Tuesday, June 17, 2025

Study: In Spite of Video, Podcast Listeners Use Mix Of Platforms


Cumulus Media in partnership with Signal Hill Insights, Monday released Cumulus Media and Signal Hill Insights’ Podcast Download – Spring 2025 Report, a comprehensive evaluation of the latest podcast audience trends. This fourteenth edition of the study examining the habits of weekly podcast consumers is part of Cumulus Media’s commitment to share insights and research findings with the podcast community.
 
A key finding uncovered in the Podcast Download Report is that audio remains the primary mode of podcast consumption despite growing video options and the rise of YouTube as a podcast platform.

“First and foremost, podcast consumption remains an auditory experience,” said Liz Mayer, Senior Insights Manager of the Cumulus Media | Westwood One Audio Active Group®. “There is no denying that YouTube is playing an important role in the podcast ecosystem, especially when it comes to discovering new podcasts. However, over half of weekly podcast consumers indicate they consume via audio primarily. So while the new video capabilities are exciting and need to be focused on, the industry can’t forget that it’s what consumers are hearing that is most important.”

“While audio remains the predominant way to consume podcasts, the increased interest in and availability of video podcasts shouldn't be ignored,” said Paul Riismandel, President of Signal Hill Insights. “Consequently, we now see that smart TVs are the next most used device for consuming podcasts, second only to smartphones. This trend has the potential to spark even more co-listening between friends and family.”




The Spring 2025 edition reveals valuable insights for content creators and advertisers. Some highlights from the report: 
  • Audio remains the primary mode of podcast consumption (58%) despite growing video options
  • YouTube is the leading podcast platform, yet it is not a walled garden as consumers listen to podcasts across multiple platforms
  • Driven by Podcast Newcomers, watchable podcasts have grown in popularity
  • Podcast discovery: YouTube is the place to be found; 44% of new podcast audiences started listening on YouTube
  • Downloads and listens underestimate the actual audience: The current download impression model fails to account for co-listening
  • 75% of weekly podcast consumers will go back and consume episodes they’ve missed, while 70% of weekly podcast consumers consume episodes within 24 hours after release
  • Podcast advertising captures hard-to-reach, ad-free video streamers
  • Why podcast advertising works so well: Podcasts hosts are 3X more influential than social media influencers
  • Advertiser adoption of podcast ads continues to grow at a breakneck pace: Advertiser Perceptions reveals use of podcasts has jumped from 15% to 59% in the past decade
Cumulus Media and Signal Hill Insights’ Podcast Download – Spring 2025 Report is available in full for download at CumulusPodcastNetwork.com.

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