Lost instantly became a hit show throughout the world, attracting an average of 19 million viewers per episode in the United States during its debut season. Similarly in the UK, the pilot achieved the best ever ratings for a US import for its broadcaster, Channel 4, when it first aired in 2005. A survey conducted by "Informa Telecoms and Media" in 2006 found Lost to be the second most watched show worldwide, beaten only by CSI: Miami. BBC News
Judging by number of viewers at time of first airing, the most-watched individual episode of the show is the Season 2 premiere, Man of Science, Man of Faith. The least-watched episode is the Season 5 episode Dead is Dead.
United States[]
Television ratings in the United States are collected by Nielsen Media Research. Nielsen results are reported in two measurements: ratings points and share. There are an estimated 114.5 million television households in the United States as of September 1st 2008. A single national ratings point represents one percent of that total number, or 1,145,000 households for the 2006-07 season. Share is the percentage of television sets in use tuned to the program. The total number of viewers is then derived from those two numbers.
Episode ratings[]
All episode ratings are provided from the weekly ABC ratings press release, which is released the week following the original airing. Only original airings are counted. Figures do not include timeshift recordings watched at a later date such as DVR and TiVo.
| Ep # | Ep name | Airdate | Viewers (millions) | Rating | Ranking for week | References |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | "Pilot, Part 1" | Sept 22 2004 | 18.65 | 6.7 | 9 | 1 |
| 2 | "Pilot, Part 2" | Sept 29 2004 | 17.00 | 6.1 | 7 | 2 |
| 3 | "Tabula Rasa" | Oct 06 2004 | 16.54 | 6.0 | 9 | 3 |
| 4 | "Walkabout" | Oct 13 2004 | 18.16 | 6.5 | 6 | 4 |
| 5 | "White Rabbit" | Oct 20 2004 | 16.82 | 6.1 | 11 | 5 |
| 6 | "House of the Rising Sun" | Oct 27 2004 | 16.83 | 6.1 | 11 | 6 |
| 7 | "The Moth" | Nov 03 2004 | 18.73 | 6.7 | 6 | 7 |
| 8 | "Confidence Man" | Nov 10 2004 | 18.44 | 6.6 | 8 | 8 |
| 9 | "Solitary" | Nov 17 2004 | 17.64 | 6.3 | 9 | 9 |
| 10 | "Raised by Another" | Dec 01 2004 | 17.15 | 6.2 | 10 | 10 |
| 11 | "All the Best Cowboys Have Daddy Issues" | Dec 08 2004 | 18.88 | 6.8 | 6 | 11 |
| 12 | "Whatever the Case May Be" | Jan 05 2005 | 21.59 | 7.8 | 6 | 12 |
| 13 | "Hearts and Minds" | Jan 12 2005 | 20.81 | 7.5 | 6 | 13 |
| 14 | "Special" | Jan 19 2005 | 19.69 | 7.1 | 7 | 14 |
| 15 | "Homecoming" | Feb 09 2005 | 19.48 | 7.0 | 6 | 15 |
| 16 | "Outlaws" | Feb 16 2005 | 17.87 | 6.4 | 10 | 16 |
| 17 | "...In Translation" | Feb 23 2005 | 19.49 | 7.0 | 9 | 17 |
