Of the five networks, The CW has the fewest hours of primetime to fill but they’re not finding it any easier to find hits. Most of their returning shows are way down year-to-year and some of their new series are struggling. Which will be cancelled or renewed? Stay tuned!

CW shows this season (so far): The 100, America’s Next Top Model, Arrow, Backpackers, Beauty and the Beast, The Carrie Diaries, Famous in 12, Hart of Dixie, Masters of Illusion, Nikita, The Originals, Penn & Teller: Fool Us, Reign, Seed, Supernatural, The Tomorrow People, The Vampire Diaries, and Whose Line Is It Anyway?.

How does The CW decide what to cancel or renew? They look at a lot of different factors but the ratings play an important role. The higher the ratings, the better chance a show has of surviving. Here’s how the network’s shows are doing so far:

Check other networks’ rankings: ABC | CBS | FOX | NBC | ABC Family | TNT

Note: If you’re not seeing the updated charts, please try reloading the page. You can also see them here and here.

A couple of notes about these charts:
These figures are updated automatically as new ratings are released. The averages are based on the final national numbers (live plus same day viewing), unless marked with an asterisk (*). For technical reasons, I have to resort them manually so feel free to let me know if I missed something.

Keep in mind that the demo numbers are typically what’s most important to advertisers. Therefore, that’s how the networks measure success. Advertisers pay more for ad time on a show that has a higher demo rating. Because older viewers don’t count? No, it’s because younger viewers watch less traditional TV and are therefore supposedly harder to reach.

Demo numbers are typically reported using the 10ths decimal place (2.4, for example). In the averages, I’m using an extra decimal for easier ranking.

The networks take into account when shows air on Fridays or Saturday, nights when TV viewership is lower.

What do you think? Which shows are you rooting for? Which one isn’t as big a hit as you thought? Are you hoping any series will get cancelled to make room for something else?