27 Amazing Podcast Statistics For Active Podcast Listeners (2022)

The popularity of podcasts has been growing over the last decade, and the latest podcast statistics confirm as much. The number of podcast listeners is growing among the US population and in other countries across the globe.

As podcast consumers continue to rise, research on podcasts and consumer behavior with audio content is essential for marketing. Higher numbers of audiences with high purchasing power listening to podcasts could significantly impact the marketing landscape.

Latest Podcast Statistics to Know

Get the latest facts on the podcast industry's who, where, when, and how.

1. There are Over 2 Million Podcasts

According to Apple podcasts statistics, the latest podcast statistics as of March 2022 suggest there are 2,425,471 good podcasts with 63 million episodes.

These latest numbers show an increase from April 2021, when there were slightly over 2,000,000 million podcasts. As of the same period, April 2021, there were 48 million podcast episodes with over 500,000 active podcasts and content in over 100 languages.

What Should You Know About the Podcast Audience in the US?

2. The US has the Largest Number of Monthly Podcast Listeners

Let's look at some of the podcast statistics among the US population.

• As of 2022, at least 51% of the American population has listened to a podcast.
• According to Infinite Dial, about 104 million Americans listen to podcasts monthly- this is about a third of the US population.
• The recent Edison Research indicates that at least 116 million Americans listened to a podcast last month.
• Sixty-eight million Americans listen to podcasts per week.
• 66% of US podcast fans range between 12-34 years.
• According to Infinite Dial, 51% of American podcast listeners are male.
• Approximately half of the podcast listeners aged 35-44 and a fifth of those over 65 years listening to a podcast monthly.
• The ethnic breakdown of US podcast listeners is as follows: White- 57%, Hispanic- 16%, African American- 13%, other ethnicities- 10%, Asian- 4%. The podcast audience continues to diversify, with people of different nationalities besides white increasing.

3. Most Podcast Listeners Discover Podcasts Through Directories

Your average podcast listener uses various ways to discover new podcasts.

• The most popular way to discover podcasts is through podcast directories such as Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and Google Podcasts. Podcast directory searches account for 52.6% of new podcasts discoveries.
• 22.1% follow recommendations from friends, while 14.5% follow recommendations from podcast hosts on other shows.
• 5.5% use Google search results.
• 3.5% discover podcasts by following podcast guests from one podcast to another.
• Lastly, about 1.7% ask for recommendations from other social media users.

For anyone looking to get into podcasting or those seeking to grow their podcast audience, this information shows the areas to optimize visibility.

4. Most People Listen to Podcasts Using Mobile Devices

87.6% of the people listen to podcasts using mobile devices. 7% of podcast fans listen to podcasts using web browsers, computers, and laptops. At the same time, 0.9% use a smart speaker, and 0.5% use intelligent TVs.

Since podcast consumers listen to a podcast as they conduct other activities, it makes sense that mobile phones are the most popular device to listen to podcasts.

A further breakdown of the devices revealed

• 66.4% use Apple iPhone
• 19.5% use Android phone
• 4.8% use Windows computer
• 1.9% use Apple computer

This information is helpful while creating marketing strategies.

5. The Average Podcast Listener in the US Listens to Podcasts From Their Car

In the US, 49% of fans listen to podcasts at home.

22% of podcast listeners tune in to shows while driving or commuting.

62% listen to podcast audio in their cars using their mobile phones.

8% listen to podcasts while working out.

Additionally, 19% of people speed up the audio while listening to podcasts.

6. Podcast Fans Spend a Lot of Time Podcast Listening

Podcast stats on time spent listening to podcasts shows that podcast fans are loyal to this form of media and spend a lot of time binge-listening to podcasts.

Podcast listeners listen to at least 7 different podcasts per week, which explains the high number of weekly podcast listeners.

According to Infinite Dial, podcast listeners subscribed to about 6 podcasts last week.

80% of podcast listeners listen to all or almost the whole podcast episode they start.

7. Over 66% of American Podcast Listeners Have a College Degree

Edison Research podcast statistics show that more than 66% of podcast listeners in the US have at least a college degree. Further, these listeners earn an average annual household income of $75,000 and above.

8. People Who Listen to Podcasts Are More Likely Not To Consume Traditional TV

Podcast listeners are more likely to subscribe to streaming platforms like Netflix. This behavior in podcast consumers suggests that they're less likely to consume traditional TV thus have less exposure to that form of ads.

