# The X Factor (American TV series) season 3

The third season of the American music competition television show The X Factor premiered on Fox on September 11, 2013, and ended on December 19, 2013. This season was hosted by Mario Lopez. Simon Cowell and Demi Lovato returned to the judging panel, while Kelly Rowland and Paulina Rubio joined the panel as replacements for the departing judges.
Producer auditions began on March 6, 2013, in Los Angeles, and ended on May 4, 2013, in Denver. The judges auditions, which are televised, began on May 21, 2013, in Charleston, and ended on July 12, 2013, in Los Angeles. New for this season is the removal of the boot camp and judges' houses rounds of the competition which have been replaced with a new middle section, more reminiscent of the live shows.
On December 19, 2013, Alex & Sierra won the show, as mentored by Cowell. On February 7, 2014, Cowell announced he was returning to the UK show to judge the 2014 UK series, which was followed by Fox announcing that they would not be renewing the show for a fourth season.

## Judges and hosts

On October 22, 2012, it was announced that The X Factor would be returning for a third season, with Simon Cowell confirmed to be returning. On December 14, 2012, L.A. Reid announced he would not return to the show for its third season, as he wished to refocus his work on his record company, Epic Records. Britney Spears stated her intentions on returning to the show for its third season, but she eventually did not return, in order to focus on her music career.
Following the conclusion of season two, Demi Lovato questioned whether she would return for another season, or instead focus on her own career as a performer, stating, "I have no idea what's gonna happen next season, and I don't think anybody does." On March 28, 2013, it was confirmed that Lovato would return. On April 22, it was confirmed by Fox that Mario Lopez would be returning to host season three, along with the news of Khloé Kardashian not returning as co-host.
Rumors passed that Reba McEntire and Jennifer Love Hewitt would be judges.
Eventually, Cowell confirmed via his Twitter account that the full judging panel would be announced on May 20, 2013, with auditions beginning the next day. On that same day, Fox confirmed that Destiny's Child member and judge on the 2011 series of the UK show (who previously replaced Dannii Minogue), Kelly Rowland, and Mexican singer and former La Voz... México judge Paulina Rubio had been hired to replace Reid and Spears.

## Selection process
### Auditions

In addition to having online auditions, it was announced at the conclusion of season 2 that auditions for season 3 would be held throughout the country in Charleston, South Carolina; Denver, Colorado; Long Island, New York; Los Angeles, California and New Orleans, Louisiana. On the "Registration and Audition Rules" document on The X Factor's website about the auditions, it was announced where the auditions were going to be taking place.
Summary of judges' auditions :
| City | Auditions dates | Venue | Judges | Judges | Judges | Judges |
| Charleston, South Carolina | May 21–22, 2013 | North Charleston Coliseum | Rowland | Lovato | Rubio | Cowell |
| New Orleans, Louisiana | June 11–12, 2013 | Lakefront Arena | Rowland | Lovato | Rubio | Cowell |
| Long Island, New York | June 19–21, 2013 | Nassau Coliseum | Rowland | Lovato | Rubio | Cowell |
| Denver, Colorado | June 30 – July 2, 2013 | Denver Coliseum | Rowland | Lovato | Rubio | Cowell |
| Los Angeles, California | July 10–11, 2013 | Galen Center | Rowland | Lovato | Rubio | Cowell |
| Los Angeles, California | July 12, 2013 | Galen Center | Rowland | Lovato | — | Cowell |

### Deliberations

Instead of the traditional bootcamp stages, a deliberation stage (very similar to Britain's Got Talent) was introduced to cut down the "yes" from the auditions to perform at Four-chair challenge. The judges cut the acts from 218 to 40. This took place on July 31, 2013.
After the Deliberation and Reveal Stages, but before the start of the four-chair challenge, the judges found out their categories and they are as follows: Rowland has the Overs, Rubio has the Boys, Lovato has the Girls and Cowell has the groups. They were revealed at Shrine Auditorium.

