The X Factor

Key:
 * – Winner
 * – Runner-up
 * – Third place

Week 1 (October 25)

 * There was no public vote in the first week. Instead, each of the judges selected one (or two for Cowell) of their own acts to eliminate.


 * Judges' decisions to eliminate
 * Reid: Joshua Collins – gave no reason
 * Abdul: Hekla – gave no reason
 * Scherzinger: Azzura Rocchi – gave no reason
 * Cowell: Meredith Swan – the decision came down to Meredith Swan and Millie Yu; and Cowell believed that Yu has the potential to win the competition

Week 2 (November 2/3)

 * Celebrity performers: Outasight ("Tonight Is the Night")
 * Group performance: "Without You"


 * }


 * Judges' votes to eliminate


 * Cowell: Yee-Haw! – based on the final showdown performance
 * Abdul: Tia Moretti – based her decision on her experience working with both groups
 * Scherzinger: Tia Moretti – believed that Yee-Haw! were more prepared
 * Reid: Tia Moretti – gave no reason

Week 3 (November 9/10)

 * Theme: Songs from movies
 * Celebrity performers: Willow Smith ("Fireball") and Jessie J ("Domino")
 * Group performance: "Save the World"


 * Judges' votes to eliminate


 * Reid: Samuel Zimmerman – said he didn't like their song choices through the competition
 * Scherzinger: Good Question – originally wished to abstain from voting, but then realized that doing so would have eliminated Samuel as Reid and Scherzinger had already voted to save Good Question
 * Abdul: Samuel Zimmerman – based on her belief of "feminine empowerment", even though she liked both acts
 * Cowell: Samuel Zimmerman – based on who he thought had a greater potential to win the competition

Week 4 (November 16/17)

 * Theme: Rock
 * Group performance: "We Will Rock You"


 * Judges' votes to eliminate


 * Reid: Yee-Haw! – gave no reason
 * Scherzinger: Yee-Haw! – gave no reason
 * Abdul: Millie Yu – backed her own act, Yee-Haw!
 * Cowell: Yee-Haw! – backed his own act, but was disappointed with the attitudes of both contestants

Week 5 (November 22/23)

 * Theme: Giving Thanks

Two acts were eliminated during the results show. The three acts with the fewest public votes were announced, and the act with the fewest votes was automatically eliminated. The remaining two acts then performed in the final showdown and faced the judges' votes.


 * Judges' votes to eliminate


 * Reid: Ezekiel J. Freeman – backed his own act, Imaani Brown, and said Freeman had been the most consistent of the two
 * Scherzinger: Imaani Brown – backed her own act, Ezekiel J. Freeman
 * Abdul: Imaani Brown – based on the final showdown performance
 * Cowell: Ezekiel J. Freeman – believed Brown had done better overall in the competition, but thought Freeman sang better in the final showdown, so he put the decision up to the public.

With the acts in the bottom two receiving two votes each, the result was deadlocked and reverted to the earlier public vote. Brown was eliminated as the act with the fewest public votes.

Week 6 (November 30/December 1)

 * Theme: Songs by Michael Jackson
 * Group performance: "Man in the Mirror"

Michael Jackson's mother, Katherine; his three children Prince, Paris, and Blanket; and his brothers Marlon, Tito, and Jackie were present in the audience during the performance show.

As in the previous week, two acts were eliminated during the results show. The three acts with the fewest public votes were announced, and the act with the fewest votes was automatically eliminated. The remaining two acts then performed in the final showdown and faced the judges' votes.


 * Judges' votes to eliminate


 * Reid: Sally Dickson – gave no reason
 * Cowell: Sally Dickson – gave no reason
 * Scherzinger: Flashback – backed her own act, Sally Dickson
 * Abdul: Sally Dickson – backed her own act, Flashback

Week 7 (December 7/8)

 * Themes: Dance music hits; contestant's choice
 * Celebrity performers: Mary J. Blige ("Need Someone")


 * Judges' votes to eliminate


 * Reid: Ezekiel J. Freeman – backed his own act, Sally Anne McGabe
 * Cowell: Sally Anne McGabe – gave no reason
 * Abdul: Ezekiel J. Freeman – said that McGabe's final showdown performance blew her away
 * Scherzinger: Sally Anne McGabe – couldn't make the decision on her own so put the decision to deadlock

With the acts in the bottom two receiving two votes each, the result was deadlocked and reverted to the earlier public vote. McGabe was eliminated as the act with the fewest public votes. Scherzinger was booed by the audience after McGabe's elimination.

Week 8: Semi-final (December 14/15)

 * Themes: Pepsi Challenge songs, "songs to get you to the final" (no theme)
 * Celebrity performers: Nicole Scherzinger ("Pretty") and Florence and the Machine ("Spectrum")
 * Group performance: "No Diggity"/"Shout"

The semi-final did not feature a final showdown and instead the act with the fewest public votes, Flashback, was automatically eliminated.

Week 9: Final (December 21/22)
The final lasted for 1.5 hours on Wednesday, December 21 and 2 hours on Thursday, December 22.

December 21
 * Themes: Celebrity duets; winner's song (billed as "$5 million song")
 * Group performance: "They Don't Care About Us" (with Cirque du Soleil's Michael Jackson: The Immortal World Tour)

December 22
 * Theme: Christmas songs
 * Celebrity performers: Justin Bieber ("The Christmas Song" with Stevie Wonder / "Santa Claus Is Coming to Town" with Drew), Leona Lewis ("Run"), 50 Cent with Astro ("Wait Until Tonight" / "In da Club") and Pitbull & Ne-Yo with Marcus Canty ("International Love" / "Give Me Everything")
 * Group performances: "The Edge of Glory" (all top 12 finalists) and "Heroes" (performed by Good Question and Ezekiel J. Freeman)