| 18 | "Numbers" | Mar 02 2005 | 18.85 | 6.8 | 7 | 18 |
| 19 | "Deus Ex Machina" | Mar 30 2005 | 17.75 | 6.4 | 8 | 19 |
| 20 | "Do No Harm" | Apr 06 2005 | 17.12 | 6.2 | 8 | 20 |
| "Lost: The Journey" | Apr 27 2005 | 13.75 | 4.9 | 18 | 21 | |
| 21 | "The Greater Good" | May 04 2005 | 17.20 | 6.2 | 11 | 22 |
| 22 | "Born to Run" | May 11 2005 | 17.10 | 6.2 | 14 | 23 |
| 23 | "Exodus, Part 1" | May 18 2005 | 18.62 | 6.7 | 12 | 24 |
| 24/25 | "Exodus, Part 2" | May 25 2005 | 20.71 | 7.5 | 4 | 25 |
| Ep # | Ep name | Airdate | Viewers (millions) | Rating | Ranking for week | References |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| "Destination Lost" | Sept 21 2005 | 15.27 | 5.4 | 14 | 26 | |
| 1 | "Man of Science, Man of Faith" | Sept 21 2005 | 23.47 | 8.4 | 3 | 27 |
| 2 | "Adrift" | Sept 28 2005 | 23.17 | 8.3 | 3 | 28 |
| 3 | "Orientation" | Oct 05 2005 | 22.38 | 8.0 | 3 | 29 |
| 4 | "Everybody Hates Hugo" | Oct 12 2005 | 21.66 | 7.7 | 3 | 30 |
| 5 | "...And Found" | Oct 19 2005 | 21.38 | 7.6 | 3 | 31 |
| 6 | "Abandoned" | Nov 09 2005 | 20.01 | 7.1 | 5 | 32 |
| 7 | "The Other 48 Days" | Nov 16 2005 | 21.87 | 7.8 | 3 | 33 |
| 8 | "Collision" | Nov 23 2005 | 19.29 | 6.9 | 8 | 34 |
| 9 | "What Kate Did" | Nov 30 2005 | 21.54 | 7.7 | 4 | 35 |
| "Lost: Revelation" | Jan 11 2006 | 13.52 | 4.8 | 22 | 36 | |
| 10 | "The 23rd Psalm" | Jan 11 2006 | 20.56 | 7.3 | 3 | 37 |
| 11 | "The Hunting Party" | Jan 18 2006 | 19.13 | 6.8 | 8 | 38 |
| 12 | "Fire + Water" | Jan 25 2006 | 19.05 | 6.8 | 7 | 39 |
| 13 | "The Long Con" | Feb 08 2006 | 18.74 | 6.7 | 13 | 40 |
| 14 | "One of Them" | Feb 15 2006 | 18.20 | 6.5 | 14 | 41 |
| 15 | "Maternity Leave" | Mar 01 2006 | 16.43 | 5.9 | 10 | 42 |
| 16 | "The Whole Truth" | Mar 22 2006 | 15.30 | 5.5 | 17 | 43 |
| 17 | "Lockdown" | Mar 29 2006 | 16.21 | 5.8 | 11 | 44 |
| 18 | "Dave" | Apr 05 2006 | 16.38 | 5.8 | 7 | 45 |
| 19 | "S.O.S." | Apr 12 2006 | 15.68 | 5.6 | 8 | 46 |
| "Lost: Reckoning" | Apr 26 2006 | 11.95 | 4.3 | 23 | 47 | |
| 20 | "Two for the Road" | May 03 2006 | 15.56 | 5.5 | 11 | 48 |
| 21 | "?" | May 10 2006 | 16.35 | 5.8 | 11 | 49 |
| 22 | "Three Minutes" | May 17 2006 | 14.67 | 5.2 | 13 | 50 |
| 23/24 | "Live Together, Die Alone" | May 24 2006 | 17.84 | 6.4 | 5 | 51 |
| Ep # | Ep name | Airdate | Viewers (millions) | Rating | Ranking for week | References |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| "Lost: A Tale of Survival" | Sept 27 2006 | 9.03 | 4.0 | 45 | 52 | |
| 1 | "A Tale of Two Cities" | Oct 04 2006 | 18.82 | 6.6 | 4 | 53 |
| 2 | "The Glass Ballerina" | Oct 11 2006 | 16.89 | 6.0 | 9 | 54 |
| 3 | "Further Instructions" | Oct 18 2006 | 16.31 | 5.8 | 10 | 55 |