### Four-chair challenge

For this season of The X Factor, Cowell confirmed that the boot camp and judges' houses sections of the competition, which traditionally followed the audition rounds, had been dropped and replaced with a brand new stage called "The Four-Chair challenge", which took place at the Shrine Auditorium and was filmed over 2 days in September 2013. Speaking on the change, he said "It [boot camp and Judges' houses] was the one element of the show I wasn't happy with, and it looked too similar to what everybody else is doing." He went on to describe the new "middle section" as "really dramatic, very tough on us and the contestants, and very high pressure", and compared the new round as similar to the live shows.
This season, the categories did not follow the age-based format from season two but rather the format from season one: Boys, Girls, Over 25s and Groups. Rowland mentored Over 25s, Lovato the Girls, Rubio the Boys, and for the second season in a row, Cowell mentored the Groups. Groups Restless Road, Sweet Suspense, and Forever in Your Mind all consist of contestants who originally auditioned as soloists.
The four-chair challenge episodes were broadcast on two 2-hour Wednesdays and two 1-hour Thursdays shows on October 2, 3, 9 and 10.
Key:
    – Act was immediately eliminated after performance without switch
    – Act was switched out later in the competition and eventually eliminated
    – Act was not switched out and made the final four of their own category
^1 Rubio initially switched out Tim Olstad for Timmy Thames, but after some consideration brought him back and instead switched out Al Calderon.

## Contestants

The top 16 contestants were confirmed as follows;
Key:
    – Winner
    – Runner-Up
| Act | Age(s) | Hometown | Category (mentor) | Result |
| Alex & Sierra | 22 | New Smyrna Beach, Florida/Orlando, Florida | Groups (Cowell) | Winner |
| Jeff Gutt | 37 | Marine City, Michigan | Over 25s (Rowland) | Runner-Up |
| Carlito Olivero | 24 | Chicago, Illinois | Boys (Rubio) | 3rd Place |
| Restless Road | 18-19 | Various | Groups (Cowell) | 4th Place |
| Rion Paige | 13 | Jacksonville, Florida | Girls (Lovato) | 5th Place |
| Ellona Santiago | 17 | San Lorenzo, California | Girls (Lovato) | 6th Place |
| Josh Levi | 15 | Houston, Texas | Boys (Rubio) | 7th Place |
| Lillie McCloud | 55 | Orlando, Florida | Over 25s (Rowland) | 8th Place |
| Tim Olstad | 23 | Winona, Minnesota | Boys (Rubio) | 9th Place |
| Khaya Cohen | 16 | New York City, New York | Girls (Lovato) | 10th Place |
| Rachel Potter | 29 | New Orleans, Louisiana | Over 25s (Rowland) | 11th Place |
| Sweet Suspense | 14-17 | Various | Groups (Cowell) | 12th Place |
| Carlos Guevara | 16 | Lexington, South Carolina | Boys (Rubio) | 13rd Place |
| RoXxy Montana | 20-22 | Wayne, Michigan | Groups (Cowell) | 14th-16th Place |
| James Kenney | 35 | Portland, Oregon | Over 25s (Rowland) | 14th-16th Place |
| Danie Geimer | 15 | Northridge, California | Girls (Lovato) | 14th-16th Place |

## Live shows

The first two-hour live show aired on a special Tuesday time slot on October 29; which followed the same format as the first season with each of the judges narrowing their number of acts down to three, without a public vote. The public vote then started with the following performance and results shows starting November 6, which aired on Wednesdays and Thursdays respectively. As with previous seasons, each live show had a different theme. The live final took place in on December 18 and 19. Cowell had also said on Twitter that there may be a wildcard this season. The leaderboard that showed which act had received the most public votes did not return.

### Musical guests

Each results show featured musical performances from at least two artists. There was no guest performer on the first result show. Selena Gomez was supposed to perform on the second result show, but was postponed to third result show night which featured a performance from season 2 finalist Fifth Harmony. One Direction performed on the third results show. Michael Bublé performed on the fifth performance show, then again on the fifth results show alongside judge Demi Lovato. Emblem3 and Little Mix performed on the sixth results show, while Enrique Iglesias performed during the seventh results show. Paulina Rubio, Mary J. Blige, Lea Michele, Leona Lewis, Pitbull and One Direction performed on the finale.

