Some might argue that the podcast market is oversaturated. But equally, their omnipresence is a testament to their success. As the podcast business booms, it shows no signs of slowing down. Edison Research’s latest Infinite Dial report shows the incredible stats on how much people love podcasts.
The report tracks digital media trends and how we consume our digital media. In order to achieve this, the company invited 5,020 people to take a survey. Respondents were split into three age categories: 12-34, 35-54, and 55 and over.
Everyone Is Listening To Podcasts
Some of the most striking findings of the report are the fact that more than half of people aged 11 and up have now watched at least one video podcast, while 70% of US users have listened to a podcast.
Furthermore, 48% of Americans say that they’ve both listened to and watched a podcast, 55% said they consume podcasts monthly, and a further 48% reported that they consume video podcasts monthly.
Audio podcasts were shown to be more popular than video podcasts, with 79% reporting that they listen to audio podcasts monthly.
In terms of what platform consumers preferred, 34% use Spotify, and 21% use YouTube Music.
Unsurprisingly, the report also found that 90% of people aged 11-34 listen to podcasts. This was the highest level of engagement across all cohorts. Still, the number of over-55s consuming audio podcasts has increased by 11% year-on-year from 52% to 63%. The report also shows that their platform of choice is YouTube (33%) over Spotify (26%).
Their reliance on YouTube as a podcast platform has also risen from 27% to 38%.
Video Podcasts Are Quickly Gaining Popularity
In a statement, Edison Research VP Megan Lazovick said: “The reality is that the overwhelming majority of people who watch podcasts will say that they are podcast listeners.”
“But as more people discover the platform via video, it’s smart to think about it as consumption instead of just listening. That is not intended at all to undercut the magic of audio-only content. There’s room for both video and audio in the world of podcasts.”
Clearly, podcasts are able to reach all kinds of audiences, so if you haven’t already, it’s well worth trying. You can start by checking out our guide on how to launch a podcast on Spotify.
