Election 2017 ratings: What Kiwis were watching

More than a million Kiwis sat down to watch Saturday night's election results unfold - choosing from a wider range of coverage than ever before.

So just who was the winner on the night?

TVNZ saw a drop in their average audience compared to three years ago, with 472,000 viewers tuning, compared to 494,000 in 2014.

However, the state broadcaster pointed to its online audience, which clocked a further 250,000 livestreams across its digital platforms.

Over on Three, the Newshub election special saw 341,000 people watch, up 27 per cent from 2014's audience.

In the 25-54 demographic, Three was the winner with 176,000 viewers tuning in, compared to 144,000 watching TVNZ1.

Likewise, its online platforms proved popular with a further 314,000 streams on the night.

However, the NZ Herald's election livestream - hosted by Tristram Clayton and Heather du Plessis-Allan - proved the most popular online, with a massive 478,000 streams.