Monthly podcast listening has reached a milestone as Edison Research says a majority of Americans 12 and older have consumed a podcast in the past 30 days. The growth from a year ago includes a one-point uptick in audio listening, but the biggest driver has been the gain in video consumption. Edison projects 158 million people, or 55% of Americans, are monthly podcast listeners.
“This is truly a landmark year for podcasting,” Edison VP Megan Lazovick said. “For the first time, more than half of Americans are now monthly podcast consumers. No matter how you measure it by audio or video consumption, podcasting continues to show impressive growth.”
The Edison data shows that audio remains the most common source as 48% say they listened to a podcast in the past month. But 37% also report watching a show. The addition of video is also slightly widening podcasting’s gender gap as 57% of men say they are monthly podcast consumers compared to 52% of women.
While the gender gap grows, the age gap is closing thanks to the combination of audio and video. Edison says two-thirds of younger listeners — those 12 to 34 — are monthly podcast consumers. But Americans 35 to 54 have nearly the same level of listening, with 61% reporting they had listened to a podcast in the past month. The fastest growth rate is among people 55 and older, of which 38% are now monthly podcast consumers.
Edison says that podcast familiarity overall has continued to grow, with 85% of Americans saying they’re familiar with the medium. The data also shows there remains an opportunity to convert more of them into listeners, since 70% have actually listened to a podcast. That includes 51% of those who say they have watched a podcast.
Lazovick said Thursday that when Americans’ relationship with podcasts is examined, the numbers show 22% have listened to a podcast but never watched, while 48% report to have listened and watched a podcast. Only 3% reported having watched a podcast but never listening. And 27% have never consumed a show, regardless of format.
“The reality is that the overwhelming majority of people who watch podcasts will say they are podcast listeners, but as more people discover the platform via video — the video-first podcast consumers — it’s smart to think about it as consumption instead of just listening,” Lazovick said. “That is not intended at all to undercut the magic of audio-only content. There’s room for both video and audio in the world of podcasts.”
The role that podcasts played during the 2024 election brought a lot of attention to the industry, and conservative media’s embrace of the format during the past several years is reflected in who is listening. Edison says Republicans now have a slight edge over Democrats when it comes to monthly podcast listeners. While a majority of both groups fall into that category, Edison says 56% of Republicans are monthly podcast consumers — a three-point advantage over Democrats.
That’s a reversal of where things stood during the 2022 election cycle, when Democrats had a five-point advantage on Republicans among monthly podcast listeners. “In just a few years, Republicans have gone from well behind to ahead,” Lazovick said.
The annual Infinite Dial study also examined which audio sources Americans are using in their vehicle, and the latest numbers show 31% of adults 18 and older say they listen to podcasts. But usage is still highly dependent on the age of the driver. Nearly half (48%) of people 18 to 35 say they listen to podcasts in the car, compared to 40% for those 35 to 54. And just 13% of Americans older than 55 are in-car podcast listeners.
A big reason digital listening is growing is four in ten Americans say they have a dashboard integration with their mobile phones. The result is that a majority (55%) of Americans 18 and older say they have listened to online audio in their car during the past month either via a phone or directly through the vehicle system. It means both online audio and podcast listening are bigger than roughly the one in four who listened to either SiriusXM or CDs.
The report is based on data collected in January from a national survey of 5,020 individuals 12 and older. The survey was conducted in both English and Spanish using 1,006 telephone surveys and 4,014 online interviews. The data was weighted to national 12+ U.S. population figures.
Download the 2025 Infinite Dial report HERE.
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