How to read this list
Rank
Position in the Top 52, sorted by audience size from largest to smallest. Updated weekly.
Audience size
Estimated number of unique people in United States who actively engage with this audience, derived from anonymized search-behavior signals.
Country share
Share of the global audience that is active in United States. A higher value means the audience is more locally concentrated here.
Avg age
Average age in years across the people who engage with this audience in United States, derived from anonymized search-behavior signals. A dash means demographic data is not yet available.
Female share
Share of women among the people who engage with this audience in United States. 50% is gender-balanced; values above mean female-skewed, below mean male-skewed.
Ranking
| Rank | Audience | Audience size | Country share | Avg age | Female share | Subtype |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | FFRONTLINE | 6.6M | 83.2% | 43.0 | 49.4% | Documentary |
| 2 | YYves Saint Laurent (film) | 1.2M | 8.6% | 31.6 | 56.5% | Documentary |
| 3 | IInside Edition | 1.2M | 87.7% | 39.4 | 63.6% | Documentary |
| 4 | VVice (TV series) | 1M | 34.4% | 33.4 | 47.2% | Documentary |
| 5 | PPOV (TV series) | 856k | 9.1% | 43.5 | 59.1% | Documentary |
| 6 | TThe Original Kings of Comedy | 720k | 78.0% | 39.8 | 45.8% | Documentary |
| 7 | PPumping Iron | 626k | 53.6% | 45.0 | 43.5% | Documentary |
| 8 | FFinding Your Roots | 582k | 71.8% | 46.8 | 58.9% | Documentary |
| 9 | OOddities (TV series) | 519k | 74.7% | 33.9 | 65.3% | Documentary |
| 10 | SSilent Voices (2005 film) | 470k | 38.2% | 39.0 | 80.7% | Documentary |
| 11 | LLand and Sea | 366k | 75.6% | 48.6 | 63.8% | Documentary |
| 12 | RRoadkill (Internet show) | 341k | 57.9% | 43.2 | 6.7% | Documentary |
| 13 | HHard Knocks | 327k | 80.7% | 35.8 | 11.1% | Documentary |
| 14 | AAmerican Experience | 312k | 88.9% | 50.2 | 43.1% | Documentary |
| 15 | TThe Last Waltz | 277k | 55.3% | 50.1 | 26.5% | Documentary |
| 16 | TThe Thin Blue Line (1988 film) | 261k | 50.3% | 42.2 | 34.1% | Documentary |
| 17 | WWalking with Dinosaurs | 256k | 28.4% | 33.6 | 44.0% | Documentary |
| 18 | BBowling for Columbine | 232k | 43.2% | 30.0 | 47.8% | Documentary |
| 19 | PPina (film) | 198k | 22.8% | 34.9 | 66.8% | Documentary |
| 20 | RRestrepo (film) | 174k | 13.0% | 35.8 | 16.4% | Documentary |
| 21 | FFahrenheit 9/11 | 156k | 63.4% | 48.7 | 52.1% | Documentary |
| 22 | EEarthling | 146k | 32.1% | 37.0 | 57.5% | Documentary |
| 23 | MMan on Wire | 141k | 40.1% | 27.7 | 46.6% | Documentary |
| 24 | MMarch of the Penguins | 138k | 47.4% | 39.7 | 48.2% | Documentary |
| 25 | BBlue Planet | 130k | 28.0% | 34.1 | 56.2% | Documentary |
Want the full picture for any of these audiences?
Open any profile to see psychographics, top regions, peer affinities and demographic splits — all derived from the same anonymized signals.
Frequently asked questions
How is this list of the most popular documentaries compiled?
Rascasse aggregates anonymized search-behavior signals across United States and ranks each documentary by its estimated audience size. Only entries with at least 5 measured entities are listed.
How often is the list updated?
The ranking is refreshed weekly from the latest search-behavior data and re-published as a static page.
What is the largest documentary in United States?
FRONTLINE currently leads with an estimated audience of 6.6M people in United States.