WWE SmackDown draws record low ratings on Halloween
Friday night’s Halloween edition of WWE SmackDown averaged 933,000 viewers on USA Network, down 18.7 percent from the previous week. It’s the lowest audience total the show has ever done on USA Network and lowest overall number for SmackDown since an episode that was moved to FS1 in November 2023.
SmackDown drew a 0.20 rating in the 18-49 demo. That’s down 31 percent from the prior week and is also the lowest rating the show has done on USA. Other than a clip show on New Year’s Eve 2020, it’s the lowest rating SmackDown has ever done on any network.
Along with airing on Halloween (traditionally a bad night for wrestling shows), SmackDown went head-to-head with game six of the World Series between the Los Angeles Dodgers and Toronto Blue Jays. The baseball game averaged 17.4 million viewers on Fox alone — in addition to airing on other platforms — and drew a 3.28 rating in the 18-49 demo, topping all of television in both categories.
As compared to the same week in 2024, under Nielsen’s old panel-only measurement system, SmackDown’s overall viewership was down 34.7 percent while the 18-49 rating was down 52.4 percent.
Listed below are the last 11 weeks of viewership numbers and 18-49 demo ratings for SmackDown, as well as the 10-week average in both categories. This week’s episode was down 24 percent in viewers and 39.4 percent in 18-49 as compared to the recent averages.
Note: Starting on October 1, Nielsen switched to the new Big Data + Panel ratings measurement system, which has resulted in lower-than-usual ratings for most wrestling shows.
