Ratings don’t lie? ‘AGT’ got one thing right that ‘American Idol’ and ‘The Voice’ still can’t figure out

Judges Howie Mandel, Heidi Klum, Sofia Vergara and Simon Cowell on ‘AGT’ Season 18 (Instagram/@simoncowell)

Over the past 25 years, reality television has gained a lot of prominence, with a slew of new shows popping up every year. While there is an argument to be made that the future outshines the past, the original shows that set the precedent continue to rage on. The big three among these are ‘The Voice’, ‘American Idol’, and ‘America’s Got Talent’. While ‘The Voice’ and ‘Idol’ were simply meant to be singing shows, ‘AGT’ changed the whole game back when it first premiered. There was nothing like ‘AGT’, breaking all the rules, and well, making some.

There was no set rule for what talent you could present; if the judges and the audience liked it, it went, which is what made it popular. ‘Idol’ can be considered a veteran amongst the three, as it premiered in 2002, followed by Simon Cowell’s brainchild, which premiered in 2006. Among all this chaos, ‘The Voice’ found its voice, literally, in 2011 as it came up with the concept of blind auditions. It was clear that to make it as a reality TV show, you either needed to have a killer gimmick or be so old of a show that you already had a dedicated fanbase.

However, as time has passed, the fanfare for ‘Idol’ and ‘The Voice’ has reduced to quite an extent. While a constant tussle continues between the viewership ratings of ‘The Voice’ and ‘Idol’, the latter usually surpasses ‘The Voice’ when it comes to viewership ratings, as reported by Idol Chatter. Enter ‘AGT’ with a concept that inculcates singing with literally everything else; the show has limitless opportunities. That said, ‘AGT’ has the unique concept of the red buzzer, which allows the judges to stop the performance if it’s not up to the mark, as reported by Collider.

This helps keep the pace of the show fast-paced and doesn’t waste the viewer’s time, and makes for good television, where there might be instances where one judge presses the red buzzer while the others don’t. There’s a lot that can be done with such a concept. That is, however, not the case with the singing shows, as viewers are forced to slog through performances no matter how boring they are. While online forums often argue about how much power Simon Cowell holds, certain boons and curses come with such power.

Thankfully, the power that Cowell holds is also shared by the other judges, as they have free rein to press the red buzzer if they’re not satisfied with the performance. Each judge also gets to press the Golden Buzzer twice in a season. The Golden Buzzer is yet another interesting addition to the show, which explores the opposite spectrum of the red buzzer. So you have a button that can be pressed for absolutely horrendous performances, and you have a buzzer that can be pressed for the best performances and holds the power to change lives.

As of April 2025, ‘AGT’ continues to outperform both ‘American Idol’ and ‘The Voice’ in total viewership. The 19th season of ‘AGT’ averaged approximately 4.78 million viewers per episode, according to Showbiz. In contrast, ‘American Idol’ experienced an 18% decline in its key 18–49 demographic and a 2.73% drop in total viewership during its season debut. Meanwhile, ‘The Voice’ has maintained steady ratings, with a notable peak of 46.8 million viewers following its Super Bowl lead-in. Despite this, AGT’s consistent performance underscores its broad appeal and super-effective format.