Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade Hits All-Time Viewership Record: Here's How Many People Watched

For many Americans, Thanksgiving Day traditions include family, food and football. The tradition of family sometimes includes watching the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade prior to the start of the annual National Football League games.

The 2023 parade set new viewership records.

What Happened: Some 28.5 million viewers tuned into NBC for the 2023 Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade That’s an increase of 6% from last year's parade.  

The viewership set a record, according to The Hollywood Reporter.

The 2023 parade, which was the 97^th in the event's history, is also the most-watched entertainment program of 2023 on linear television.

Comcast Corporation CMCSA aired the annual Thanksgiving Day Parade on NBC and also streamed the event on its Peacock streaming platform.

According to the report, the parade had a 7.2 rating in the 18-49 age demographic, which was up 6% year-over-year.

The Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade has been featured on television since 1948 with NBC televising the parade every year since 1953.

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Why It's Important: The strong viewership could help Comcast and the companies that were featured in the annual event with floats, balloons and performances. Key sponsor Macy’s Inc M could also see a jump in brand awareness and marketing from the increased viewership.

NBC aired "The National Dog Show" after the parade. That telecast had 11.9 million viewers on NBC and Peacock, which was up from last year.

NBC and Peacock were also the home of the Primetime Thanksgiving day broadcast of the NFL matchup of the San Francisco 49ers and Seattle Seahawks.

The game was watched by nearly 27 million people, ranking as the second most watched Primetime Thanksgiving Day game ever. The game was also the most-streamed Thanksgiving Night Game ever.

NBC has now passed the 25 million viewer mark for four of its 2023 NFL games, which is the most at this point in the NFL season since 2015.

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