Donald Trump's inauguration ratings were the second-highest in 36 years, according to Nielson. 

  • Trump's inauguration ratings 2nd-highest in 36 years
  • Obama's 1st inauguration tops Trump's numbers
  • Last highest number from Ronald Reagan in 1981
    • Trump: 30.6 million viewers
    • Obama: 37.8 million viewers
    • Reagan: 41.8 million viewers

The swearing-in of the 45th president was seen by 30.6 million viewers across 12 networks. 

Nielson compiled a list of inauguration ratings from back to 1969. 

The only inauguration over the last three decades that tops Trump's number was Barack Obama's first inauguration in 2009. 

Obama's inauguration was seen by 37.8 million viewers. The last inauguration to get this high of a number was Ronald Reagan in 1981, who was seen by 41.8 million viewers. 

Trump could have actually been seen by more viewers than Obama and Reagan due to the increase of online streaming. Nielson ratings do not account for online viewing. 

CNN.com clocked 16.9 million live streams, tying with it's Election Day coverage for the site's top event. 

Trump's numbers are quite impressive considering his low approval rating and the number of protests worldwide, along with vows to not watch his inauguration. 

In terms of linear coverage, Fox News topped all networks, averaging 8.8 million viewers for the day and peaking with 11 million viewers from noon to 1 p.m., according to Nielson's report. 

This was the highest-rated inauguration coverage in the network's history. 

However, for broadcast, NBC was top ranked with 5.8 million viewers for the day. 

Here’s a chart from Nielsen of Inauguration Day coverage ratings over the years. The column on the far right, “Persons 2+,” represents Total Viewers in millions.