Scientific polling by major news organizations considered Hillary Clinton the winner of the debate, and by larger than average margins. CNN/ORC's poll had 62% of viewers respond that Clinton won the debate while 27% thought Donald Trump had won, while Gallup's poll had 60% of viewers respond that Clinton had won while 31% responded that Trump won.
The most watched debate in US television history, with an audience of 84 million people over the 13 networks that carried it live, and an additional 23 million watching it on over live streaming. It surpassed the previous record of 80.6 million viewers who watched the only debate between Jimmy Carter and Ronald Reagan in 1980.