title: List of most watched United States television broadcasts of 1988
text: # List of most watched United States television broadcasts of 1988
  
  The following is a list of most watched United States television broadcasts of 1988 (single-network only) according to Nielsen Media Research.
  
  ## Most watched by week
  
  | Week of | Program | Network | Viewers (millions) |
  | - | - | - | - |
  | July 25 | The Deliberate Stranger (Part 2) | NBC | 26.1 |
  | July 25 | The Cosby Show | NBC | 26.1 |
  | July 25 | A Different World | NBC | 26.1 |
  | August 1 | Cheers | NBC | 23.1 |
  | August 8 | Cheers | NBC | 25.2 |
  | August 8 | A Different World | NBC | 25.2 |
  | August 15 | The Cosby Show | NBC | 22.1 |
  | August 22 | A Different World | NBC | 28.0 |
  | August 29 | A Different World | NBC | 28.7 |
  | September 5 | Miss America 1989 | NBC | 33.1 |
  | September 12 | A Different World | NBC | 26.9 |
  | September 19 | 1988 Summer Olympics (Sat) | NBC | 29.5 |
  | September 26 | 1988 Summer Olympics (Mon) | NBC | 27.1 |
  | October 3 | The Cosby Show | NBC | 37.6 |
  | October 10 | The Cosby Show | NBC | 36.5 |
  | October 17 | The Cosby Show | NBC | 40.5 |
  | October 24 | The Cosby Show | NBC | 41.1 |
  | October 31 | The Cosby Show | NBC | 39.8 |
  | November 7 | The Cosby Show | NBC | 49.3 |
  | November 14 | The Cosby Show | NBC | 41.7 |
  | November 21 | The Golden Girls | NBC | 38.2 |
  | November 28 | The Cosby Show | NBC | 41.1 |
  | December 5 | The Cosby Show | NBC | 38.0 |
  | December 12 | A Very Brady Christmas | CBS | 41.0 |
  | December 19 | Roseanne | ABC | 35.4 |
  | December 26 | The Karen Carpenter Story | CBS | 40.0 |
  