| 4 | "Every Man for Himself" | Oct 25 2006 | 17.09 | 6.0 | 7 | 56 |
| 5 | "The Cost of Living" | Nov 01 2006 | 16.07 | 5.7 | 10 | 57 |
| 6 | "I Do" | Nov 08 2006 | 17.15 | 6.0 | 9 | 58 |
| "Lost Survivor Guide" | Feb 07 2007 | 8.84 | 3.1 | 45 | 59 | |
| 7 | "Not in Portland" | Feb 07 2007 | 14.49 | 5.1 | 19 | 60 |
| 8 | "Flashes Before Your Eyes" | Feb 14 2007 | 12.84 | 4.5 | 23 | 61 |
| 9 | "Stranger in a Strange Land" | Feb 21 2007 | 12.95 | 4.6 | 21 | 62 |
| 10 | "Tricia Tanaka Is Dead" | Feb 28 2007 | 12.78 | 4.5 | 24 | 63 |
| 11 | "Enter 77" | Mar 07 2007 | 12.45 | 4.4 | 19 | 64 |
| 12 | "Par Avion" | Mar 14 2007 | 12.48 | 4.4 | 13 | 65 |
| 13 | "The Man from Tallahassee" | Mar 21 2007 | 12.22 | 4.3 | 16 | 66 |
| 14 | "Exposé" | Mar 28 2007 | 11.52 | 4.1 | 18 | 67 |
| 15 | "Left Behind" | Apr 04 2007 | 11.66 | 4.1 | 17 | 68 |
| 16 | "One of Us" | Apr 11 2007 | 12.09 | 4.3 | 20 | 69 |
| 17 | "Catch-22" | Apr 18 2007 | 12.08 | 4.3 | 14 | 70 |
| 18 | "D.O.C." | Apr 25 2007 | 11.86 | 4.2 | 18 | 71 |
| 19 | "The Brig" | May 02 2007 | 12.33 | 4.3 | 19 | 72 |
| 20 | "The Man Behind the Curtain" | May 09 2007 | 12.11 | 4.3 | 18 | 73 |
| 21 | "Greatest Hits" | May 16 2007 | 12.32 | 4.3 | 18 | 74 |
| "Lost: The Answers" | May 17 2007 | 9.12 | 3.2 | 34 | 75 | |
| 22/23 | "Through the Looking Glass" | May 23 2007 | 13.86 | 4.9 | 6 | 76 |
| Ep # | Ep name | Airdate | Viewers (millions) | Rating | Ranking for week | References |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| "Lost: Past, Present and Future" | Jan 31 2008 | 13.16 | 4.6 | 9 | 77 | |
| 1 | "The Beginning of the End" | Jan 31 2008 | 16.14 | 5.6 | 8 | 78 |
| 2 | "Confirmed Dead" | Feb 07 2008 | 15.29 | 5.3 | 7 | 79 |
| 3 | "The Economist" | Feb 14 2008 | 13.76 | 4.8 | 4 | 80 |
| 4 | "Eggtown" | Feb 21 2008 | 13.70 | 4.8 | 4 | 81 |
| 5 | "The Constant" | Feb 28 2008 | 12.90 | 5.4 | 4 | 82 |
| 6 | "The Other Woman" | Mar 06 2008 | 13.01 | 4.5 | 7 | 83 |
| 7 | "Ji Yeon" | Mar 13 2008 | 12.08 | 4.2 | 4 | 84 |
| 8 | "Meet Kevin Johnson" | Mar 20 2008 | 11.46 | 4.0 | 9 | 85 |
| 9 | "The Shape of Things to Come" | Apr 24 2008 | 12.08 | 4.2 | 14 | 86 |
| 10 | "Something Nice Back Home" | May 01 2008 | 10.73 | 3.7 | 20 | 87 |
| 11 | "Cabin Fever" | May 08 2008 | 10.78 | 3.8 | 19 | 88 |
| 12 | "There's No Place Like Home, Part 1" | May 15 2008 | 10.96 | 3.8 | 19 | 89 |
| 13/14 | "There's No Place Like Home, Part 2" | May 29 2008 | 12.30 | 4.3 | 1 | 90 |
| Ep # | Ep name | Airdate | Viewers (millions) | Rating | Ranking for week | References |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| "Lost: Destiny Calls" | Jan 21 2009 | 8.51 | 2.9 | 37 | 91 | |
