Radio Leads in Ad-Supported Audio Time.

Radio continues to dominate ad-supported audio, claiming two-thirds (67%) of daily listening time, based on Edison Research’s Share of Ear data as reported in the latest edition of Nielsen’s “The Record” quarterly.

Audio listening trends during Q4 2024 shows, as it has consistently, radio far out in front, with podcasts a distant second with an 18% share, followed by ad-supported versions of streaming audio services such as Spotify (12%), and SiriusXM satellite radio’s ad-supported channels (3%).

“Those figures are nearly identical to the previous quarter, with only streaming audio increasing by just one percent,” Nielsen’s report notes. “This speaks to the consistent demand for daily audio in the American media diet.”

Edison’s breakdown by demographic shows broadcast radio’s share of listener time most dominant among older listeners, with a commanding 62% share among persons 25-54, nearly tripling podcasts’ 23%. For listeners 35 and older, radio’s share is even more pronounced, with 74% of time spent with ad-supported audio versus 13% for podcasts.

Among 18-34s, podcasts and ad-supported streaming audio are at their most competitive, as radio accounts for 47% of daily ad-supported audio time, with podcasts at 32% and streaming audio at 20%. Podcasts’ 18% share of the audio day held steady in Q4, while their 32% share among 18-34s is up a point from Q3.

According to Nielsen’s report, audio accounted for nearly 20% of Americans’ total daily media time in Q4 2024, translating to three hours and 54 minutes of daily listening across both ad-supported and ad-free platforms like radio, podcasts, streaming music services, and satellite radio.

“The end of the year is typically a busy time for media in the U.S., and 2024 was no exception for audio,” the report says. “The final three months of 2024 were jam packed with news, sports and entertainment topics galore.”

Nielsen’s analysis of the radio formats Americans were tuned to during Q4 2024 shows increased levels for news/talk and sports, as the Presidential election dominated headlines, and Major League Baseball’s postseason combined with the NFL season in full gear piqued interest in sports-talk radio.

The other key trend Nielsen reports is the “significant increase” in listening to adult contemporary, with many stations in the format switching to all Christmas music in the lead-up to the holidays. As a result, AC saw a 9% gain in audience share among adults 18+ versus Q3. Among adults 18-34, AC was up even more: 17%, from 8.4% in Q3 to 9.8% in Q4, demonstrating even younger listeners can’t resist the holiday cheer on AM/FM radio.