ABC is No.1 for audience reach across streaming and broadcast in 2025
The ABC is the No.1 reaching screen network in 2025, with an average of 12.34 million viewers (or 45 per cent of Australians) tuning in every week.
In an increasingly competitive media landscape, average audiences across ABC iview and broadcast increased by 2.6 per cent in 2025. The ABC also recorded audience growth in key demographics, attracting more viewers aged 18–39 while maintaining strong engagement among audiences aged 65 and over.
ABC iview was the No.1 reaching broadcast video on demand (BVOD) service this year with 3.4 million Australians watching content on the platform on average each week. November 2025 was ABC iview’s best month on record with 44.8 million hours of content watched on the platform, which equates to around 1.5 million hours watched every day.
Highlights in 2025 include:
- Bluey continues to be Australia’s most loved Blue Heeler, with 4.8 billion minutes watched in 2025 just on ABC iview (across Bluey, Bluey: The Sign, Bluey’s Big Play and Bluey Minisodes).
- *Australia Votes 2025: Election Results Live (*8.30pm-10pm AEST) was the No.1 election night program with a Total TV national reach of 4.1 million Australians and Total TV national average audience of 2.4 million viewers.
- ABC NEWS Channel is Australia’s leading dedicated 24-hour news channel and the No.1 multi-channel in the country.
- Australians couldn’t get enough of dramas on ABC iview, with the genre driving 21 per cent of all minutes viewed in 2025, up from 17 per cent in 2024.
- It was an outstanding year for Media Watch, which had a total audience increase of 3.1 per cent in 2025 compared to 2024 across broadcast and ABC iview.
- Australian Story, which turns 30 in 2026, accumulated a total audience of 1.3 million in 2025, up two per cent year-on-year.
- ABC News 7pm Weekday bulletin has had a nightly national average audience of 880, 000 this year to date, up seven per cent year on year.
- 7.30 to date has had a total TV audience of 853, 000 per episode, up 10 per cent.
The ABC had some of the biggest launches ever in 2025:
- The Family Next Door was the biggest non-childrens’ ABC iview launch in history. It had a total audience of 1.5 million across TV and ABC iview, making it the No.1 free-to-air drama in Australia this year.
- The ABC had its biggest launch of a new children’s program with Do Not Watch This Show accumulating one million total audience in its first two weeks. For the year to date, it has attracted an audience of 2.5 million.
- Grand Designs S12 was the most successful lifestyle launch on ABC iview, with an episode 1 ABC iview audience of 180, 000 in the first seven days after launch.
The ABC had the No.1 drama, arts, children’s, documentary and new comedy programs in Australia in 2025.
- The top free-to-air Australian dramas this year were the ABC’s The Family Next Door at No.1 followed by Mystery Road: Origin S2 accumulating an audience of 1.4 million.
- Dr Karl’s How Things Work accumulated a total audience of 1.6 million, making it the top free-to-air documentary this year.
- Muster Dogs: Collies and Kelpies S3 also amassed an audience of 1.4 million.
- The Piano accumulated a total audience of 1.6 million, making it the No.1 arts program this year followed by Portrait Artist of the Year (the first four episodes accumulated an audience of 1.2 million).
- Austin S2 accumulated a total audience of 958,000, making it the No.1 new free-to-air Australian comedy in 2025YTD.
The ABC also had 68 titles surpass a total audience of one million viewers with top performers including Hard Quiz, The Kimberley, I Was Actually There, Gruen, Gruen Nation, Grand Designs Australia, Spicks & Specks and numerous current affairs programs.
- For Australian Story, the top episodes this year were The River Part 1& 2 which both had a total audience of 1.7 million.
- Four Corners’ top episode this year was Hammered: Inside the Bunnings Machine which had a total audience of 1.6m.
- For Foreign Correspondent, the standout episode this year was Hot Property – Greenland which had a total audience of 1.2m.
ABC managing director Hugh Marks: “This has been a memorable year for the ABC. Our journalism guided the nation through defining moments such as the Australia Votes 2025 election coverage while our premium Australian drama, arts, documentary, and children’s content has inspired, informed and entertained Australians in record numbers. We intend to build on the positive momentum we now have into 2026 and beyond as we roll out an ABC slate that reflects boldness, excellence and ambition.”
ABC Director Screen Jennifer Collins: “Over the past year we’ve seen record audiences embrace our shows across ABC iview and broadcast, and all genres. We’re particularly delighted to see new audiences discover our world-class Australian content, and our homegrown drama, arts, documentary, comedy and children’s programming lead the market. I’m incredibly proud of the ABC Screen team, and I’d like to acknowledge our wonderful, creative production partners around Australia.”
The results for 2025 come as the ABC approaches its biggest broadcast of the year, New Year’s Eve, which last year attracted over five million viewers.
In January, major launches are planned across all genres headlined by the three-part blockbuster mini-series Goolagong, plus the return of Muster Dogs: Where are they Now, Dr Karl How Things Work, Hard Quiz, The Weekly, Grand Designs Transformations, landmark animation Shaun Tan’s Tales from Outer Suburbia, and Ginger & The Vegesaurs, Gardening Australia Jr, the annual family special from Julia Donaldson’s, this year being The Scarecrow’s Wedding.