65 Podcast Listener Statistics: 2026 Trends, Growth, Rank, ROI + Facts

People are talking and they’re listening. Millions every day, hungry for insights, stories, and ideas that actually stick.

If you’re not in front of them, your message dies in the noise. Emails go unopened. Social posts scroll by. Opportunities vanish.

Podcasting is popular for a reason.

It’s where attention lives, where authority is built, and where audiences engage on a level no other medium allows.

These 65 podcast listener statistics show exactly who’s listening, how often, and what they crave. 

Coaches, consultants, and authors who study these numbers don’t just understand the industry. 

They get booked, seen, and remembered.

10 Key Podcast Listening Stats (Summary)

Only got a hot minute? Here’s a quick look at the most important data points about podcast listener statistics:

1. Listeners worldwide: There are over 584.1 million listeners globally (eMarketer, 2025).
2. Podcast advertising: Ad spending is projected to hit $4.46 billion worldwide (eMarketer, 2025).
3. Listen to podcasts: 70% of the US population has listened to a show at least once (Infinite Dial, 2025).
4. Podcast consumption: The average listener consumes eight episodes per week (Infinite Dial, 2025).
5. Podcast app: Spotify and Apple Podcasts remain the top platforms for consumption (Buzzsprout, 2025).
6. Monthly podcast listeners: 55% of Americans aged 12+ listen monthly (Infinite Dial, 2025).
7. Mobile usage: 91% of Americans own a smartphone, driving on-the-go listening (Buzzsprout, 2025).
8. Video podcast: 31% of podcasters now publish video episodes (Independent Podcast Report, 2025).
9. Podcast growth: The industry is expected to grow by roughly 48% through 2029 (Statista, 2025).
10. Active podcasts: There are over 440,000 active shows on Apple Podcasts (Podcast Industry Insights, 2025).

How Many Listeners Does a Podcast Have? (And Does Listener Count Really Matter?)

Most podcasts get between 30 and 150 downloads per episode in their first 30 days. That’s the real-world baseline for the average show.

So yes, listener count matters. But only in context.

What separates a hobby podcast from a serious growth asset is not just how many listeners a podcast gets. It’s whether those listeners turn into attention, authority, and action for your business.

That’s why benchmarks exist. They give you a reality check and a reference point for whether your show is struggling, average, or quietly outperforming most of the market.

How many listeners is good for a podcast?

How you define “good listener numbers” depends on your goals. But compared to industry averages, here’s what strong performance actually looks like:

• Top 1%: About 4,615 downloads per episode in 30 days (Buzzsprout, 2025).
• Top 5%: Around 1,106 downloads.
• Top 10%: Roughly 472 downloads.
• Top 25%: More than 115 downloads.
• Top 50%: Just 30+ downloads already puts you ahead of half of all podcasts.

In other words, most shows are much smaller than people think.

Downloads give you scale. Engagement tells you impact. The strongest podcasts combine both.

How can I see how many listeners a podcast has?

You can check podcast numbers and performance using different analytics tools:

1. Apple Podcasts for Creators: Shows unique listeners and plays for creators.
2. Spotify for Creators: Use its dashboard to track listener numbers and trends.
3. Buzzsprout: Reveals downloads by episode and geography.
4. Libsyn: Break down podcast download data worldwide.
5. Podtrac: Measure impressions for certified podcast host shows.
6. Rephonic: Pulls see how many listeners estimate across platforms.
7. Podscan.fm: Scans for measuring podcast mentions and reach.
8. Castbox: Has analytics for shows on that podcast app.
9. Blubrry: Provides detailed podcast listener report breakdowns.

65 Podcast Listener Statistics

If you’re thinking about guesting on podcasts or launching your own show, these numbers answer the only question that matters: Is there still demand?

Use these 65 podcast listener statistics to pressure-test your strategy, spot real opportunities, and position yourself where attention already lives.

These are the numbers that decide whether podcasting stays a side project or scales beyond what you could expect.

Podcast listener numbers

The data below shows how many people are listening now, how often they tune in, and how big this channel has already become worldwide and in the US.

1. Listeners worldwide: The number of listeners worldwide reached 584.1 million (eMarketer, 2025).
2. Podcast shows: Around 4.4 million podcast titles (over 400 million episodes) were published worldwide (Demand Sage, 2025).
3. Listeners in the US: In the US alone, an estimated 129.9 million people are tuning in (eMarketer, 2025).
4. Podcast listenership: Listenership has reached an all-time high with 47 million women listening monthly (Edison Research, 2025).
5. Podcast stats: Current data shows 53% of Americans 18+ listen every month (Buzzsprout, 2025).
6. Podcast industry: The market sees 90 million Americans listening weekly (Buzzsprout, 2025).
7. Listener numbers: Daily reach has grown significantly, with 18% of Americans 13+ listening every day (Edison Research, 2025).
8. Stats: General figures indicate 75% of the US population over 12 has listened to online audio recently (Buzzsprout, 2025).
9. Number of listeners: The total listeners in the US is projected to hit 254 million by 2027 (Statista, 2025).

