Netflix overtakes BBC as UK’s first choice for viewing, Ofcom report shows

Netflix’s Adolescence was one of the two most-watched programmes in the UK

UK media regulator Ofcom’s annual Media Nations report has found that viewers are now just as likely to turn to Netflix as the BBC when deciding what to watch.

According to the report, 26% of viewers say Netflix is their first choice when looking for something to watch, with 25% turning to the BBC first. ITV is the first choice for 15% of audiences.

Despite this stiff competition from global streamers, the traditional broadcasters’ VoD platforms are “holding up well,” Ofcom found, with viewing of BBC iPlayer, ITVX, Channel 4 Streaming and 5 streaming increasing by 9% year-on-year, making them the fastest-growing category of television service.

In contrast, the presence of subscription streaming services in UK homes has largely plateaued at around 70%, following rapid growth during the Covid-19 pandemic.

Growth in on-demand viewing on broadcaster-owned services has not been enough to offset the continued decline in audiences for their linear television channels, however. Last year, 70% of people in the UK watched content from traditional broadcasters – including live TV, recorded playback and on-demand services – for at least 15 minutes in an average week, falling steadily from 73% in 2024 and 78% in 2022. Declines are being seen across all age groups, including viewers aged 75 and over.

In 2025, the two most-watched programmes in the UK – K-Pop Demon Hunters and Adolescence – were on Netflix, but the BBC has claimed eight of the 10 most-watched programmes of 2026 so far. More than half of these are dramas, including The Night Manager (BBC) and Run Away (Netflix).

Major live and event television continues to attract huge audiences to the traditional broadcasters, Ofcom found, with Celebrity Traitors becoming the BBC’s biggest show of 2025 and England’s Fifa World Cup semi-final match against Argentina earlier this month providing one of the biggest TV moments of 2026 so far. The BBC reported a peak audience of 24 million viewers across all its platforms for that match.

Ofcom’s findings also showed that 85% of sports viewing in 2025 was watched live, highlighting the continued importance of live television for major national and sporting events.

The Night Manager season two performed well for the BBC

Meanwhile, the amount of time people spend watching YouTube on TV sets has more than doubled from an average daily viewing figure of nine minutes in 2022 to 19 minutes in 2025. Across all devices connected in the home, total YouTube viewing rose to 41 minutes per person per day, up from 33 minutes in 2022.

This comes as 10% of viewers turn to YouTube first when deciding what to watch. And while most of these viewers are in the younger demographic, older viewers are also increasingly turning to the platform, with the weekly reach of people aged 75 and over rising from 28% in 2022 to 33% in 2025.

Children aged four to 15 remain YouTube’s largest audience group, but viewing among 16-24s has declined for a second consecutive year.

Elsewhere, audio remains the UK’s highest-reaching media sector, with 93% of adults listening to some form of audio content every week and 87% listening to live radio every week.

More than a quarter of UK adults now listen to podcasts weekly. News and current affairs are the most popular podcast genres overall, particularly among people aged over 55, while entertainment leads among millennials. Comedy and discussion-based podcasts also continue to attract large audiences.

Kate Davies, group director for strategy and research at Ofcom, said: “As audiences increasingly benefit from an incredible choice of content, competition between traditional broadcasters, streaming services, video sharing platforms and other forms of digital media is fierce.

“But in face of these challenges, traditional broadcasters are showing resilience, with the power to bring millions of us together to watch or listen for big, national moments, as well as growing their digital offerings.

“To thrive and survive in the current media landscape, it’s more important than ever for companies to continue to understand changing audience habits and adapt their strategies to meet people where they are.”