| 1 | "Because You Left" | Jan 21 2009 | 11.35 | 3.9 | 20 | 92 |
| 2 | "The Lie" | Jan 21 2009 | 11.35 | 3.9 | 20 | 93 |
| 3 | "Jughead" | Jan 28 2009 | 11.23 | 3.9 | 13 | 94 |
| 4 | "The Little Prince" | Feb 4 2009 | 11.01 | 3.8 | 20 | 95 |
| 5 | "This Place Is Death" | Feb 11 2009 | 9.82 | 3.4 | 25 | 96 |
| 6 | "316" | Feb 18 2009 | 11.41 | 3.9 | 17 | 97 |
| 7 | "The Life and Death of Jeremy Bentham" | Feb 25 2009 | 10.05 | 3.5 | 20 | 98 |
| 8 | "LaFleur" | Mar 4 2009 | 10.65 | 3.7 | 23 | 99 |
| 9 | "Namaste" | Mar 18 2009 | 9.40 | 3.2 | 31 | 100 |
| 10 | "He's Our You" | Mar 25 2009 | 9.03 | 3.1 | 23 | 101 |
| 11 | "Whatever Happened, Happened" | Apr 1 2009 | 9.57 | 3.3 | 26 | 102 |
| 12 | "Dead Is Dead" | Apr 8 2009 | 8.56 | 3.0 | 31 | 103 |
| 13 | "Some Like It Hoth" | Apr 15 2009 | 9.23 | 4.0 | 28 | 104 |
| "Lost: The Story of the Oceanic 6" | Apr 22 2009 | 6.74 | 2.9 | 42 | 105 | |
| 14 | "The Variable" | Apr 29 2009 | 9.03 | 4.1 | 32 | 106 |
| 15 | "Follow the Leader" | May 6 2009 | 8.70 | 4.0 | 34 | 107 |
| "Lost: A Journey in Time" | May 13 2009 | 6.33 | 2.2 | 45 | 108 | |
| 16/17 | "The Incident" | May 13 2009 | 9.43 | 3.3 | 27 | 109 |
| Ep # | Ep name | Airdate | Viewers (millions) | Rating | Ranking for week | References |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| "Lost: Final Chapter" | Feb 2 2010 | 10.00 | 4.1 | 22 | 110 | |
| 1/2 | "LA X" | Feb 2 2010 | 12.10 | 5.5 | 19 | 111 |
| 3 | "What Kate Does" | Feb 9 2010 | 11.10 | 5.0 | 20 | 112 |
| 4 | "The Substitute" | Feb 16 2010 | 9.82 | 4.5 | 19 | 113 |
| 5 | "Lighthouse" | Feb 23 2010 | 10.19 | 4.7 | 21 | 114 |
| 6 | "Sundown" | Mar 2 2010 | 9.33 | 4.1 | 23 | 115 |
| 7 | "Dr. Linus" | Mar 9 2010 | 9.49 | 4.2 | 24 | 116 |
| 8 | "Recon" | Mar 16 2010 | 8.87 | 3.9 | 21 | 117 |
| 9 | "Ab Aeterno" | Mar 23 2010 | 9.30 | 4.0 | 21 | 118 |
| 10 | "The Package" | Mar 30 2010 | 10.13 | 4.1 | 15 | 119 |
| 11 | "Happily Ever After" | Apr 6 2010 | 9.55 | 3.9 | 21 | 120 |
| 12 | "Everybody Loves Hugo" | Apr 13 2010 | 9.58 | 3.8 | 22 | 121 |
| 13 | "The Last Recruit" | Apr 20 2010 | 9.53 | 3.7 | 20 | 122 |
| 14 | "The Candidate" | May 4 2010 | 9.59 | 4.0 | 25 | 123 |
| 15 | "Across the Sea" | May 11 2010 | 10.32 | 4.1 | 24 | 124 |
| 16 | "What They Died For" | May 18 2010 | 10.47 | 4.3 | 19 | 125 |
| "Lost: The Final Journey" | May 23 2010 | 10.99 | 4.6 | 23 | 126 | |
| 17/18 | "The End" | May 23 2010 | 15.31 | 6.4 | 10 | 127 |
Series Finale[]
The series finale of Lost attracted 13.5 million viewers. But the final half-hour of the show saw over 16 million (6.4/19 rating/share) viewers. According to ABC 20.5 million caught at least six minutes of the finale.
