The year 2025 saw an extremely fierce competition in the Chinese TV drama market. Streaming platforms accelerated, major television networks kept launching new prime‐time slots, meaning each new drama faced hundreds of rivals. In this context, not just social media metrics like likes, shares and views became the hot yardstick, but television ratings remained a key indicator of mass audience penetration.
Interestingly, despite having enormous online traffic, many big‐name stars did not achieve blazing traditional TV viewership. One notable case is Xiao Zhan—who dominates online viewership—but in terms of traditional TV ratings, he still lost to Yang Yang.
Here are the top 5 Chinese TV dramas (by TV rating) in 2025:
1. The Immortal Ascension — Yang Yang, Kim Shen
Throughout the first half of 2025, very few Chinese dramas delivered such a rating shock as The Immortal Ascension. Based on the hugely popular novel of the same name, the drama had a large built‑in readership. However, historically many cultivation dramas had flopped, so this title was initially predicted to struggle both commercially and in TV ratings.
Yet upon airing on national TV, the ratings exploded, rising to #1 nationwide, becoming a landmark “comeback” success for 2025.
What made the appeal? The story of Han Li – a normal teenager forced into the path of cultivation, who is not born supremely gifted but must fight, endure and nearly die repeatedly to advance. That “from nothing to hero” motif resonated with mass audiences. The performance of Yang Yang was key in the success, giving the genre “new blood”.
2. Under The Skin Ⅱ — Dan Jian Shu, Kim The Gia
Following the success of season 1, Under The Skin Ⅱ quickly established itself as one of the most beloved detective‐crime series in recent years. It centres on the collaboration between forensic painter Shen Yi and police captain Du Cheng.
From its second day of broadcast, online views soared past 53 million, showing the strong pull of the leads Tan Jian Ci and Shim Shi Jia The second season was praised for deeper, more complex plots, with “linked chain” style cases that kept viewers glued.
Its strong ratings placed it among the top crime dramas of 2025, and it became a heavyweight competitor both online and on broadcast TV.
3. The Legend of ZangHai — Xiao Zhan, Zhang Jing Ni
The Legend of ZangHai was expected to be the breakout all‐round hit for Xiao Zhan, especially given its genre (historical‐political / palace intrigue) which is his forte. The story: Wang Zanghai is the only survivor from his clan’s massacre; after 10 years of cultivation he returns to the capital under a new identity, infiltrates the enemy power structure to exact justice for his family.
With a strong cast including Xiao Zhan, Zhang Jing Ni, Zhou Qi, Huang Jiao, Qiu Zhen Wu, the drama quickly became a social media focal point. Its Vlinkage index (online influence) exceeded 90+, placing it among rare titles in 2025 with that scale.
However, unlike in the online realm, the TV broadcast ratings dipped—from about 1.74% down to 1.42%. The heavier political‐intrigue storyline required high audience focus, making it less suited to general prime‐time viewers.
Despite this, its online performance was overwhelming, ensuring The Legend of ZangHai remains one of the most notable productions of the year.
4. Flourished Peony — Yang Zi, Li Xian
If The Legend of ZangHai was the “king of online”, then Flourished Peony was the “queen of views”, with over 14.4 billion total online views and Douban score of 7.8 – impressive for a female‐lead historical drama.
The story follows He Weifang, a woman in the Tang dynasty who strives for independence in a patriarchal society. The narrative of escaping a forced marriage, building her own career, and meeting Jiang Chang Yang (Li Xian) appealed strongly to younger audiences. Yang Zi once again demonstrated her consistent popularity: emotionally rich, relatable, fitting the image of a strong yet vulnerable female lead.
5. Bleach — Guo Jing Fei, Wang Tian Yuan
While major projects vied for the top spots, Bleach unexpectedly emerged as a true “dark horse”. The modern survival‐crime series, with tight storytelling and few flaws, focuses on the journey of Zhen Zhen (played by Zhao Jin Mai) through high‐tension challenges.
It impressed with its smart narrative – not relying on loud promotions but quietly attracting large viewership. On iQIYI its heat index surpassed 9,500, and it was expected to reach the rare 10,000 mark for the platform.
Zhao Jin Mai earned strong praise for matured performance, fully expressing her character’s emotional arc in a tense, mysterious setting. Bleach’s television ratings increased steadily, maintaining a high position among modern dramas early in the year.