With final numbers for the November ratings sweep now available, CBS and ABC are claiming the top two honours for the month.

Four ratings sweeps are conducted throughout the year, where figures from manually-completed diaries used in smaller television markets are compiled alongside automated data returns to provide a clearer picture of how shows are performing across the United States. With the sweeps being such a critical period in terms of bragging rights and, consequently, advertising revenue, the networks make every effort to attract viewers.

Among total viewer numbers, CBS took first place, averaging 13m viewers across the sweep. ABC placed second with 11.6m viewers, while NBC was a relatively close third with 10.5m. Fox took fourth place with 7.4m viewers and The CW was fifth with 3.6m. Those rankings were mirrored in the numbers for the adults 25-54 demographic.

In the adults 18-49 demographic, critical in terms of making a network attractive to advertisers, ABC led with an 11% share average. CBS and NBC were in a statistical tie for second place, each averaging a 10% share. Fox was in fourth place with an 8% share while The CW was in far fifth with a 4% share.

Among adults 18-34, ABC also led, averaging a 10% share. NBC however was a very close second, tying ABC in terms of share but lagging by 0.2 household rating points (equivalent in this demographic to 667,000 viewers). Fox took third place with a 9% share average while CBS placed fourth with an 8% average. The CW was fifth with a 5% share average.