DWTS data reveals dance types behind most eliminations after 34 seasons

Millions of viewers have watched celebrities stumble, recover and occasionally shine on the ballroom floor throughout Dancing With The Stars.

Ahead of Season 35, a major data analysis by ActionNetwork.com has examined more than 2,800 dance numbers performed across two decades of the popular competition.

The analysis covers 34 seasons between 2005 and 2025 and looks at which dance styles have been associated with eliminations, progression to the next round and difficult placements.

An Action Network spokesperson explained the findings:

“According to an analysis of 2,800+ dance numbers spanning 20 years, 34 seasons and 500+ episodes of Dancing With The Stars, Cha-cha-cha is the dance type leading to the most eliminations; it sits at the top of the most eliminated dances list with 41 eliminations, followed by Tango with 33 and Paso Doble with 32. On the safer side, Quickstep is the dance type that has led the most contestants to safety with 206 progressions to the next round, just ahead of Jive with 205 progressions to safety and Foxtrot with 200.”

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Cha-Cha-Cha Leads DWTS Elimination List

ActionNetwork.com’s analysis places Cha-cha-cha at the top of the elimination table, with 41 eliminations recorded across the 34 seasons examined.

Tango follows with 33 eliminations, while Paso Doble ranks third with 32.

Rumba recorded 31 eliminations, followed by Samba with 29. Foxtrot and Viennese Waltz each accounted for 28 eliminations.

Quickstep recorded 24 eliminations, while Jive had 22. Argentine Tango and Salsa each appeared in 18 elimination outcomes.

Jazz was linked to 15 eliminations, Contemporary to 14, Waltz to 10 and Mambo to eight.

The figures, published by ActionNetwork.com, offer a statistical look at how different dance styles have appeared in difficult moments throughout the show’s long history.

Top 15 Dance Types Linked To Eliminations

Quickstep Records Most Progressions

The picture changes when the analysis looks at contestants who progressed to another round.

According to ActionNetwork.com’s data, Quickstep recorded the highest number of progressions at 206, narrowly ahead of Jive with 205.

Foxtrot followed with 200 progressions, while Paso Doble recorded 169 and Rumba 167.

Cha-cha-cha, despite leading the elimination table, also recorded 165 progressions. That contrast is important because it shows that a dance style appearing frequently in eliminations can also be associated with many contestants advancing.

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Viennese Waltz recorded 162 progressions, followed by Tango at 149 and Samba at 142.

Argentine Tango registered 113 progressions, while Salsa had 99. Jazz recorded 87, Contemporary 69, Waltz 65 and Mambo 38.

Dance Types With Most Progressions

Cha-Cha-Cha Also Scores Highest In Negative Outcomes

ActionNetwork.com also created a separate scoring system designed to capture how deeply contestants fell into danger during a season.

The system assigns -1 point for finishing in the bottom five, -2 for the bottom three, -3 for the bottom two and -4 for elimination.

Using that method, Cha-cha-cha again sits at the top with 182 negative points.

Tango follows with 178, while Samba records 169. Rumba has 166 and Paso Doble 161.

Foxtrot registered 141 negative points, followed by Viennese Waltz with 140. Quickstep recorded 136 despite leading the progression table.

Jive had 118 negative points, while Salsa recorded 87 and Argentine Tango 84.

Jazz, Contemporary, Waltz and Mambo completed the list with 63, 60, 54 and 44 negative points respectively.

The measure gives a different perspective from simply counting eliminations because it also accounts for contestants who repeatedly found themselves close to elimination.

Samba Presents An Interesting Statistical Contrast

Samba provides one of the clearest examples of why the Action Network numbers need to be read carefully.

The dance ranks fifth in the raw elimination table with 29 eliminations. It also ranks third when negative outcomes are measured through the publication’s points system.

At the same time, Samba produced 142 progressions to subsequent rounds.

That does not mean Samba itself causes contestants to perform badly. The data records what happened after particular dance numbers, rather than establishing that the dance style was responsible for the outcome.

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Contestant ability, choreography, judges’ scores, audience voting, the strength of the week’s field and the stage of the competition can all influence what happens after a performance.

Why The Numbers Need Context

ActionNetwork.com’s methodology covers more than 20 years of Dancing With The Stars history.

The analysis was updated in September 2026 and examined 34 seasons from 2005 through 2025, with more than 2,800 dance numbers included.

More than 2,600 of those performances had a specific recorded outcome that could be assessed.

The analysis excluded group dances and weeks when no elimination took place.

Outcomes considered included elimination, safety, bottom-two, bottom-three and bottom-five appearances, immunity, withdrawal, fifth place, fourth place, third place, runner-up and winner.

ActionNetwork.com also notes that when one dance number contained two dance types, both styles were counted separately.

That methodology matters when interpreting the totals. A dance appearing more frequently throughout the show’s history has more opportunities to be associated with both eliminations and progressions.

Season 35 Brings A New Test

The numbers now provide an intriguing backdrop to Season 35, which premiered in September 2026.

The new season features a wide-ranging cast that includes Tatyana Ali, Tyler Cameron, Giada De Laurentiis, Jenna Dewan, Ezra Frech, Amber Glenn, Taylor Hanson, Harry Shum Jr., Julia Stiles and Guillermo Rodriguez among others.

The current competition means another batch of dance numbers will eventually be added to the show’s long-running statistical history.

Early performances have already included several styles highlighted in the Action Network analysis. Julia Stiles and Ezra Sosa performed a Quickstep, Tyler Cameron and Sharna Burgess took on a Tango, while Guillermo Rodriguez and Witney Carson performed a Cha-cha-cha.

Those performances will eventually contribute to the broader story of how contestants progress through the season.

The Full Elimination Picture

ActionNetwork.com’s 34-season analysis places the most frequently eliminated dance types in the following order:

Cha-cha-cha — 41

Tango — 33

Paso Doble — 32

Rumba — 31

Samba — 29

Foxtrot — 28

Viennese Waltz — 28

Quickstep — 24

Jive — 22

Argentine Tango — 18

Salsa — 18

Jazz — 15

Contemporary — 14

Waltz — 10

Mambo — 8

The progression figures tell a different story, with Quickstep, Jive and Foxtrot occupying the top three positions.

That contrast makes the historical data particularly interesting. Cha-cha-cha appears at the top of the elimination table but also ranks sixth for progressions, while Quickstep leads progressions despite appearing among the dances associated with eliminations.

What The 20-Year Data Really Shows

The Action Network study does not establish that one dance style is inherently more dangerous than another.

Instead, it provides a historical record of what happened after thousands of performances.

Cha-cha-cha has the highest raw number of eliminations in the dataset. Quickstep has the highest number of recorded progressions. Tango ranks highly in both elimination and negative-outcome measurements, while Samba also records a significant number of difficult outcomes.

The broader lesson is that Dancing With The Stars results cannot be reduced to the dance alone.

A celebrity’s dancing experience, choreography, performance quality, judges’ scores, public voting and the quality of competing performances all form part of the environment surrounding each result.

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Season 35 will add another chapter to that history, potentially changing the numbers that currently place Cha-cha-cha at the top of the elimination list and Quickstep at the top of the progression table.

The figures therefore offer viewers another way to watch the competition: not simply by asking which celebrity performed best, but by seeing how each dance style has historically fared across two decades of the show.

Source: Statistical figures and methodology attributed to ActionNetwork.com’s September 2026 analysis of 34 Dancing With The Stars seasons.