Podcast Statistics and Data for 2022

The podcasting industry has grown immensely over the years. The primary reason for its success is the convenience it provides. This medium allows everyone worldwide to get information on every topic you can imagine while doing your daily work, whether it’s running, driving, cooking, or else.

Media groups like Triton Digital, Statistica, and Edison Research pass digital media surveys every year to understand listener behavior, measure trends and track podcast growth worldwide.

Podcastle has created a list of best podcast statistics to understand how it works, so you can be aware of the industry data and make decisions about your own podcast!

How prevalent are podcasts?

Podcasting began in the early 2000s and has grown steadily since then.  The appearance of smartphones and smart speakers (Google Home, Amazon Alexa, etc.) also influenced the industry's growth.

• -- In 2022, roughly 78% are acquainted with podcasting, and 62% of the population has listened to a podcast.
• -- During the last few months, 73% of the U.S. population have listened to online audio.
• -- Approximately one-third (104 million) of the U.S. population listens to a podcast regularly.
• -- The 43% of the audience ages 35-54 are podcast listeners on monthly bases.
• -- Weekly podcast listeners are around 28% (80 million) of Americans.
• -- 88% of Americans have a smartphone.
• -- The ownership of smart speakers grew by around 22% due to the Pandemic in 2018, as more people worked online.
• -- Podcasting had unprecedentedly grown during the Pandemic, and the audience of podcasts diversified.
• -- Americans start listening to podcasts each week more than creating Netflix accounts.

Who is listening to podcasts?

In 2011, 68% of listeners were white, but this has changed essentially.

Below is the ethnicity breakdown:

• -- 57% White
• -- 13% African American
• -- 16% Hispanic
• -- 4% Asian
• -- 10% Other

The United States has 47.9% of podcast listeners, the United Kingdom has 6.3%, and Canada with 5.0%.

Podcast Demography

There is no doubt that podcasts are popular in the U.S, but other counties also are growing in using this media.

• -- The Asia Pacific and North America have the major audience.
• -- In South Korea, 58% of adults listen to podcasts every month.
• -- In 2020 18% of adults listened to podcasts every week in the U.K.
• -- Nine million Canadians +18 listen to podcasts every month.
• -- The annual income of 28% of Canadian listeners is approximately $100,000 or more.
• -- Canada's podcast audience consists primarily of 18–34-year-olds.
• -- Italians between the ages of 18 and 34 listened to a podcast last year.
• -- The preferred genre of 45% of Italian listeners is music programs, and the second genre is news programs.
• -- In 2020, podcast awareness in Australia went up 4%.

According to statistics by Voxnest, podcasting is fast growing in the countries:

• -- Chile +83.9%
• -- Argentina +55.3%
• -- Peru +49.1%
• -- Mexico +47.8%
• -- China +43.6%

How do people listen to podcasts?

Most podcast consumers use their smartphones to stream content and listen to different episodes through major podcast apps like Apple or Spotify.

There are some other ways people listen to content:

• -- 13% of Americans listen to podcasts on a laptop or desktop.
• -- 73% of people listen to podcasts with their smartphones and cell phones.
• -- 32% of 18+ who have a car listen to a podcast in their vehicles.
• -- 18% of people 18+ own a smart entertainment system in their cars.
• -- 49% of people listen to podcasts at home.
• -- 22% of podcasters tune in a while commuting and driving.
• -- 11% of podcasters tune in at work.
• -- 8% of people listen to a podcast while exercising.

Which podcasts are most popular?

According to the statistics of Podcast Consumer Tracking Report, the top 10 podcasts are:

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

You can check more data in our blog.

Most popular podcast directories

Apple Podcasts is number one, including 38.7% of all podcast listeners and 40,348,623 downloads.

Spotify is currently number two, with 26.4% of podcast users and 27,453,741 downloads.

Let’s check other podcasting platforms:

• -- Google Podcasts 2.5%,
• -- Web Browser 2.8%,
• -- Buzzsprout embed player 1.5%,
• -- Castbox 1.7%,
• -- Podcast Addict 1.4%,
• -- Overcast 1.1%, and
• -- Apple iTunes 1.2%

Top podcast genres and shows

According to a podcast statistics study, 22% of podcast listeners prefer comedy. News is the second genre. Then comes true crime, health & fitness, and sports.

Podcast advertising performance and trends

Podcasts are a highly effective marketing tool for small businesses, big-name brands, and entrepreneurs who aim to grow their reach.

These statistics show the efficacy of the medium as a giant advertising platform:

• -- 60% of listeners bought something from a podcast ad.
• -- 72% of podcast listeners purchased a sponsored ad for four and more years.
• -- 69% of respondents state that podcast ads increased their awareness of brands, products, and services.
• -- 81% confirm they are more interested in ads than TV commercials, radio, or digital ads on social media or billboards.

Edison Research has passed the Super Listeners 2021 survey, which shows the advertising preferences of 1,000 people who listen to podcasts at least five hours a week. They found that:

• -- 49% of people believe that podcast hosts use the services and products they recommend.
• -- 30% said it's essential for them to limit their exposure to podcast advertising.
• -- 22% said podcast advertisements are more effective compared to other media forms.
• -- 51% of people say they are interested more in podcast ads than other media.

It is challenging to reach Super Listeners through traditional advertising methods, and these types of listeners are more responsive to the ad messaging with their favorite podcasts.

Final Thoughts
Of course, there are other podcast statistics that refer to various factors, and we selected the most valuable points. The growth of the podcast industry depends on the efforts of podcasters to understand the listeners’ needs, deliver qualified content, and share with the underserved audiences of all genders, ages, backgrounds, and races.