Nielsen Releases its Latest Podcasting Today Report

RADIO ONLINE | Thursday, August 31, 2023 | 4:49pm CT

Nielsen

Nielsen has released its latest Podcasting Today report, which analyzes how the U.S. podcast landscape is growing and changing, how listening habits are shifting. The number of Americans listening to podcasts has increased by 45% in the past five years and has more than doubled in the last decade. 183 million have ever listened to a podcast, while 53% of those age 12-54 are monthly podcast listeners.

Podcast consumers have shifted their habits when it comes to the amount of weekly time being spent. U.S. podcast listeners average nine podcasts in the last week and 42% listened to a podcast in the last month. 31% listened to a podcast in the last week. Lighter (shorter) listening declined as a percent of total time while heavier (longer) listening increased. Among consumers 18-34, heavy podcast list increased by two thirds in the past year.

As the fan base grows, listening habits are changing; specifically, Nielsen Scarborough's Podcast Buying Power study reveals that people are spending more time listening to podcasts. At the same time, listening while in the car (or in transit) is quickly becoming more and more popular. This mirrors what we see with broadcast radio use - reaching consumers closest to the point of purchase.

Nielsen's podcast brand impact norms confirm that Podcast ads continue to drive strong brand awareness and now score even higher with key top funnel effectiveness measures such as seeking more information and making purchase decisions.

To read the entire report, click here