Podcast Viewing Surges On YouTube

YouTube viewers streamed more than 700 million hours of podcasts on living room devices like smart TVs in October 2025—nearly doubling the 400 million hours from October 2024, according to the platform.

Steve McLendon, YouTube's head of podcast products, shared the figure in a recent Bloomberg interview, calling the living room a "bright spot" for podcast consumption and noting that video podcasts are increasingly filling the role of traditional late-night TV.

The spike highlights YouTube's ongoing efforts to optimize podcasts for big-screen viewing, including enhanced discovery features and official charts. It contributes to the platform's broader milestone of 1 billion monthly podcast viewers worldwide in 2025, with TV viewing emerging as a major growth driver in the competitive podcast and streaming landscape.

A major surge came from TV viewing, where podcasts became a "breakthrough" format for big-screen consumption. In October 2025, viewers streamed over 700 million hours of podcasts on living room devices (smart TVs and connected screens), nearly doubling the 400 million hours from October 2024.

 

This shift positioned video podcasts as an evolution of traditional late-night TV or talk shows.

YouTube's push for video-first features accelerated adoption: Video podcast channels grew 33% year-over-year, retention rates were 2.7x higher than audio-only, and shows with visuals saw stronger engagement. Key enhancements included better TV interfaces, official U.S. podcast charts (based on watch time), and tools for easier discovery and binge-watching.

Top podcasts highlighted the trend toward long-form, personality-driven video content. 

YouTube's 2025 U.S. rankings (by total watch time, excluding clips/Shorts) included:

#1: The Joe Rogan Experience (long-form interviews with high-profile guests)
#2: Kill Tony (live comedy podcast with guests and band)
#3: Good Mythical Morning (video-only entertainment/talk show by Rhett & Link)
Other notables: Rotten Mango (true crime), Club Shay Shay (interviews), and New Heights (sports talk).

Genres like comedy, true crime, political commentary, and interviews thrived, with video enabling viral clips and broader repurposing for social media