NBC's "The Voice" beat Fox's "The X Factor" in head-to-head competition Wednesday as NBC won the night overall, according to preliminary numbers. "Modern Family" was the top-rated show and led ABC to No. 2 in the ratings.
NBC had a 3.2 rating/9 share in the advertiser-coveted 18-49 demographic and came in second in total viewers with 9.3 million. "The Voice," airing from 8-10 p.m., scored a 3.7/10 and 10.4 million total viewers compared to a 2.6/7 and 7 million for "X Factor." The head-to-head matchup did seem to dent "The Voice": It was down 20 percent in the ratings from last Tuesday's episode, while "X Factor" barely slipped from last Wednesday. But "The Voice" also scored NBC's highest in-season rating in the time period since January 2008. Thanks in part to the "Voice" lead-in, "Chicago Fire" hit a series high of 2.3/6 in the demo, and had 7.1 million viewers.
ABC, CBS and Fox were close in the ratings, but ABC was closest to NBC with a 2.8/7 and 8 million total viewers. At 8, "The Middle" had a 2.8/8 and 9.1 million. At 8:30, "The Neighbors" had a 2.1/6 and 7 million. "Modern Family," the highest-rated show of the night, had a 4.7/12 and 12.3 million. "Suburgatory" followed with a 2.9/7 and 7.6 million. "Nashville" at 10 had a 2.0/5 and 6 million.
CBS had a 2.7/7 and 10.9 million total viewers. It also led in total viewers for the night, followed by NBC, ABC, and then Fox. At 8, "Survivor" had a 2.7/7 and 10.3 million total viewers. "Criminal Minds" at 9 had a 3.0/8 and 12 million, and "CSI" at 10 had a 2.3/6 and 10.3 million.
Fox was in fourth, with "X Factor" occupying its entire primetime slate.
The CW's "Arrow," meanwhile, hit a 1.3/4 and 3.7 million total viewers. It tied its premiere episode for its highest demo rating of the season, and was the most-watched episode since the premiere.
