Number of TV households in the U.S. 2023

According to estimates, there are 123.8 million TV homes in the United States for the 2022-2023 TV season. Whilst the number of TV households continues to grow, pay TV is becoming less popular – the pay TV penetration rate in the U.S. was pegged at 66 percent in 2022, marking a drop of over 10 percentage points in just five years.

The changing TV landscape

The trend of consumers (especially younger generations) cutting the cord and instead moving online to streaming services has meant that many pay TV providers have struggled to keep afloat. In spite of this, television statistics show that watching terrestrial TV is still a popular media activity among U.S. consumers. Television has been a popular pastime for so long that it seems impossible the medium could ever die out – but its traditional form is certainly changing. The advent of 3D and smart TV technology, as well as connected TV devices, mean that the ways in which we watch television are changing all the time.

User demographics

A key factor when considering television consumption in the United States is how a consumer’s age affects their viewing habits and preferences. As of 2021, the average daily time spent watching TV among adults aged 75 years and older amounted to nearly five hours. 20 to 24-year-olds spent just around two hours per day consuming TV content. Moreover, the share of cable TV subscribers was higher among older adults, with half of consumers aged 65 years and older subscribing to a cable TV service, compared to 39 percent of 18 to 34-year-olds as of February 2022.