Podcast listener numbers by podcast genre

Choosing the right podcast genre helps you reach your ideal listeners. You want to be where your audience is already paying attention.

1. Popular podcast genre: Comedy is the most popular category by share of listening hours at 30% (Backlinko, 2025).
2. Comedy audience: Most podcast listeners of comedy shows are male (60%) (Triton Digital).
3. Podcast genre in the US: News comes in second place as a dominant category (Edison Research, 2025).
4. Podcast genre: Society and Culture is another top performer for listener engagement (Edison Research, 2025).
5. Podcast content: True Crime captures roughly 10% of listening hours (Statista, 2025).
6. Different podcast: Health and fitness shows account for 18% of consumption (Priori Data, 2025).
7. Business: Business podcasts are increasingly popular for entrepreneurs (Edison Research, 2025).
8. Good podcast topics: If you’re starting a show, look for good podcast topics in the Arts or TV sectors (Edison Research, 2025).

Podcast listeners by country

It’s helpful to look at podcast listeners by country to understand global reach. Refer to these podcast statistics if you have an international base:

1. Podcast listeners by location: Latin America has 135 million listeners, leading in terms of new podcast listener gains (PodNews, 2025).
2. Podcast listener base: North America drives listener numbers, with 114 million listeners coming from the US alone (Statista, 2025).
3. Podcast listeners worldwide reached: China has hit 117.1 million listeners (eMarketer, 2025).
4. Major podcast: Brazil has a strong audience with 51.8 million listeners (eMarketer, 2025).
5. Listenership: The UK population has a 69% listenership rate (Edison Research, 2025).
6. Podcast growth: South Korea has 58% of adults listening monthly (Reuters, 2025).
7. Leading podcast: Countries like Chile, Argentina, and Peru are seeing rapid growth rates of about 45%-85% (Prioridata, 2025).
8. Multicultural podcast consumption: Cultural representation and bilingual formats are important factors in engaging Latino communities (Edison Research, 2024).

Podcast listener numbers on Spotify

If you want reach, growth, and future-proof distribution, Spotify is no longer optional.

The stats below show how large Spotify’s podcast audience is, how fast it’s growing, and why video podcasts are becoming a serious advantage on this platform.

1. Podcast listening: Spotify is the second most popular podcast listening app with 37.5% share (Buzzsprout, 2025).
2. Spotify: There are about 7 million podcast titles on the platform (Spotify, 2025).
3. Shift to video: There are about half a million video podcasts on Spotify, a 54% increase from the previous year (Spotify, 2025).
4. Video podcast: Over 270 million users have watched a video podcast on the app (Spotify, 2025).
5. Gen Z podcast: Gen Z listenership on the platform grew by 62% year-over-year (Analyzify, 2025).
6. Younger audiences: For new and younger listeners, Spotify is often their top choice for a first podcast app (Edison Research).
7. Listening surge: Teens aged 13-17 had the highest surge of listens back in 2023 (Statista).
8. Ad performance: Spotify campaigns using dynamic ad insertion saw a 90% increase in recall and 220% increase in brand awareness, showing its effectiveness (Nielsen).

Podcast listener rankings on Apple

Apple Podcasts still controls the largest share of global podcast downloads. 

The statistics below show how dominant Apple still is, how many shows live there, and why most serious podcasters optimize for Apple first.

1. Apple Podcasts: There are over 2.9 million shows hosted on the platform (Podcast Industry Insights, 2025).
2. Podcast episode: This directory hosts over 117 million individual episodes (Podcast Industry Insights, 2025).
3. Podcast download: Apple dominates with 70.8% of global downloads (Podcastatistics, 2025).
4. US listeners: 14% of the US audience tunes in via Apple Podcasts (Edison Research).
5. Active: 440,794 (15%) of Apple Podcast shows are currently active (Podcast Industry Insights, 2025).
6. Popularity: Apple is the top podcast listening app (37.5%) (Buzzsprout, 2025).
7. Listening devices: 64.9% of listeners tune into podcasts using an Apple iPhone (Buzzsprout, 2025).

Podcast listener demographics

These demographics show exactly who is listening, how old they are, how much they earn, and how attractive they are as buyers.

If you care about monetization, sponsorships, or client acquisition, this is the data that matters most.