### Results summary
#### Color key

Act in Boys
Act in Girls
Act in Over 25s
Act in Groups
| – | Act did not face the public vote |
| – | Act was eliminated by their mentor (no public vote or final showdown) |
| – | Act was in the bottom three and had to sing again in the final showdown |
| – | Act was in the bottom three but received the fewest votes and was immediately eliminated |
| – | Act received the fewest public votes and was immediately eliminated (no final showdown) |
| – | Act received the most public votes |
Weekly results per act :
| Act | Act | Week 1 | Week 2 | Week 3 | Week 3 | Week 4 | Week 5 | Quarter-Final | Semi-Final | Final | Final |
| Act | Act | Week 1 | Week 2 | Wednesday Vote | Thursday Vote | Week 4 | Week 5 | Quarter-Final | Semi-Final | First Vote | Second Vote |
| | Alex & Sierra | Saved | — | 1st | 1st | 2nd | 1st | 1st | 1st | 1st | Winner |
| | Jeff Gutt | Saved | — | 6th | 5th | 4th | 4th | 2nd | 2nd | 2nd | Runner-Up |
| | Carlito Olivero | Saved | — | 7th | 8th | 8th | 5th | 4th | 3rd | 3rd | Eliminated (final) |
| | Restless Road | Saved | — | 8th | 3rd | 7th | 3rd | 3rd | 4th | Eliminated (semi-final) | Eliminated (semi-final) |
| | Rion Paige | Saved | — | 3rd | 6th | 1st | 6th | 5th | Eliminated (quarter-final) | Eliminated (quarter-final) | Eliminated (quarter-final) |
| | Ellona Santiago | Saved | — | 2nd | 2nd | 6th | 2nd | 6th | Eliminated (quarter-final) | Eliminated (quarter-final) | Eliminated (quarter-final) |
| | Josh Levi | Eliminated | — | 5th | 4th | 3rd | 7th | Eliminated (week 5) | Eliminated (week 5) | Eliminated (week 5) | Eliminated (week 5) |
| | Lillie McCloud | Saved | — | 9th | 7th | 5th | 8th | Eliminated (week 5) | Eliminated (week 5) | Eliminated (week 5) | Eliminated (week 5) |
| | Tim Olstad | Saved | — | 12th | 9th | 9th | Eliminated (week 4) | Eliminated (week 4) | Eliminated (week 4) | Eliminated (week 4) | Eliminated (week 4) |
| | Khaya Cohen | Saved | — | 11th | 11th | 10th | Eliminated (week 4) | Eliminated (week 4) | Eliminated (week 4) | Eliminated (week 4) | Eliminated (week 4) |
| | Rachel Potter | Saved | — | 4th | 10th | Eliminated (week 3) | Eliminated (week 3) | Eliminated (week 3) | Eliminated (week 3) | Eliminated (week 3) | Eliminated (week 3) |
| | Sweet Suspense | Saved | — | 10th | 12th | Eliminated (week 3) | Eliminated (week 3) | Eliminated (week 3) | Eliminated (week 3) | Eliminated (week 3) | Eliminated (week 3) |
| | Carlos Guevara | Saved | — | 13th | Eliminated (week 3) | Eliminated (week 3) | Eliminated (week 3) | Eliminated (week 3) | Eliminated (week 3) | Eliminated (week 3) | Eliminated (week 3) |
| | RoXxy Montana | Eliminated | Eliminated (week 1) | Eliminated (week 1) | Eliminated (week 1) | Eliminated (week 1) | Eliminated (week 1) | Eliminated (week 1) | Eliminated (week 1) | Eliminated (week 1) | Eliminated (week 1) |
| | James Kenney | Eliminated | Eliminated (week 1) | Eliminated (week 1) | Eliminated (week 1) | Eliminated (week 1) | Eliminated (week 1) | Eliminated (week 1) | Eliminated (week 1) | Eliminated (week 1) | Eliminated (week 1) |
| | Danie Geimer | Eliminated | Eliminated (week 1) | Eliminated (week 1) | Eliminated (week 1) | Eliminated (week 1) | Eliminated (week 1) | Eliminated (week 1) | Eliminated (week 1) | Eliminated (week 1) | Eliminated (week 1) |
| Final Showdown | Final Showdown | None | — | No final showdown or judges' votes; results were based on public votes alone | Cohen, Potter | Olivero, Olstad | Levi, Paige | Olivero, Paige | No final showdown or judges' votes; results were based on public votes alone | No final showdown or judges' votes; results were based on public votes alone | No final showdown or judges' votes; results were based on public votes alone |
| Judges voted to | Judges voted to | Send Through | — | No final showdown or judges' votes; results were based on public votes alone | Eliminate | Eliminate | Eliminate | Eliminate | | | | No final showdown or judges' votes; results were based on public votes alone | No final showdown or judges' votes; results were based on public votes alone | No final showdown or judges' votes; results were based on public votes alone |
| Rowland's vote | Rowland's vote | Potter, Gutt, McCloud | — | No final showdown or judges' votes; results were based on public votes alone | Cohen | Olstad | Paige | Paige | No final showdown or judges' votes; results were based on public votes alone | No final showdown or judges' votes; results were based on public votes alone | No final showdown or judges' votes; results were based on public votes alone |
| Rubio's vote | Rubio's vote | Olivero, Guevara, Olstad | — | No final showdown or judges' votes; results were based on public votes alone | Potter | Olstad | Paige | Paige | No final showdown or judges' votes; results were based on public votes alone | No final showdown or judges' votes; results were based on public votes alone | No final showdown or judges' votes; results were based on public votes alone |
| Lovato's vote | Lovato's vote | Santiago, Paige, Cohen | — | No final showdown or judges' votes; results were based on public votes alone | Potter | Olstad | Levi | Olivero | No final showdown or judges' votes; results were based on public votes alone | No final showdown or judges' votes; results were based on public votes alone | No final showdown or judges' votes; results were based on public votes alone |
| Cowell's vote | Cowell's vote | Restless Road, Alex & Sierra, Sweet Suspense | — | No final showdown or judges' votes; results were based on public votes alone | Potter | — | Levi | Paige | No final showdown or judges' votes; results were based on public votes alone | No final showdown or judges' votes; results were based on public votes alone | No final showdown or judges' votes; results were based on public votes alone |
| Eliminated | Eliminated | Danie Geimer by Lovato | — | Carlos Guevara Public vote to save | Sweet Suspense Public vote to save | Khaya Cohen Public vote to save | Lillie McCloud Public vote to save | Ellona Santiago Public vote to save | Restless Road Public vote to save | Carlito Olivero Public vote to win | Jeff Gutt Public vote to win |
| Eliminated | Eliminated | Josh Levi by Rubio | — | Carlos Guevara Public vote to save | Sweet Suspense Public vote to save | Khaya Cohen Public vote to save | Lillie McCloud Public vote to save | Ellona Santiago Public vote to save | Restless Road Public vote to save | Carlito Olivero Public vote to win | Jeff Gutt Public vote to win |
| Eliminated | Eliminated | James Kenney by Rowland | — | Carlos Guevara Public vote to save | Rachel Potter 3 of 4 votes Majority | Tim Olstad 3 of 3 votes Majority | Josh Levi 2 of 4 votes Deadlock | Rion Paige 3 of 4 votes Majority | Restless Road Public vote to save | Carlito Olivero Public vote to win | Jeff Gutt Public vote to win |
| Eliminated | Eliminated | RoXxy Montana by Cowell | — | Carlos Guevara Public vote to save | Rachel Potter 3 of 4 votes Majority | Tim Olstad 3 of 3 votes Majority | Josh Levi 2 of 4 votes Deadlock | Rion Paige 3 of 4 votes Majority | Restless Road Public vote to save | Carlito Olivero Public vote to win | Jeff Gutt Public vote to win |
| Reference(s) | Reference(s) | | | | | | | | | |
* ^1 There was no public vote in the first week and therefore no final showdown. Each judge was required to save three of their own acts.
* ^2 Levi returned to the competition in week two because the judges felt that he should not have been eliminated in week one.
* ^3 Owing to graphic errors in which incorrect voting numbers were displayed on screen during the performance recap, there was no elimination in week two. All acts performed again on Thursday night in week two and a public re-vote was conducted. Carlos Guevara was eliminated on Wednesday night in week three after receiving the fewest votes in week two.
* ^4 Cowell was not required to vote as there was already a majority, but said after the show that he would have voted to eliminate Olstad.
* ^5 Cowell revealed in an interview that Alex & Sierra "won every single week" in the public vote except the fourth.

