audience is still moving.
For producers, writers, journalists, and curious viewers, the story is not a simple handoff from one screen to another. Streaming has become the largest share of television time, ad-supported viewing remains substantial, and film and television continue to support a wide creative economy. The figures below keep the conversation anchored in named sources and dated releases.
The numbers
Six citable entertainment statistics.
13.8%
of TV watch time went to YouTube in May 2026.
Nielsen said YouTube led all media distributors for a third consecutive month, underscoring how creator-led video now sits alongside traditional television in the living room.
Nielsen, The Gauge, May 202616.7 trillion
minutes were spent streaming in 2025.
Nielsen calculated that total as a 19% increase from 2024 across the streaming titles it measures in the United States.
Nielsen, 2025 Streaming Unwrapped, January 202674.2%
of total TV viewing was ad-supported in Q4 2025.
Within ad-supported viewing, streaming represented 45.6%, broadcast 29.6%, and cable 24.8%, according to Nielsen’s quarterly Ad Supported Gauge.
Nielsen, Q4 2025 Ad Supported Gauge, February 202644.8%
of TV viewing went to streaming in May 2025.
That was the first month streaming exceeded the combined share of broadcast and cable, which together accounted for 44.2% of TV viewing.
Nielsen, The Gauge, June 20252.74 million
U.S. jobs are supported by film and television.
The Motion Picture Association’s 2024 analysis also reported $242 billion in total wages and more than 122,000 businesses across the American film and television industry.
Motion Picture Association, March 2024Sources and scope
How to read this page.
This page brings together publicly available figures from Nielsen and the Motion Picture Association. Each statistic links directly to the release where it appears. Nielsen’s figures describe U.S. television viewing within its measurement scope. The Motion Picture Association figure describes the U.S. film and television industry from the economic analysis published in March 2024.
Dates matter. The page preserves the release date and reporting period for every figure, rather than treating a monthly viewing share or an annual total as a permanent benchmark.
- Nielsen, The Gauge, May 2026
- Nielsen, 2025 Streaming Unwrapped, January 2026
- Nielsen, Q4 2025 Ad Supported Gauge, February 2026
- Nielsen, Streaming Reaches Historic TV Milestone, June 2025
- Motion Picture Association, American Film and Television Industry, March 2024
Cite this page
Use the source, then keep the link.
82886 Entertainment Group. “U.S. Entertainment and Streaming Statistics: 2026.” Updated November 11, 2026. https://82886entertainment.com/entertainment-industry-statistics
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