Streaming became the most popular single form of TV usage years ago, but that was not its final hurdle. The juggernaut of broadcast and cable television combined meant that consumers were still using traditional TV services more than streaming overall, even if streaming was more popular than either of them individually. According to data from Nielsen, streaming just overcame this final hurdle.
Nielsen says that in May, cable television accounted for 24.1% of all TV usage and broadcast TV represented 20.1% of all viewership for a total of 44.2%. Streaming services accounted for 44.8% of total viewership, just surpassing the combined efforts of cable and broadcast. This has happened on single days, namely during large events such as the Mike Tyson-Jake Paul fight on Netflix, but streaming has never sustained that edge for an entire month.
The numbers were aided by the addition of more streaming services to Nielsen’s metrics. The original list included streaming giants like Netflix, Disney Plus, YouTube, Hulu and Amazon’s Prime Video. It was expanded to 11 total services and now includes the Roku Channel, Paramount Plus, Tubi, Peacock and Warner Bros. Discovery.
The next milestone for streaming will be keeping this lead for an entire quarter. For now, cable and broadcast still rule that statistic, combining for 57.6% of all TV streaming in the first quarter of 2025, with streaming comprising 42.4%. Should streaming keep its current lead, the second quarter of 2025 could mark the first quarter that streaming overtakes traditional TV and holds the lead.
YouTube and Netflix are winning big
YouTube led the way for streaming services, with a hefty 12.5% of viewership. Following that is Netflix, which remains the largest single video-on-demand service, a title it’s held for four years in a row. Rounding out the top five is Disney via Disney Plus and Hulu, Prime Video, and the Roku Channel.
However, YouTube is the biggest winner. Not only does it lead all streaming services in market share, but it also has the highest share ever measured by Nielsen and leads the way in a growing segment of free, ad-supported services, also known as FAST services. The other FAST services measured by the data firm, including PlutoTV, the Roku Channel and Tubi, combined for 5.7% of all TV viewing in May 2025, which is more than any individual broadcast network over the same time.
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