### Live show details
#### Week 1 (October 29)

Acts performances on the first live show :
| Act | Category (mentor) | Order | Song | Result |
| Ellona Santiago | Girls (Lovato) | 1 | "Till the World Ends" | Safe |
| Danie Geimer | Girls (Lovato) | 2 | "Wrecking Ball" | Eliminated |
| Rion Paige | Girls (Lovato) | 3 | "Skyscraper" | Safe |
| Khaya Cohen | Girls (Lovato) | 4 | "Mercy" | Safe |
| Josh Levi | Boys (Rubio) | 5 | "Only Girl (in the World)" | Eliminated |
| Carlos Guevara | Boys (Rubio) | 6 | "Don't You Worry Child" | Safe |
| Carlito Olivero | Boys (Rubio) | 7 | "Maria Maria" | Safe |
| Tim Olstad | Boys (Rubio) | 8 | "Always" | Safe |
| Lillie McCloud | Over 25s (Rowland) | 9 | "When a Man Loves a Woman" | Safe |
| Jeff Gutt | Over 25s (Rowland) | 10 | "Try" | Safe |
| Rachel Potter | Over 25s (Rowland) | 11 | "I Hope You Dance" | Safe |
| James Kenney | Over 25s (Rowland) | 12 | "Red" | Eliminated |
| RoXxy Montana | Groups (Cowell) | 13 | "Royals" | Eliminated |
| Sweet Suspense | Groups (Cowell) | 14 | "I Love It" | Safe |
| Alex & Sierra | Groups (Cowell) | 15 | "Blurred Lines" | Safe |
| Restless Road | Groups (Cowell) | 16 | "Roar" | Safe |
There was no public vote in the first week. Instead, each of the judges selected one of their own acts to eliminate.

