Netflix accounted for 7.8% of total US TV viewing in July 2026, the latest month in Nielsen’s The Gauge. That share puts Netflix behind YouTube’s record 14.2% in the same month. Netflix’s viewing share counts all viewing on TV sets, including ad-free plans, so it does not measure Netflix’s ad-tier audience or ad inventory.
Netflix and streaming’s share of US TV in July 2026
The Motley Fool’s coverage of Nielsen’s Gauge says Netflix, which the Motley Fool calls the second-biggest streaming service, held 7.8%, and that streaming overall climbed to 49% of all TV time. TheWrap’s report on the July 2026 Gauge puts broadcast at 19.5% and cable at 18.7%. Nielsen’s July 2026 Gauge release, published September 10, 2026, reports a 7.8% share for FOX as a media distributor, a separate number from Netflix’s. Our Q3 2026 cable vs streaming page tracks the category split.
Total TV usage rose 2.2% from June during the July interval, which ran from June 29 to July 26, 2026. Nielsen attributed the rise partly to the final weeks of the FIFA World Cup. Usage typically stays flat or falls between June and July.
| Platform or category | Share of total US TV, July 2026 |
|---|---|
| YouTube | 14.2% (record) |
| Netflix | 7.8% |
| Streaming total | 49.0% |
| Broadcast | 19.5% |
| Cable | 18.7% |
| Other (what remains after streaming, broadcast and cable) | 12.8% |
The “other” row is our own arithmetic; the rest comes from Nielsen’s reporting. The table shows only YouTube and Netflix at the platform level, and both are already counted inside the streaming total. For the leader’s trend, see our page on YouTube’s share of TV viewing. For the category as a whole, see our page on streaming’s share of US TV time.
What the 7.8% is a share of
The denominator is total US television usage: viewing through a TV set across streaming, broadcast, cable, and an other category. Nielsen describes The Gauge as its monthly snapshot of total broadcast, cable and streaming consumption that occurs through a television screen.
This share also includes ad-free viewing. Nielsen’s May 2026 Gauge release states: “The Gauge and MDG reflect total TV viewing, which includes both ad-supported and non-ad-supported viewing.” The same note says these reports do not reflect the currency TV ratings that inform advertising sales.
The 7.8% does not measure three things:
- Netflix’s ad-tier viewing: ad-free plans and the ad-supported plan are counted together.
- Subscribers or households: a service can have many accounts and low watch time, or the reverse.
- Ad inventory: watch time does not tell you how many ad slots exist or who can buy them.
Nielsen measures ad-supported viewing separately, in its quarterly Ad Supported Gauge. That report covers all of TV over a quarter, while Netflix’s 7.8% is a single month for a single platform. The two figures cover different periods and use different breakdowns, so you can’t combine them into a Netflix ad-tier share.
For the category split behind these numbers, see our page on cable versus streaming in July 2026.
How July compares with earlier Netflix months
Netflix’s July 2026 share was lower than a year earlier and below its December 2025 peak. These are the dated Gauge readings for Netflix’s share of total US TV:
- July 2025: 8.8%, which was then a platform record, according to the Motley Fool.
- December 2025: 9.0%, which Nielsen’s December 2025 Gauge report named a platform-best share.
- July 2026: 7.8%.
YouTube had 13.4% in July 2025, 4.6 points ahead of Netflix’s 8.8%, and 14.2% in July 2026, 6.4 points ahead of Netflix’s 7.8%, according to The Motley Fool.
These monthly readings follow the calendar. Nielsen calls summer streaming’s usual seasonal rise, and the December figure came during the holiday period, which included a record Christmas Day for streaming. They show how Netflix’s share moved, not why it moved in any given month.
Our earlier pages track each period: Netflix’s late-2025 viewing share, Netflix’s winter 2026 figures and Netflix’s spring 2026 Gauge share.
Why there is no full third-quarter Netflix figure yet
As of mid-October 2026, July 2026 is the latest Gauge month Nielsen has published. A single month is not a quarterly average. Until August and September are out, the figures on this page describe July 2026 only, not the third quarter as a whole.
Gauge months also don’t match calendar months. Nielsen reports on the broadcast calendar, with weekly intervals that start on Monday, which is why the July interval began on June 29 and ended on July 26. Some months cover four weeks and others cover five: the May 2026 interval, for example, ran five weeks, from April 27 to May 31.
There is also a method change coming. Nielsen says it is working on updates to The Gauge and the Media Distributor Gauge to better reflect the currency enhancements it made for advertising in February 2026. These updates are timed for the fall TV season, and Nielsen says it will provide back data to clients to help with the transition. If Netflix’s share shifts in later months, the new method could explain some of the change, so read those comparisons with care. The same caution applies to other services. Our page on Tubi’s share of TV viewing this summer covers the same July interval.
What Netflix’s viewing share means for advertisers
Viewing share shows where Americans spend TV time. It does not tell you whether you can buy ads on a platform or what those ads would cost.
Ad scale is a separate question from viewing. The Motley Fool reports that YouTube’s ad revenue rose 13% year over year to around $11.1 billion in the second quarter of 2026, and notes that is almost four times what Netflix expects its ads to bring in for all of 2026. Netflix’s 7.8% of TV time and its advertising business are two different measures. The same applies to legacy channels: broadcast TV’s spring 2026 viewing share shows a large audience, but it doesn’t tell a local business what it can buy or at what price.
For most businesses, the practical question is which channels fit the budget. Adwave creates ads from your website and runs them on TV, search, social, and the web from one daily budget. Adwave’s published pricing sets daily budgets from $30 to $10,000, with no subscription or contract. You can review your ads before adding a card. Campaign creative is included, and extra creation is priced separately, for example $6 per 15-second TV spot. TikTok starts from $91 a day and requires early-access selection. Our page on running one campaign across TV, search, and social explains how one budget covers several channels.
Which channels run depends on the campaign. The Adwave FAQ says your budget and audience size, together with your creative and campaign settings, decide what can run, alongside content eligibility. It also says Adwave does not guarantee sales or a return on spend.
