2025 Local Radio Ad Revenue Projected to Reach $12.3B

RADIO ONLINE | Wednesday, April 2, 2025 | 3:00pm CT

RAB and BIA

The projected local radio ad revenue for 2025 is estimated to reach $12.3 billion, a stable comparison to the previous year. This projection covers both over-the-air and digital platforms, as outlined in the latest report by BIA Advisory Services.

This analysis is part of a collaborative effort by the Radio Advertising Bureau (RAB) and BIA Advisory Services to guide broadcasters through the evolving economic landscape. Local radio stands as the fifth-largest medium in the $171 billion local advertising market.

Key industries such as investment & retirement, quick service restaurants (QSRs), supermarkets, commercial banking, and hospitals are major contributors to radio advertising spending. Notably, the finance and insurance sectors, along with QSRs, are set to channel over $95 million each into digital radio advertising.

Celine Matthiessen, vice president of insights and analysis at BIA Advisory Services, highlighted the growing importance of hospitals in local radio markets. "Hospitals are projected to be one of the top spenders in local radio advertising in 2025," Matthiessen said. "As they allocate parts of their media budgets to Radio Over-the-Air (OTA), Radio Digital, and other platforms like Connected TV (CTV), it's evident that local radio continues to be a trusted and culturally relevant medium, especially in rural and remote communities."

Further growth is expected in digital radio advertising, with real estate development set to see a 15.8% increase. Full-service restaurants and bars, along with mattress and sleep centers, are also anticipated to experience growth of 8.6% and 7.2% respectively.

Matthiessen added, "Local radio is undergoing a significant transformation. The fusion of digital innovation with traditional broadcasting capabilities enables radio to uphold its crucial role in local market communications while creating new value propositions for advertisers."

Mike Hulvey, president and CEO of RAB, also commented on the strategic advantage this analysis offers. "Our continued partnership with BIA allows RAB membership insights into opportunity across local advertising categories," said Hulvey. "Broadcast radio and its digital assets can deliver the services that local businesses want and need to increase their sales revenue."

To further delve into these findings, RAB and BIA will host a webinar titled "Radio Ad Forecast 2025: BIA's Latest Projections" on April 16. This session will feature Matthiessen discussing the upcoming trends in local radio advertising, with a focus on the "What's Next?" economy and factors such as tariffs and consumer sentiment that may influence ad spending. The event will also be available for on-demand viewing, complete with supplementary materials.