Soap Opera Ratings Race: Good News For Three Soaps, Bad News For One

The soap opera ratings race for the week ending May 6 saw overall gains or steady numbers for three soaps, but a loss in viewers for one.

ABC’s “General Hospital” fared the worst that week. It pulled in an average of 2,695,000 viewers, but was down 108,000 from the week before and 159,000 from the same time last year. It also lost viewers in two of the three key female demographics, dropping in the 18-49 and the 25-54 categories. However, it gained 6,000 viewers from the week before in the 18-34 female demo.

Fourth place “Days of Our Lives” gained viewers from the week before and year before overall, pulling in a total of 2,228,000. It also made slight gains from the week before in each female demographic. However, it lost viewers from the same week in 2015 in every category, including overall viewers and the female demo breakdowns.

“The Young and the Restless” retained its decades-long number one spot, pulling in 4,910,000 viewers overall and gains of 30,000 from the week before and 266,000 from the year before. In each demographic, Y&R added viewers from the week before, but lost viewers from the same time in 2015.

Sister soap “The Bold and the Beautiful” ranked number 2 once again gaining 3,000 overall viewers from the week before, but losing 6,000 from the previous year. In the various demographics, B&B gained viewers from the week before.