##### Judges' votes to eliminate

* Lovato: Danie Geimer – gave no reason.
* Rubio: Josh Levi – gave no reason.
* Rowland: James Kenney – based on the performances.
* Cowell: RoXxy Montana – gave no reason.

#### Week 2 (November 6/7)
##### November 6

* Theme: Motown songs (billed as "Motown Night")
* Group performance: "ABC" / "Signed, Sealed, Delivered I'm Yours" / "Reach Out I'll Be There" / "Dancing in the Street" (all top 13 finalists except Josh Levi)
One of the four acts that did not face the public vote in week 1, and was eliminated by their mentor, was reinstated to the show as the judges felt that the act "deserves a second shot". The reinstated act was announced as Josh Levi.
Acts performances on the second live show (Wednesday) :
| Act | Category (mentor) | Order | Song |
| Josh Levi | Boys (Rubio) | 1 | "Who's Lovin' You" |
| Rachel Potter | Over 25s (Rowland) | 2 | "This Old Heart of Mine (Is Weak for You)" |
| Carlos Guevara | Boys (Rubio) | 3 | "What's Going On" |
| Restless Road | Groups (Cowell) | 4 | "Easy" |
| Ellona Santiago | Girls (Lovato) | 5 | "Baby Love" |
| Jeff Gutt | Over 25s (Rowland) | 6 | "Say You, Say Me" |
| Alex & Sierra | Groups (Cowell) | 7 | "I Heard It Through the Grapevine" |
| Khaya Cohen | Girls (Lovato) | 8 | "My Girl" |
| Carlito Olivero | Boys (Rubio) | 9 | "Stop! In the Name of Love" |
| Lillie McCloud | Over 25s (Rowland) | 10 | "All In Love Is Fair" |
| Sweet Suspense | Groups (Cowell) | 11 | "You Keep Me Hangin' On" |
| Rion Paige | Girls (Lovato) | 12 | "Ain't No Mountain High Enough" |
| Tim Olstad | Boys (Rubio) | 13 | "I'll Be There" |

##### November 7

* Theme: "Save Me" songs
Owing to graphics error in which incorrect voting numbers were displayed on screen during the performance recap, there was no elimination this week, instead all the acts performed their "Save Me" songs on Thursday night and a public re-vote was conducted after the show. The results were announced the following week, at the start of the live show on Wednesday night.
Selena Gomez was going to perform her single "Slow Down" but due to graphics issues, she performed on the second night in week 3.
Acts performances on the second live show (Thursday) :
| Act | Category (mentor) | Order | Song | Result |
| Josh Levi | Boys (Rubio) | 1 | "Stay" | Safe |
| Rachel Potter | Over 25s (Rowland) | 2 | "Anyway" | Safe |
| Carlos Guevara | Boys (Rubio) | 3 | "Cannonball" | Eliminated |
| Restless Road | Groups (Cowell) | 4 | "Don't You Wanna Stay" | Safe |
| Ellona Santiago | Girls (Lovato) | 5 | "Titanium" | Safe |
| Jeff Gutt | Over 25s (Rowland) | 6 | "In the Air Tonight" | Safe |
| Alex & Sierra | Groups (Cowell) | 7 | "Give Me Love" | Safe (Highest Votes) |
| Khaya Cohen | Girls (Lovato) | 8 | "Distant Dreamer" | Safe |
| Carlito Olivero | Boys (Rubio) | 9 | "If You're Not the One" | Safe |
| Lillie McCloud | Over 25s (Rowland) | 10 | "Who Wants to Live Forever" | Safe |
| Sweet Suspense | Groups (Cowell) | 11 | "That Should Be Me" | Safe |
| Rion Paige | Girls (Lovato) | 12 | "Born This Way" | Safe |
| Tim Olstad | Boys (Rubio) | 13 | "I Believe I Can Fly" | Safe |

