TV Ratings: ‘Bachelor’ finale rises to lead ABC to Monday wins

Fast National ratings for Monday, March 11, 2013.

America chose to watch “The Bachelor” star Sean Lowe make his choice, as the reality series was up from its last finale and led ABC to easy Monday wins in all measures.

The “Bachelor” finale gave ABC its highest rated Monday among adults 18-49 since September 2011. 

Among other Monday notables, The CW’s “The Carrie Diaries” dipped a little, either due to “The Bachelor” or due to the Daylight Savings Time Effect, while FOX’s “The Following” was also down, though not by much considering that “Bones” aired a repeat.

For the night, ABC averaged a 3.5 rating among adults 18-49, easily winning the key demographic. FOX was second with a 1.9 key demo rating, followed by NBC’s 1.7 rating and the 1.6 key demo rating. The CW did a 0.3 key demo rating for Monday night.

Overall, ABC averaged an estimated 10.33 million viewers and a 6.7 rating/10 share for Monday night, well in front of the 6.42 million viewers and 4.0/6 for FOX. CBS was a close third, averaging 6.37 million viewers and a 4.2/7, with NBC’s 3.1/5 and 4.82 in fourth. The CW averaged 900,000 viewers and a 0.6/1.

8 p.m. – The start of the “The Bachelor” finale averaged 9.51 million viewers and a 3.0 rating among adults 18-49 to give ABC the 8 p.m. hour.  CBS was second with a “How I Met Your Mother” repeat (5.26 million and a 1.5 key demo) and a new “Rules of Engagement” (6.985 million and a 2.0 key demo). NBC’s “The Biggest Loser” dropped from last week with 5.21 million viewers and a 1.7 key demo rating, but still topped the 4.85 million viewers and 1.2 key demo rating for FOX’s “Bones” repeat. The CW’s “The Carrie Diaries” averaged 1.12 million viewers and a 0.4 key demo rating.

9 p.m. – In its second hour, “The Bachelor” rose to 10.47 million viewers and a 3.6 rating among adults 18-49. FOX moved up to second with nearly 8 million viewers and a 2.6 key demo rating for “The Following.” Repeats of “2 Broke Girls” and “Mike & Molly” averaged 6.23 million viewers and a 1.6 key demo rating, compared to the 5.92 million viewers and 2.1 key demo rating for “The Biggest Loser” on NBC. The CW’s “90210” averaged 683,000 viewers and a 0.2 key demo rating.

10 p.m. – The conclusion of “The Bachelor” and the “After the Final Rose” special averaged 11.01 million viewers and a 3.8 rating among adults 18-49 for ABC in the 10 p.m. hour. CBS’ repeat of “Hawaii Five-0” averaged 6.76 million viewers and a 1.4 key demo rating, beating the 3.34 million viewers and 1.2 key demo rating for NBC’s new “Deception.”