9. Podcast Listeners Are More Likely To Interact With Newer Tech Gadgets

Podcast listeners are likely to have smart speakers. With the increase of intelligent speaker ownership by 22% since the pandemic onset, podcast listeners can use them to listen to podcasts. In their business strategies, brands in tech should pay more attention to podcast audiences.

10. Social Media Drives Podcast Discoveries

Integrating social media channels with your podcast is necessary to grow your audience. People discover podcasts through social media mentions. At the same time, podcast listeners are highly likely to follow brands they find out through podcast listening on other social media platforms.

What About Podcast Platforms?

11. The Most Popular Podcast Directory Is Still Apple Podcasts

• Apple Podcasts has the highest number of podcasts, accounting for 35.7%.
• Spotify hosts 27.9%
• Web browser hosts 2.8%
• Google Podcasts has 2.5%

These podcast hosting platforms are popular among podcasters because they provide backend data. For example, a platform like iTunes provides information through an analytics tool on the number of people who listened to podcasts, the number of subscribers, the location of the audience, and the specific number of times consumers listen to episodes.

12. Most Americans Use Spotify App to Listen to Podcasts

25% of podcast listeners aged 18 years and above listened to a podcast on Spotify, while 20% used Apple podcasts. Podcast listeners aged between 18 and 34 prefer using Spotify, while those aged below 18 and above 34 prefer using Apple podcasts.

Many podcast listeners enjoy podcast listening because you can play podcast episodes on demand. The option to download episodes makes it very convenient to consume the content on the go and anytime.

How About Podcast Advertising and Revenue?

13. Podcast Advertising Is Effective for Businesses

According to statistics, podcast advertising is highly effective for all brands and businesses.

• Podcast stats reveal that after listening to a podcast ad, at least 60% of people who listen to podcasts have been influenced to purchase something.
• 81% of the respondents in the study claimed that podcast ads had more influence on their purchasing decisions than social media ads and other forms of advertising.

Edison Research conducted a study of podcast ads on super listeners who are American podcast listeners aged 18+ who listen to podcasts for more than five hours weekly. The information from the study gives more insight into the trends and performance of podcast ads.

• 49% of super listeners said they believed that podcast hosts had used the products and services they endorse on their shows.
• However, 22% felt podcasts had too many ads compared to other forms of media, and pre-recorded podcast ads were unpopular.
• 94% are likely to subscribe to premium content.

14. US Podcast Advertisers Spent $1.3 billion in 2021

The biggest podcast advertiser in the US, BetterHelp, spent $76.9 million on podcast ad placements in 2021. The second-largest spender in podcast ads was NBCUniversal spent $27.7 million. Combined, the top 10 US podcast advertisers spent about $300 million.

According to eMarketer, in 2021, podcast ad spending increased by 51.3% to get to $1.3 billion. 

In the US, health and fitness brands especially have advertised their products on podcasts. Initially, brands were spending on advertisements on big podcasts, but now even smaller podcasts with reach have brands paying them to promote their products.

15. Podcast Ad Spending is Projected to Rise to About $3 billion by 2025

From the $1.3 billion ad spend in 2021, eMarketer predicts that the spending will rise to $2 billion by 2023 and rise higher in the next two years reaching close to $3 billion by 2025.

Podcast hosts also seem to have built trust with their audiences such that podcast listeners buy products advertised on shows.

This trust coupled with the seemingly high purchasing power of many podcast listeners in the United States and other countries such as Canada explains the increase in podcast ad spending among brands. Podcast ads are effective for businesses.

16. The Joe Rogan Experience is the Highest-Paid Podcast

The Joe Rogan Experience, the largest podcast in the US, makes around $75,000 per episode. The show has three episodes every week, so you can easily see why this would be the highest-earning podcast in the country.

What Is Happening on the International Podcast Front?

17. South Korea Has a Large Portion of Its Adult Population Listening to Podcasts Weekly

South Korea has a significant rapid uptake of podcast listening. 58% of adults in South Korea listen to podcasts monthly. This means South Korea has a more substantial portion of its population listening to podcasts than even the United States despite the US still having higher numbers.

• Podcasting is prominent in the United States, and the number of people who listen to podcasts continues to grow globally.
• Other global podcast stats indicate that about 9 million Canadians aged over 18 years listening to a podcast every month. At least 28% of Canadian podcast listeners have an annual household income of a minimum of $100,00.