#### Week 3 (November 13/14)

* Theme: Songs from the 1980s (billed as "80s Night")
* Group performance: "Perfect Day"
* Musical guests: Selena Gomez ("Slow Down") and Fifth Harmony ("Me & My Girls")
Carlos Guevara, the act that received the fewest votes from the public re-vote in week 2, was eliminated at the start of the November 13 episode. He would have performed "Mad World". Starting from week three, two acts were eliminated from each results show until week six. The three acts with the fewest public votes were announced and then the act with the fewest votes was automatically eliminated. The remaining two acts then performed in the final showdown and face the judges' votes.
Acts performances on the third live show :
| Act | Category (mentor) | Order | Song | Year | Result |
| Lillie McCloud | Over 25s (Rowland) | 1 | "Ain't Nobody" | 1983 | Safe |
| Carlito Olivero | Boys (Rubio) | 2 | "Rhythm Is Gonna Get You" | 1987 | Safe |
| Rion Paige | Girls (Lovato) | 3 | "We Belong" | 1984 | Safe |
| Sweet Suspense | Groups (Cowell) | 4 | "Mickey" | 1981 | Eliminated |
| Tim Olstad | Boys (Rubio) | 5 | "Against All Odds (Take a Look at Me Now)" | 1984 | Safe |
| Khaya Cohen | Girls (Lovato) | 6 | "Borderline" | 1984 | Bottom Three |
| Restless Road | Groups (Cowell) | 7 | "Footloose" | 1984 | Safe |
| Rachel Potter | Over 25s (Rowland) | 8 | "Alone" | 1987 | Bottom Three |
| Ellona Santiago | Girls (Lovato) | 9 | "I Wanna Dance with Somebody (Who Loves Me)" | 1987 | Safe |
| Josh Levi | Boys (Rubio) | 10 | "Straight Up" | 1988 | Safe |
| Jeff Gutt | Over 25s (Rowland) | 11 | "(I Just) Died in Your Arms" | 1986 | Safe |
| Alex & Sierra | Groups (Cowell) | 12 | "Addicted to Love" | 1986 | Safe (Highest Votes) |
| Final showdown details ||||||
| Khaya Cohen | Girls (Lovato) | 1 | "Don't Give Up on Me" | "Don't Give Up on Me" | Safe |
| Rachel Potter | Over 25s (Rowland) | 2 | "From This Moment On" | "From This Moment On" | Eliminated |

##### Judges' votes to eliminate

* Rowland: Khaya Cohen – based on the final showdown performances, effectively backing her act, Rachel Potter.
* Rubio: Rachel Potter – gave no reason.
* Lovato: Rachel Potter – gave no reason, though effectively backed their own act, Khaya Cohen.
* Cowell: Rachel Potter – felt that Cohen had more potential.
However, voting statistics revealed that Potter received more votes than Cohen which meant that if Cowell sent the result to deadlock, Potter would have been saved.

#### Week 4 (November 20/21)

* Theme: Songs by British artists (billed as "British Invasion")
* Musical guest: One Direction ("Story of My Life")
Acts performances on the fourth live show :
| Act | Category (mentor) | Order | Song | British Musician | Result |
| Jeff Gutt | Over 25s (Rowland) | 1 | "Bohemian Rhapsody" | Queen | Safe |
| Tim Olstad | Boys (Rubio) | 2 | "Sorry Seems to Be the Hardest Word" | Elton John | Bottom Three |
| Khaya Cohen | Girls (Lovato) | 3 | "Let It Be" | The Beatles | Eliminated |
| Josh Levi | Boys (Rubio) | 4 | "Sweet Dreams (Are Made of This)" | Eurythmics | Safe |
| Alex & Sierra | Groups (Cowell) | 5 | "Best Song Ever" | One Direction | Safe |
| Rion Paige | Girls (Lovato) | 6 | "Your Song" | Elton John | Safe (Highest Votes) |
| Carlito Olivero | Boys (Rubio) | 7 | "(I Can't Get No) Satisfaction" | The Rolling Stones | Bottom Three |
| Lillie McCloud | Over 25s (Rowland) | 8 | "This Woman's Work" | Kate Bush | Safe |
| Ellona Santiago | Girls (Lovato) | 9 | "Burn" | Ellie Goulding | Safe |
| Restless Road | Groups (Cowell) | 10 | "Fix You" | Coldplay | Safe |
| Final showdown details ||||||
| Tim Olstad | Boys (Rubio) | 1 | "You Raise Me Up" | "You Raise Me Up" | Eliminated |
| Carlito Olivero | Boys (Rubio) | 2 | "Beneath Your Beautiful" | "Beneath Your Beautiful" | Safe |

##### Judges' votes to eliminate

* Rowland: Tim Olstad – based on the final showdown performances.
* Lovato: Tim Olstad – gave no reason.
* Rubio: Tim Olstad – gave no reason.
* Cowell was not required to vote since there was already a majority, but said after the show that his "heart went out to" Olivero, so he would have voted to eliminate Olstad.