But the finale of Lost drew a 6.7 adults 18-49 Live+7 Day rating, which includes 7 days of DVR viewing. It means that "The End" attracted over 17 million viewers.
30-sec commercial during the finale cost nearly $1million.
DVR numbers[]
During Season 4, Lost on average got between a 30 and 35% bump in the ratings after including the time shift numbers. It is amongst the highest recorded programs that are watched at a later date. A B C
Season 5 was one of the most recorded and played back shows on TV, on average in originals "Lost" saw its overall audience grow by 1.8 million viewers and jump 23% in Adults 18-49 (+1.0 rating point) from its first-reported Live + Same Day and finalized Live + 7 Day numbers. D
The final Season 6 was again of the most recorded and played back shows on TV. Lost ranked at #4. The audience grown by 2.18 million viewers and jump 26% in Adults 18-49 (+ 1.1 rating point - rank at #3) from its first-reported Live + Same Day and finalized Live + 7 Day numbers. E
Online viewing[]
In May 2008 and in May 2009, Lost was the the television show with the most online views of any network, with 36.4 million views at ABC.com according to Nielsen VideoCensus, a statistic that did not consider views at the Hulu, which in 2009 became one of the most trafficked sources for viewing full-length television episodes; this was the fifth straight month where Lost was the most-watched television show online. Variety. In 2010 Lost was again at number one on list 'show with the most online views of any network'.
Australia[]
Season 1 premiere: Around 2.22 million (most watched program that week)
Season 1 average: Around 1.93 million (ranked 3rd in "Top Rating Regular Programmes")
Season 1 finale: Around 2.08 million (most watched program that week)
Season 2 average: Around 1.48 million
Season 4[]
Note: "Something Nice Back Home", "Cabin Fever" and "There's No Place Like Home, Part 1" aired at 10:30 p.m. while the other episodes aired at 9:30 p.m.
