Podcast listenership continues to rise. According to the annual Infinite Dial report from Edison Research and Triton Digital, the number of Americans who listen to podcasts on a weekly basis grew 17% in the past year. Approximately eighty million Americans, or 28% of Americans aged 12 and older, listen to a podcast each week. And 41%, or 116 million Americans, listen to podcasts monthly.
Podcast audiences are more diverse than ever (57% of monthly podcast listeners are white, 16% Latino, 13% African American, 4% Asian, and 10% of some other background). And listeners are spending a lot of time with podcasts. Weekly podcast listeners tune into five series per week, consuming an average of eight episodes per week. 20% listen to 11 or more shows in the past week, and 20% listen to 6-10 episodes. Only 1 in 10 surveyed said they listened to just one episode in the past week.
Other key findings from the Infinite Dial report include:
- One-third (33%) of Americans 12+, approximately 94 million people, now own a smart speaker, an increase of 22% from last year and nearly five times what it was in 2017 (7%). Of those who own a smart speaker, 34% have three or more of the devices in their household.
- Sixty-two percent of the U.S. 12+ population, around 176 million people, are now weekly online audio listeners, an all-time high for this category.
- 51% of those age 12+ “frequently” or “sometimes” listen to audio with other people, with this percentage rising to 69% among those age 12-34.
Advertising on audio is a great way to reach diverse and rapidly expanding audiences. To get your brand’s message on podcasts or broadcast, streaming, or satellite radio, contact SMI today.