#### Week 5 (November 27/28)

* Theme: Big band (billed as "Big Band Night")
* Guest mentor: Michael Bublé
* Group performances:
** Wednesday: "Cry Me a River"
** Thursday: "Somewhere Only We Know"
* Musical guests:
** Wednesday: Michael Bublé ("You Make Me Feel So Young")
** Thursday: Demi Lovato ("Neon Lights") and Michael Bublé ("It's a Beautiful Day")
Acts performances on the fifth live show :
| Act | Category (mentor) | Order | Song | Result |
| Rion Paige | Girls (Lovato) | 1 | "Swingin'" | Bottom Three |
| Restless Road | Groups (Cowell) | 2 | "Life Is a Highway" | Safe |
| Jeff Gutt | Over 25s (Rowland) | 3 | "Feeling Good" | Safe |
| Josh Levi | Boys (Rubio) | 4 | "Treasure" | Bottom Three |
| Carlito Olivero | Boys (Rubio) | 5 | "La Copa de Vida"/"María" | Safe |
| Alex & Sierra | Groups (Cowell) | 6 | "I Knew You Were Trouble" | Safe (Highest Votes) |
| Lillie McCloud | Over 25s (Rowland) | 7 | "Summertime" | Eliminated |
| Ellona Santiago | Girls (Lovato) | 8 | "Mamma Knows Best" | Safe |
| Final showdown details |||||
| Rion Paige | Girls (Lovato) | 1 | "Perfect" | Safe |
| Josh Levi | Boys (Rubio) | 2 | "When I Was Your Man" | Eliminated |

##### Judges' votes to eliminate

* Lovato: Josh Levi – gave no reason, though effectively backed their own act, Rion Paige.
* Rubio: Rion Paige – backed her own act, Josh Levi.
* Rowland: Rion Paige – gave no reason.
* Cowell: Josh Levi – could not decide and sent the result to deadlock.
With the acts in the bottom two receiving two votes each, the result went to deadlock and reverted to the earlier public vote. Levi was eliminated as the act with the fewest public votes.

#### Week 6: Quarter-Final (December 4/5)

* Themes: Divas; unplugged songs (billed as "stripped down songs")
* Musical guests: Emblem3 ("Just for One Day") and Little Mix ("Move")
For the first time this season, each act performed two songs.
Acts' performances in the quarter-final :
| Act | Category (mentor) | Order | First song | Diva | Order | Second song | Result |
| Restless Road | Groups (Cowell) | 1 | "Red" | Taylor Swift | 7 | "Wake Me Up" | Safe |
| Rion Paige | Girls (Lovato) | 2 | "See You Again" | Carrie Underwood | 8 | "Glass" | Bottom Three |
| Jeff Gutt | Over 25s (Rowland) | 3 | "Without You" | Mariah Carey | 9 | "Daniel" | Safe |
| Ellona Santiago | Girls (Lovato) | 4 | "Applause" | Lady Gaga | 10 | "If I Were a Boy" | Eliminated |
| Alex & Sierra | Groups (Cowell) | 5 | "Say My Name" | Destiny's Child | 11 | "Say Something" | Safe (Highest Votes) |
| Carlito Olivero | Boys (Rubio) | 6 | "Let's Get Loud" | Jennifer Lopez | 12 | "Stand by Me" | Bottom Three |
| Final showdown details ||||||||
| Rion Paige | Girls (Lovato) | 1 | "The House That Built Me" | "The House That Built Me" | "The House That Built Me" | "The House That Built Me" | Eliminated |
| Carlito Olivero | Boys (Rubio) | 2 | "You Make Me Wanna..." | "You Make Me Wanna..." | "You Make Me Wanna..." | "You Make Me Wanna..." | Safe |

##### Judges' votes to eliminate

* Lovato: Carlito Olivero – backed her own act, Rion Paige.
* Rubio: Rion Paige – backed her own act, Carlito Olivero.
* Rowland: Rion Paige – based on the final showdown performances though stated both acts did not give their best.
* Cowell: Rion Paige – wanted to give Olivero the opportunity to stay in the competition as he felt the competition was "probably his last chance".

