Nielsen guide maps ad-supported TV viewing trends

Nielsen released The 2026 Upfront Planning Guide, a report that analyzes audience patterns across ad-supported television, including demographic shifts and sports viewership.

The report provides advertisers and agencies with insights designed to inform decisions during the upfront marketplace.

The analysis also introduces demographic insights for two expanding streaming segments: free ad-supported streaming (FAST) and advertising video on demand (AVOD). Nielsen concludes that different ad-supported viewing environments attract distinct audience profiles, which together can help brands broaden reach when treated as part of a single media ecosystem.

Ad-supported TV remains dominant among adults 18-49

Adults aged 18 to 49 spend 63.8 percent of their television time watching ad-supported content. Within that share, streaming accounts for 66.7 percent of viewing time in this demographic.

Among streaming services, 81.1 percent of viewing by adults aged 18 to 49 takes place on ad-supported tiers of platforms such as YouTube, Hulu, Amazon Prime Video, Peacock and Paramount+.

FAST platforms expand reach among older streaming audiences

The remaining 19 percent of streaming viewing within the demographic goes to FAST platforms, which offer free access to content libraries from multiple sources.

Services such as The Roku Channel, Tubi and Pluto TV attract particular interest from audiences aged 35 to 64. Among Generation X viewers, 28 percent report frequently purchasing products after seeing advertising on streaming TV.

Linear TV continues to play a central role

Despite the growth of streaming, linear television still represents 33.4 percent of ad-supported TV viewing. The format remains central for live sports, events and news programming.

Primetime broadcast dramas and movies on cable channels also remain among the most watched genres for adults aged 18 to 49.

Sports illustrate the shift to multiplatform viewing

Live sports demonstrate how distribution across platforms can expand audience reach. The evolution of coverage for the National Basketball Association illustrates this shift. Broadcast coverage on NBC delivers broad reach, while streaming games on Amazon Prime Video attracts younger viewers who watch less linear television.

Audience concentration differs from total audience size across platforms. Streams on Prime Video have a higher proportion of viewers aged 18 to 34, while NBC draws a comparable total number of viewers in the same demographic. Meanwhile, broadcasts on ABC and ESPN generate the highest average number of viewers aged 18 to 34.

Combined distribution across platforms has helped the NBA increase viewership by 18 percent so far this season. Sports programming accounted for nearly 30 percent of ad-supported TV viewing among adults aged 25 to 54 in the fourth quarter of 2025.

Ad-supported TV share continues to grow

According to Nielsen’s Ad Supported Gauge, ad-supported television represented 74.2 percent of total TV viewing in the fourth quarter of 2025, its highest level of the year. Compared with the third quarter of 2025, ad-supported viewing increased by 9 percent, outpacing the 7 percent growth in overall television viewing. Nielsen attributes the rise partly to football programming and increased engagement among younger adults.

Brian Hughes, data communications director: "With upfront and newfront season upon us, we took an even closer look at FAST and AVOD to uncover new areas of growth as ad supported TV viewing evolves. We found that each pillar of ad supported TV offers something to help brands meet their goals, and when used together, the opportunities have the potential to multiply."

www.nielsen.com

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