18. Top 10 Countries With the Highest Number of Podcast Listeners

1. United States -51.5%
2. United Kingdom- 6.7%
3. Canada- 5%
4. Australia- 4.3%
5. Mexico- 3%
6. Germany- 2.4%
7. Netherlands- 1.4%
8. India- 1.4%
9. Colombia- 1.3%
10. Turkey- 1.1%

19. Latin America Promises Much Growth in Podcasting

Podcast statistics indicate the potential for sizeable growth of the podcast industry in Latin America, especially Spain, due to the increase in Spanish podcasts.

What About Podcast Episodes?

20. Most Podcasts are 20-40 Minutes Long

While there's no stipulated podcast length, about 30% of podcasts run for 20-40 minutes, 21% run for 40-60 minutes, 18% for over an hour, 15% for 10-15 minutes, and 15% run for less than 10 minutes. 

It's not shocking that most podcasts range from 20 to 40 minutes because, given that most people listen to pod episodes during their commute or while doing household tasks, this length works well.

21. Most Podcasts Publish Episodes Every 8-14 Days

40% of podcasts publish episodes every 8-14 days, 36% put up an episode every 3-7 days, 17% take 15-29 days, 6% take 0-2 days, while 1% post a new episode after more than 30 days.

The podcast audience wants regular new content to keep them engaged. Leading podcasts know that you shouldn't keep your fans waiting for too long otherwise, you will lose that connection.

22. Which Is the Most Popular Podcast?

Based on Edison Research podcast statistics of Q3 2020- Q2 2021, The Joe Rogan Experience is the #1 podcast according to the number of weekly and monthly podcast listeners. The Daily and Crime Junkie come in second and third, respectively.

The top 10 podcasts in the US include:

1. The Joe Rogan Experience
2. The Daily
3. Crime Junkie
4. This American Life
5. Stuff You Should Know
6. My Favorite Murder
7. Pod Save America
8. Serial
9. Office Ladies
10. Call Her Daddy

23. Comedy Is the Most Popular Podcast Genre?

Many people listen to podcasts for entertainment. Comedy is the most popular genre of podcasts among US podcast listeners. It's not a surprise that the leading podcast, The Joe Rogan Experience, is hosted by a comedian and some of the guests are also comedians.

The top 10 most popular podcast genres include:

• Comedy -22%
• News- 21%
• True Crime- 18%
• Sports- 17%
• Health and Fitness- 17%
• Religion and faith- 17%
• Politics- 16%
• Self Help- 15%
• Investigative Journalism- 13%
• Finance- 13%

So if you're considering starting a podcast, these are some of the genres you could consider.

What Should You Expect in the Future?

24. There Will Be Over 100 Million People Listening to Podcasts in the US by 2025

In the United States, podcast listeners have risen significantly over the last five years. More Americans are consuming audio content as many podcasts crop up every year. 

Projections on the growth of the podcast audience suggest that there will be over 144 million Americans listening to podcasts by 2025. There could be about 20 million new podcast listeners every year from 2021.

25. There Will Be More Interaction between Tech Business and the Podcasting Industry

Tech products have been helpful to people recording podcasts. Data shows that 67% of podcast recorders use the software while 74% use microphones during recording and post-production. 

So, manufacturers of tech gadgets ought to consider both podcast recorders and listeners. Further, if you're looking to venture into podcasting, this tech element is something you should also keep in mind.

Additionally, tech companies like Apple, YouTube, and Spotify are already seeing an increase in users due to podcasts, and we expected this to happen on other platforms.

26. The Demographics of Podcast Listeners Will Keep Diversifying

As we have already gathered from the Edison Research findings, the demographics of the podcast audience keep diversifying. Currently, the number of Hispanic podcast listeners has risen and that of female listeners.

Podcast content has become so diverse that people can get information on anything. As a result of the content diversification and the convenience of listening to the audio, the number of podcast listeners will continue to grow exponentially.

The growth of podcast listeners will mean different subgroups of people will add to the old as more listen to podcasts monthly. It's projected that the coming years will see a significant number of older people listen to podcasts.

27. Podcast listeners account for 20.3% of internet users in the world, which is close to 425 million people

Conclusion

The latest podcast statistics show that podcast consumption is on the rise. More people are interacting with audio content because, unlike reading blog posts or watching, you can listen to audio content as you carry on with other activities. It's not a wonder that many podcast listeners listen to a podcast while driving or performing other household chores.

The podcast statistics show that businesses should focus on the podcast industry. The industry has great potential for content creators, brands, businesses, and tech companies, as the number of podcast listeners continues to increase every year. As more and more people stated they have listened to at least one podcast in their life. The podcast stats should help you make critical decisions if you fall under these categories.