This table displays the top-rated primetime television series of the 1980–81 season as measured by Nielsen Media Research.[1]
| Rank | Program | Network | Rating | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Dallas | 34.5 | ||
| 2 | The Dukes of Hazzard | 27.3 | ||
| 3 | 60 Minutes | 27.0 | ||
| 4 | M*A*S*H | 25.7 | ||
| 5 | The Love Boat | 24.3 | ||
| 6 | The Jeffersons | CBS | 23.5 | |
| 7 | Alice | 22.9 | ||
| 8 | House Calls | 22.4 | ||
| Three's Company | ABC | |||
| 10 | Little House on the Prairie | 22.1 | ||
| 11 | One Day at a Time | CBS | 22.0 | |
| 12 | Real People | NBC | 21.5 | |
| 13 | Archie Bunker's Place | CBS | 21.4 | |
| 14 | Magnum, P.I. | 21.0 | ||
| 15 | Happy Days | ABC | 20.8 | |
| Too Close for Comfort | ||||
| 17 | Fantasy Island | 20.7 | ||
| Trapper John, M.D. | CBS | |||
| Diff'rent Strokes | NBC | |||
| 20 | Monday Night Football | ABC | 20.6 | |
| Laverne & Shirley | ||||
| 22 | That's Incredible! | 20.5 | ||
| 23 | Hart to Hart | 19.9 | ||
| 24 | 19.4 | |||
| CHiPs | NBC | |||
| 26 | The Facts of Life | 19.3 | ||
| 27 | Lou Grant | CBS | 19.1 | |
| 28 | Knots Landing | 19.0 | ||
| 29 | NBC | 18.8 | ||
| 30 | The Waltons | CBS | 18.6 |