1. Podcast listener demographics: The audience skews young, with 66% of people aged 12-34 listening monthly (Edison Research, 2025).
2. Demographics: 51% of monthly listeners in the US identify as male (Edison Research, 2025).
3. Listener demographics: Data shows 48% of the audience is female (Edison Research, 2025).
4. Podcast fans: Listeners are often well-educated, with 66% holding a college degree (Buzzsprout, 2025).
5. Podcast listeners in the US: Many listeners have a household income of over $75,000 (Buzzsprout, 2025).
6. Podcast consumer report: The audience is ethnically diverse, with 59% of African Americans listening (Buzzsprout, 2025).
7. Podcast listeners worldwide: The 35-54 age group is also growing steadily in consumption (Edison Research, 2025).
8. Number of podcast listeners worldwide: Young adults aged 25-34 are the core base (Triton Rankers, 2025).

Podcast audience statistics

People don’t just sample episodes. They binge them, finish them, and build real trust with hosts.

The stats below show how long listeners stay tuned, how often they listen, and why podcast audiences convert so well for ads, offers, and brand growth.

1. Podcast audience: 73% of consumers have listened to or watched an episode at least once (Infinite Dial, 2025).
2. Weekly podcast: The average fan listens to about eight episodes (Infinite Dial, 2025).
3. Engaged listeners: 70% of listeners complete most or all of a 30-60-minute episode (FasterCapital, 2025).
4. Listen to podcasts: People spend an average of 7 hours per week listening (Prioridata, 2025).
5. Download numbers: Listeners download an average of 5.6 episodes (Triton Rankers).
6. New releases: Almost 46% of listeners tune in to new episodes within 24 hours of their release (Analyzify).
7. Emotional connection: 80% of listeners trust their favorite host, as if listening to the advice of a close friend (Acast and Nielsen).
8. Podcast ROI: Because of the high level of engagement, podcast ads drive a 4.2x ROAS, one of the highest returns among marketing channels (Acast).
9. Ad tolerance: 50% of casual listeners don’t mind podcast ads if they’re relevant and placed well (Acast).

Podcast listener behavior and trends

Podcast listeners follow predictable habits about when they listen, how they listen, and what makes them take action. These industry statistics also show you the impact of podcasting:

1. Listener behavior: 93% of consumption happens via headphones (University of California, 2025).
2. Podcast content: 70% of weekly consumers listen on a smartphone (Cumulus Media, 2025).
3. When to listen: About 38% of podcast listeners tune in while driving (Podcastle).
4. Listener engagement: 49% of people listen while doing chores (YouGov, 2025).
5. Pay attention to podcast ads: Listeners trust host-read ads more than other formats (Quill Podcasting, 2025).
6. Action after hearing a podcast: 46% of people take action after an ad (DesignRush, 2025).
7. Marketing plans: 51% of marketers included podcasts in their marketing strategy (HubSpot).
8. Popularity of video: If you start a podcast, consider recording videos. 51% prefer it because they enjoy watching the expressions and reactions of hosts and guests (WARC).

You can also check podcast discovery stats to see how people find new shows.

How to Get More Podcast Listeners

You want to grow your podcast and reach more people, even if you’re starting from zero. Here’s how to use listener stats to make better decisions:

1. Analyze your podcast host analytics: Your podcast host provides the most accurate data. Use it to see where listeners drop off.
2. Learn what podcast consumers listen to: Understand the types of podcasts that are most listened to in your niche. 
3. Choose top podcast genres: Pick a popular podcast genre like comedy or news to draw a steady listenership.
4. Match based on demographics: If your audience covers younger listeners or primarily male audiences, create content they’re interested in.
5. Follow the ideal podcast duration: Keep episodes 20-40 minutes, just like 30% of successful podcasts.
6. Optimize every podcast episode: Make sure every podcast episode title is catchy and crawlable by search engines to be discovered.
7. Guest on other popular podcast shows: Grow quickly by getting in front of new audiences and boosting your reputation as an expert. Log in to Talks and find related shows you can hop onto.
8. Distribute on top platforms: Be present on Spotify and Apple Podcasts, where most weekly listeners gather (based on podcast platform data).
9. Publish consistently: Aim for weekly or bi-weekly drops matching 39% of podcasts. 

Listen to the Data

Podcast listener statistics all point to the same conclusion: podcasting is one of the fastest ways to build authority, trust, and long-term audience growth.

If you don’t have a podcast yet, or you’re not actively guesting on shows, you’re leaving attention, influence, and deal flow on the table.

The data shows people listen. The data shows they trust hosts. The data shows they take action.

The missing piece for most creators isn’t talent or ideas. It’s access to the right shows and the right guests.

That’s where Talks comes in.

Talks is a free AI-powered podcast matching platform that helps you:

• Find podcast guests who fit your show and audience
• Get matched with relevant hosts for guest appearances
• Automate outreach and follow-ups
• Book interviews faster without cold pitching

Create a FREE Talks Creators Profile and start matching with top podcasts in just 5 minutes!