Nielsen continues releasing the January 2026 PPM radio ratings with the figures representing a return to a typical "normal" rating period after the holiday-inflated December results.
San Francisco: Santa Had His Moment
The top music station was USC Classical KDFC (Classical California), which climbed to #3 with a slight dip to 4.9 (from 5.0). Bonneville AC KOIT (96.5) shed its holiday programming boost and fell from #1 to #4, dropping sharply to 4.7 (from 9.9).
Bonneville Hot AC KMVQ (99.7 NOW) held steady at #5 but posted its strongest share in over a year, rising to 4.6 (from 3.8). iHeartMedia AC KIOI (Star 101.3) delivered its largest share since May, jumping from #10 to #6 with a solid increase to 3.7 (from 2.7).
KOIT continued to lead in cume (total weekly listeners) despite a 27.1% decline to 985,900 (from 1,353,000); it remained below the million-listener mark, unlike last year at this time. Overall market listening was down 1.7%.
In the key 25-54 demographic, KQED returned to #1 after holiday-related dips. KMVQ advanced to #2 with its best book since August. Audacy Alternative KITS (Live 105) rose to #3 on a healthy gain. KOIT slipped from #1 to #4, while iHeartMedia Pop CHR KYLD (WiLD 94.9) stayed flat at #5.
ATLANTA: Santa Was Not A Big Deal
In the latest Nielsen Audio PPM survey for Atlanta (January 2026, covering roughly early January to early February), Cox Media News/Talk WSB-AM/WSBB-FM (WSB-A) held firm at #1 for the sixth consecutive book, climbing from 6.7 to 7.8.Cox Media Urban AC WALR (Kiss 104.1) stayed steady at #2, edging up from 6.4 to 6.7.
Cox Media Classic Hits/Classic Rock WSRV (97.1 The River) jumped three positions to #3—its strongest performance since September—with a solid gain from 5.7 to 6.4.Audacy Urban AC WVEE (V103) held #4 with a minor uptick from 6.1 to 6.2, while Urban One Urban AC WAMJ (Majic 107.5/97.5) climbed one spot to tie at #4 (also 6.0 to 6.2). Cox Media AC WSB-FM (B98.5) rebounded nicely to #6 after a softer prior book, rising from 4.8 to 5.8.
This survey marked the first holiday/seasonal transition for Audacy Rhythmic AC/Hot AC WSTR (Star 94), which had flipped to Christmas programming (filling in post the former "The Fish" Christian AC era). It had reached #3 last time with a 6.3 but settled at #11 this round after dropping to 3.8. Despite the 3.7-point decline in share, WSB-FM remained the overall cume leader (down slightly from 699,900 to 673,700).
In the key 25-54 demographic, WVEE continued its dominance, topping the category for the fifth straight survey. Audacy Sports WZGC (92.9 The Game) advanced to #2 with its best performance in over a year, though it still trailed its cluster mate WVEE by about 1.5 shares. WSB-FM surged from #6 to #3, recovering much of its previous book's sizable loss. WAMJ moved up to #4 with a modest gain, while WALR slipped from #2 to #5 after giving back a chunk of its prior increase. WSTR fell from #3 to #9 in the demo.
WASHINGTON D-C TOP Is Tops
iHeartMedia Alternative WWDC (DC101) edged up to #4 (4.8 to 5.4). It tied with Atlantic Gateway Contemporary Christian WGTS, which jumped from #6 to post its strongest performance in over a year (4.5 to 5.4). Meanwhile, iHeartMedia AC WASH—often dubbed Santa's favorite—tumbled from #2 to #6 (10.1 to 4.9), matching its November share.
WTOP also seized the top spot in cume, surging 4.5% (814,600 to 851,200 listeners).
In the key 25-54 demographic, WAMU reclaimed #1 after sitting out the prior two books, holding a roughly half-share lead over WTOP (which climbed two spots to #2 with its best showing in over a year). WWDC held steady at #3, delivering its largest share in over a year. WGTS advanced two positions to #4—yes, again its best book in over a year. WASH slipped from first to fifth with its smallest share since September, while WHUR eased to #6 with a minor dip.
Audacy Sports WIP (94WIP SportsRadio) rocketed from #4 to #1 in 6+ (5.5 to 8.5), surging post-holidays with strong momentum (including its stream contribution last book). Beasley Active Rock WMMR and Beasley Classic Rock WMGK tied at #2, WMMR reclaimed that position by snapping a two-book decline (5.9 to 7.1), while WMGK eased slightly (5.9 to 6.6).
Audacy News KYW charged from #9 to tie for #3 (3.6 to 6.6), delivering its strongest performance in over a year.
iHeartMedia Urban AC WDAS held steady at #5 (5.3 to 5.7). Holiday powerhouse Audacy AC WBEB (B101) tumbled from #1 to #6 (17.0 to 5.4) after the seasonal reset, yet it retained the market's #1 cume spot despite a steep 39.5% drop (1,699,900 to 1,028,800).
In the 25-54 demo, Beasley Rock WMMR shook off the holiday dip to reclaim #1 after a two-book absence. Audacy Sports WIP leaped from #5 to #2 with its sharpest showing since February. WBEB slid from first to #3, while WHYY Inc. News/Talk WHYY climbed two spots to #4, posting its highest share in over a year. WDAS edged down to #5 with a modest gain, and EMF Contemporary Christian WKVP (K-LOVE 106.9) slipped from #3 to #6 amid a small share loss.
Boston: Patriot Wins For the Hub
Audacy AC WMJX (Magic 106.7) dropped sharply from #1 to #2 (13.5 to 6.2), as it returned to its regular adult contemporary format after a temporary shift. Beasley Classic Hits WROR (105.7) halted a three-book decline, climbing from #6 to #3 (4.6 to 5.5). iHeartMedia Pop CHR WXKS (Kiss 108) advanced from #7 to #4 (4.5 to 5.1).
iHeartMedia News/Talk WBZ-AM edged up slightly to #5 (4.8 to 5.0). Audacy Sports WEEI slipped to #6 (4.7 to 4.8), while Audacy Hot AC WWBX (Mix 104.1) fell to #7 (4.7 to 4.5). They were previously tied at #4 in the prior book. Joining the top ranks was Boston University News/Talk WBUR, which rose to tie or share the #7 spot (4.0 to 4.5).Despite its large decline (down 36.5%), WMJX retained the highest cume listeners (1,228,400 to 779,800).
In the key 25-54 demographic, WBZ-FM reclaimed #1 and returned to double-digit shares for the fourth time in the last 14 surveys. WWBX moved up to #2 with a modest gain, tying WXKS there—the latter posting its first increase since November (rising from #4). WMJX fell from #1 to #4 overall in the demo, while iHeartMedia Classic Rock WZLX held at #5 but posted its smallest share in a year.