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Podcast Statistics 2025: 99+ Stats & Insights [Expert Analysis]
- November 4, 2025
- 3:15 pm
Table of Contents
Global Podcast Market & Growth
The global podcast market was valued at ~$23B in 2023.
It’s projected to grow to $130B+ by 2030.
There are over 5 million podcasts available worldwide.
There are over 70 million podcast episodes published.
30% of all podcast shows have fewer than 10 episodes (many don’t continue).
Podcasting continues to grow at ~12–18% CAGR globally.
62% of people have listened to at least one podcast.
42% of internet users listen to podcasts monthly.
Mobile listening accounts for 79% of podcast consumption.
Smart speakers are used for listening by around 12% of podcast audiences.
Podcast Listener Demographics
50–55% of podcast listeners are aged 18–34.
48% male, 52% female listenership globally (estimated).
Podcast listeners are more likely to have a college degree than average.
Podcast listeners are 36% more likely to earn $75,000+ per year.
63% of podcast audiences are employed full-time.
18% of listeners are students (estimated).
Urban listeners make up 54% of total listeners.
Suburban listeners account for 32%, rural 14% (estimated).
Parents make up ~45% of podcast listeners.
Podcasts are popular among multitaskers — 62% listen while doing other tasks.
Listening Habits
Average listener subscribes to 7 podcasts at a time.
Listeners consume ~8 episodes per week on average.
82% of podcast listeners listen while on the move.
60% of listeners discover podcasts via social media or recommendations.
58% listen at 1.25x–1.75x playback speed (estimated).
44% listen to most of an episode without skipping.
78% listen on smartphones.
22% listen on desktop/tablet/smart speaker combined.
Morning listening peaks between 6am–10am.
Evening relaxation listening peaks 8pm–11pm (estimated).
Podcast Engagement
Podcasts retain attention 2x longer than social video (estimated).
Average episode completion rate is ~70%.
Listeners spend ~7 hours/week with podcasts.
Long-form episodes (40+ min) have higher engagement than short-form.
Interview format is the most popular content style.
True crime, comedy, and business are the top 3 categories globally.
52% of listeners say they feel closer to podcast hosts than other media personalities.
Podcast hosts are considered more trustworthy than influencers by 59% of listeners.
Listener loyalty is high — most listeners stick to 3–5 favorite shows.
Audio-only still outperforms video-podcast engagement (estimated).
Podcast Advertising & Revenue
Podcast ad revenue hit ~$4.2B in 2024.
Forecast to exceed $10B+ by 2027.
Host-read ads perform 1.7x better than programmatic ad placements.
Podcast listeners are 68% more likely to consider products advertised.
45% have made a purchase decision based on podcast ads.
CPM rates average $18–$50 depending on audience niche.
True crime and business podcasts command the highest CPMs.
Niche B2B podcasts have CPMs up to $100+ (estimated).
Subscription + Patreon revenue grows 9–12% yearly.
Programmatic podcast advertising now accounts for 31% of ad spend.
Podcast Hosting & Production
Apple Podcasts and Spotify make up over 60% of listening share.
Spotify leads in non-U.S. podcast listening market share.
Riverside, Zoom, and SquadCast are widely used for remote recording.
90% of podcasts are recorded with USB or budget XLR microphones (estimated).
Average editing time per episode: 2–6 hours.
RSS hosting platforms are used by nearly all independent podcasters.
Buzzsprout, Anchor (Spotify for Podcasters), and Podbean are top hosting platforms.
Video podcasting (YouTube) is growing 35% faster than audio-only.
70% of new podcasts now publish video clips on social media.
Most podcasts are produced by teams of 1–3 people.
Podcast Episode Trends
Average episode length is ~38 minutes.
Episodes released weekly perform best for audience retention.
Daily shows have higher churn but faster growth (estimated).
Solo commentary episodes are rising in popularity.
Scripted narrative podcasts have the highest production cost per episode.
Podcast trailers increase subscription rates by 23–35%.
Clipped highlights drive up to 60% of new listener acquisition on TikTok/Shorts.
Episode titles under 60 characters perform best.
Show art strongly impacts listener click-through rates.
Adding chapter markers boosts completion rates by ~8% (estimated).
Industry Patterns & Success Factors
Podcasts with consistent posting schedules grow 3x faster.
Guests with existing audiences can boost downloads by 20–300%.
Collaborations between podcasts are one of the top growth strategies.
SEO for episode titles adds ~15% organic discovery (estimated).
Email newsletter integration boosts long-term retention by ~22%.
Podcast websites improve search visibility significantly.
Podcasters who publish transcripts gain 12–28% more organic traffic.
Podcast networks increase advertising revenue potential.
Cross-platform social promotion is now required for growth.
Niche-focused podcasts outperform general-interest shows long-term.
YouTube + Video Podcasting
YouTube is now the #1 discovery platform for podcasts.
47% of podcast listening happens on YouTube.
Video podcasts grow 2–3x faster than audio-only shows.
Short-form clips are the #1 audience growth driver in 2025+.
Podcasts with multi-camera setup gain higher perceived authority.
Captions increase video podcast engagement by ~20%.
Live podcast recordings create stronger community engagement.
YouTube thumbnails significantly impact click-through performance.
Comment section engagement influences recommendations.
Podcast episodes above 20 minutes rank better in YouTube search.
Indie Podcasting Trends
91% of podcasts are independently produced (not corporate).
Only ~1% of podcasts get 100,000+ downloads per episode.
A podcast with 1,000 downloads per episode is already top 20% globally.
Top 1% podcasts begin monetizing heavily around 10k downloads/episode.
Sound quality impacts listener retention more than show topic.
Many podcasts fade after 10 episodes (“podfade”).
Publishing consistency is the #1 predictor of podcast survival.
Community-building is key to sustained audience growth.
Podcasters who repurpose episodes into blogs grow faster.
Podcasting remains one of the highest-trust media formats online.
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About the author, Bill Nash
Bill Nash is the CMO of Marketing LTB with over a decade of experience, he has driven growth for Fortune 500 companies and startups through data-driven campaigns and advanced marketing technologies. He has written over 400 pieces of content about marketing, covering topics like marketing tips, guides, AI in advertising, advanced PPC strategies, conversion optimization, and others.