Survivor 49 is the forty-ninth season of the American competitive reality television series Survivor. It premiered on September 24, 2025, on CBS in the United States. It was the seventeenth consecutive season to be filmed in the Mamanuca Islands in Fiji. The season ended on December 17, 2025, when Savannah Louie was voted the Sole Survivor, defeating Sophi Balerdi and Sage Ahrens-Nichols in a 5–2–1 vote. Louie became the fifth winner of Asian heritage, following Yul Kwon from Survivor: Cook Islands, Natalie Anderson from Survivor: San Juan del Sur, Erika Casupanan from Survivor 41, and Rachel LaMont from Survivor 47.
Contents
Production
On December 15, 2023, Manoa Kamikamica, the Fijian Minister of Commerce, Trade, Tourism and Transport, announced that the Fijian Parliament had renewed its contract with Survivor for an additional two years. A preview trailer for the season was released on May 21, 2025, right after the finale of Survivor 48 aired. Like in the previous season, Survivor 49 and The Amazing Race 38 retain the 90-minute runtime; the premiere episode of Survivor 49 ran for two hours.
The American broadcast of the finale was interrupted by an address by President Donald Trump. The broadcast of the finale was not interrupted internationally, with the finale airing regularly in Canada, where the series airs on Global, and in Australia, where the finale aired on 9Go! as a special daytime airing alongside the intended American East Coast airing.
Contestants
The 18 castaways were officially announced on August 20, 2025. Notable cast members include Annie Davis, lead singer of the band Trashy Annie; former Marvel Studios executive Nate Moore; and former WANF news reporter Savannah Louie.
Future appearances
Savannah Louie and Rizo Velovic returned for the following season, Survivor 50: In the Hands of the Fans.
Season summary
Eighteen castaways were divided into three tribes: Hina, Kele, and Uli. Kele lost every challenge before the first swap, and their strongest member Jake was evacuated due to a freak occurrence. Surviving members Alex and Sophi managed to fly under the radar through two swaps due to the Hina and Uli alliances going to war, and Sophi found new life with Uli majority members Rizo and Savannah.
Despite losing their ally Nate at the first merged vote, Rizo and Savannah took control of the game, reaching the final four with Sophi and outsider Sage. Sophi won the final immunity challenge and took Sage to the end; Savannah easily defeated Rizo at fire, and her firm control of the game throughout earned the jury's respect and the victory in a 5–2–1 vote over Sophi and Sage, respectively.
Voting history
Notes
Reception
Survivor 49 received a mixed reception from both fans and critics. While the personalities of Savannah and Rizo, Savannah's winning gameplay, and the entertainment value of the post-merge section were praised, the gameplay of the other castaways as well as the edit and the pre-merge section were criticized. Many also felt that the "new era" format of the show had begun to feel repetitive and uninteresting.
Controversy
During the pre-game sequester period at Ponderosa, two of the original cast members were caught colluding with each other. The situation became so severe, that they were ejected from the game before it even started; they were ultimately replaced by Jason Treul and MC Chukwujekwu, both alternates for this season. Additionally, third place finisher Sage Ahrens-Nichols alleged that two other castaways, Jake Latimer and Sophi Balerdi, also engaged in pre-game scheming; these claims were corroborated by fellow castaway Annie Davis who was on the same starting tribe as Latimer and Balerdi.