| Episode 01 | Episode 02 | Episode 03 | Episode 04 | Episode 05 | Episode 06 | Episode 07 | Episode 08 | Episode 09 | Episode 10 | Episode 11 | Episode 12 | Episode 13 | |
| "The Beginning of the End" | "Confirmed Dead" | "The Economist" | "Eggtown" | "The Constant" | "The Other Woman" | "Ji Yeon" | "Meet Kevin Johnson" | "The Shape of Things to Come" | "Something Nice Back Home" | "Cabin Fever" | "There's No Place Like Home, Part 1" | "There's No Place Like Home, Part 2" | |
| Viewers | 912,000 | 869,000 | 867,000 | 780,000 | 770,000 | 691,000 | 689,000 | 618,000 | 683,000 | 505,000 | 392,000 | 464,000 | 603,000 |
| Ranking for night | 15 | 15 | 15 | 19 | 20 | 17 | 19 | 24 | 20 | 28 | 33 | 30 | 18 |
| Ranking for week | Unknown | 71 | 65 | 75 | 76 | 92 | >100 | >100 | 97 | >100 | >100 | >100 | 101 |
Season 5[]
Episodes one through ten were aired at 10:30pm. Lost was then bumped to the 11:00pm time slot due to decreasing ratings
| Episode 01 | Episode 02 | Episode 03 | Episode 04 | Episode 05 | Episode 06 | Episode 07 | Episode 08 | Episode 09 | Episode 10 | Episode 11 | Episode 12 | Episode 13 | Episode 14 | Episode 15 | Episode 16 | |
| "Because You Left" | "The Lie" | "Jughead" | "The Little Prince" | "This Place Is Death" | "316" | "The Life and Death of Jeremy Bentham" | "LaFleur" | "Namaste" | "He's Our You" | "Whatever Happened, Happened" | "Dead Is Dead" | "Some Like It Hoth" | "The Variable" | "Follow the Leader" | "The Incident, Part 1" | |
| Viewers | 405,000 | 516,000 | 465,000 | 380,000 | 415,000 | 336,000 | 359,000 | 339,000 | 389,000 | 402,000 | 252,000 | 279,000 | 235,000 | 228,000 | ||
| Ranking for night | 33 | 26 | 29 | 32 | ||||||||||||
| Ranking for week | >100 | >100 |
Season 6[]
This table uses the statistics from the original airings, not the encore on Seven and 7HD, except for "Ab Aeterno" and "The Last Recruit" which rated higher during the encore.
| Episode 01 | Episode 02 | Episode 03 | Episode 04 | Episode 05 | Episode 06 | Episode 07 | Episode 08 | Episode 09 | Episode 10 | Episode 11 | Episode 12 | Episode 13 | Episode 14 | Episode 15 | Episode 16 | Episode 17 | |
| "LA X, Part 1" | "LA X, Part 2" | "What Kate Does" | "The Substitute" | "Lighthouse" | "Sundown" | "Dr. Linus" | "Recon" | "Ab Aeterno" | "The Package" | "Happily Ever After" | "Everybody Loves Hugo" | "The Last Recruit" | "The Candidate" | "Across the Sea" | "What They Died For" | "The End" | |
| Viewers | 433,000 | 433,000 | 359,000 | 374,000 | 370,000 | 317,000 | 366,000 | 381,000 | 383,000 | 356,000 | 304,000 | 278,000 | 274,000 | 372,000 | 388,000 | 365,000 | 1,150,000 |
| Ranking for night | 39 | 36 | 38 | 39 | 41 | 41 | 37 | 38 | 39 | 23 | |||||||
| Ranking for week |
The finale received 315% more viewers than the preceding episode, and 324% more than the rest of season's average. It was the highest rating episode since Season 3.
United Kingdom[]
Lost premiered in the United Kingdom on August 10th, 2005 on terrestrial broadcaster Channel 4. Despite strong ratings for the series, satellite broadcaster Sky1 won a bidding war for the rights to broadcast Lost beginning with the season 3 premiere, "A Tale of Two Cities". This resulted in a significant decrease in ratings due to Sky1 being a digital, subscription channel.
Season 1 - Channel 4
- Premiere: Around 6.75 Million - average of the two episodes shown
- Finale: Around 5.345 Million - average of the two final episodes shown
Season 2 - Channel 4
- Premiere: Around 4.51 Million - average of the two episodes shown
- Finale: Around 3.365 Million - average of the two final episodes shown
Season 3 - Sky1
- Premiere: Around 1.5 million viewers (approx. 1,516,9000) -average of the two episodes shown.
- After hiatus premiere: Around 1.5 million (approx. 1,550,000)
- Finale: Around 1.2 million (approx. 1,214,000)
- Note: In between the the after hiatus premiere and the finale, Virgin Media cut Sky One from its service, resulting in the further loss of viewers.
Season 4 - Sky1
- TBA
All United Kingdom rating figures come from BARB.
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