#### Week 7: Semi-Final (December 11/12)

* Themes: Viewers' choice; "songs to get you to the final" (no theme)
* Group performances:
** Wednesday: "Falling Slowly" (performed by Alex & Sierra and Carlito Olivero) and "Every Breath You Take" (performed by Jeff Gutt and Restless Road)
** Thursday: "Stronger (What Doesn't Kill You)"
* Musical guest: Enrique Iglesias ("Heart Attack")
On December 4, the song choices for the public were revealed.
List of song choices for viewers' choice week :
| Act | Category (mentor) | Song Choices | Result |
| Alex & Sierra | Groups (Cowell) | "Hold On, We're Going Home" | Not Chosen |
| Alex & Sierra | Groups (Cowell) | "Little Talks" | Chosen |
| Alex & Sierra | Groups (Cowell) | "Troublemaker" | Not Chosen |
| Carlito Olivero | Boys (Rubio) | "Boyfriend" | Chosen |
| Carlito Olivero | Boys (Rubio) | "Hasta Ayer" | Not Chosen |
| Carlito Olivero | Boys (Rubio) | "Promise" | Not Chosen |
| Ellona Santiago | Girls (Lovato) | "Love Me Again" | N/A (Already Eliminated) |
| Ellona Santiago | Girls (Lovato) | "Who You Are" | N/A (Already Eliminated) |
| Ellona Santiago | Girls (Lovato) | "You Got the Love" | N/A (Already Eliminated) |
| Jeff Gutt | Over 25s (Rowland) | "Creep" | Not Chosen |
| Jeff Gutt | Over 25s (Rowland) | "Hallelujah" | Chosen |
| Jeff Gutt | Over 25s (Rowland) | "Wonderwall" | Not Chosen |
| Restless Road | Groups (Cowell) | "Hey Brother" | Not Chosen |
| Restless Road | Groups (Cowell) | "It Goes Like This" | Not Chosen |
| Restless Road | Groups (Cowell) | "That's My Kind of Night" | Chosen |
| Rion Paige | Girls (Lovato) | "Girl on Fire" | N/A (Already Eliminated) |
| Rion Paige | Girls (Lovato) | "So Small" | N/A (Already Eliminated) |
| Rion Paige | Girls (Lovato) | "Umbrella" | N/A (Already Eliminated) |
Acts' performances in the semi-final :
| Act | Category (mentor) | Order | First song | Order | Second song | Result |
| Carlito Olivero | Boys (Rubio) | 1 | "Boyfriend" | 5 | "I Need to Know" | Safe |
| Restless Road | Groups (Cowell) | 2 | "That's My Kind of Night" | 6 | "Wanted" | Eliminated |
| Alex & Sierra | Groups (Cowell) | 3 | "Little Talks" | 7 | "Gravity" | Safe (Highest Votes) |
| Jeff Gutt | Over 25s (Rowland) | 4 | "Hallelujah" | 8 | "Demons" | Safe |
The semi-final did not feature a final showdown and instead the act with the fewest public votes, Restless Road, was automatically eliminated. The top three acts each then performed a victory song of their choice after they were announced safe, with Olivero performing "Suavemente", Alex & Sierra performing "Let Her Go", and Gutt performing "Open Arms".

#### Week 8: Final (December 18/19)

The final consisted of two two-hour episodes on December 18 and 19.

##### December 18

* Themes: Winner's song (billed as "song to win"); celebrity duets (billed as "musical hero duets"); favorite performance (billed as "song of the season")
* Group performance: "We Will Rock You"
* Musical guest: Paulina Rubio ("Boys Will Be Boys")
Acts' performances on the Wednesday Final :
| Act | Category (mentor) | Order | First song | Order | Second song (duet) | Order | Third song |
| Carlito Olivero | Boys (Rubio) | 1 | "Impossible" | 4 | "Stand by Me" (with Prince Royce) | 7 | "Maria Maria" |
| Alex & Sierra | Groups (Cowell) | 2 | "Give Me Love" | 5 | "Bleeding Love" (with Leona Lewis) | 8 | "Say Something" |
| Jeff Gutt | Over 25s (Rowland) | 3 | "Dream On" | 6 | "Iris" (with John Rzeznik) | 9 | "Creep" |

##### December 19

* Theme: Christmas songs
* Group performances: "One" (all top 13 finalists) and "Love Me Again" (performed by Alex & Sierra and Jeff Gutt)
* Musical guests: Mary J. Blige ("Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer"), Lea Michele ("Cannonball"), Leona Lewis ("One More Sleep"), Pitbull ("Timber") and One Direction ("Midnight Memories")
Acts' performances on Thursday Final :
| Act | Category (mentor) | Order | Song | Result |
| Carlito Olivero | Boys (Rubio) | 1 | "Christmas (Baby Please Come Home)" | Eliminated |
| Jeff Gutt | Over 25s (Rowland) | 2 | "O Holy Night" | Runner-Up |
| Alex & Sierra | Groups (Cowell) | 3 | "All I Want for Christmas Is You" | Winner |