Dancing With the Stars did not lose any of its ratings momentum in the offseason. If anything, it picked up steam.

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The ABC competition opened its 35th season Tuesday with a sizable jump in both viewers and the key ad-sales demographic of adults 18-49 over its 2025 premiere. DWTS drew 6.67 million viewers, based on preliminary Nielsen ratings, a 24 percent improvement on last year’s debut (5.38 million) and a little ahead of the show’s full-season average of 6.5 million viewers. It was the most watched season premiere for the series since season 29 in September 2020.

Dancing’s gains were even bigger among adults 18-49, where it scored a 1.48 rating — up 40 percent from last year’s premiere and higher than every episode last season except for the finale. The last time a DWTS season premiere scored a better 18-49 rating was in September 2017. One more superlative: Among women 18-34, the premiere’s 2.53 rating was the highest for a season opener since season 17 in 2013.

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All the numbers above could change a bit in the final ratings, which will include Nielsen’s big data component.

The big ratings for Dancing With the Stars came for a night that saw the eight male contestants perform with their professional partners. The episode was marred some by a glitch in the show’s voting system; viewers weren’t able to choose their favorites on the DWTS website and had to vote by text. The eight women celebrities will take the floor Wednesday for their first dances.

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