48 Podcast Statistics In 2023 (Listeners, Consumption & Trends) (2024)

We all witnessed how significant 2021 was for the podcasting industry. The addition of podcasters, listeners, and marketers was staggering! Podcasting’s ascend as a popular media continued in 2022, gathering 424.2 million listeners worldwide.

We are in 2023; the number of podcast listeners has reached 464.7 million. It’s important to keep track of the podcast industry’s progress. This understanding of 2023 podcast statistics will aid you in making informed decisions as a podcaster or a marketer this year.

Now let’s take a look at some of the most interesting podcasting statistics as of 2023 that we have compiled based on the most recent industry figures.

Podcast Statistics 2023 (Top Picks)

This section will serve as a TLDR section for the post. You can go through our top picks If you don’t have time to go through the complete article:

1. There are 464.7 million podcast listeners globally as of 2023. This number is predicted to reach 504.9 million by 2024.
2. The podcast industry market size is $23.56 billion.
3. There are over 5 million podcasts globally with over 70 million episodes between them.
4. Podcasta are available in over 150 languages.
5. Video Podcast production is now higher than ever.
6. Spotify and Apple podcasts are the two biggest podcast streaming services on the globe.
7. The United States has the most podcast listeners in the world. It is predicted that over 100 million active podcast listeners will be in the U.S. in 2023.
8. Scandinavian countries have the highest podcast penetration rate.
9. One-third of the American Population listens to podcasts regularly.
10. Smart speaker sales increased by 22% during the pandemic, and it is one the most popular channel to listen to podcasts.
11. 78% of the US population is aware of podcasts. Out of which, 28% listen to podcasts weekly.
12. 160 million US citizens have listened to podcasts at least once.
13. 91% of Australian people are aware of podcasts.
14. Podcast listening is highest in the morning, and most of the podcasts are listened to on a mobile phone.

In-depth Podcast Statistics

Now that we have seen the podcast stats in brief already, let us give you a closer look at the podcast scene in this section.

15. Number of Podcasts In The World.

There are over 5 million podcasts with over 70 million episodes between them as of 2023.

Spotify alone has around 5 million podcast titles on its platform.

16. The Number of Podcast Listeners (Podcast Popularity)

There are 464.7 million podcast listeners globally as of 2023.

It is predicted that there will be around 504.9 million podcast listeners worldwide by the end of 2024.

This is a considerable rise in number since 2019; there were 274.8 million podcast listeners in the world back then.

Here is a table showing the number of podcast listeners globally over the years:

17. Podcasts Are Growing The Fastest in These Nations

Voxnest’s study reveals that Chile is the fastest-growing nation in the podcasting scene.

Below is the list of Nations that are growing fast in the podcasting scene:

18. Podcasting Industry In USA will be worth $4 billion in 2024.

As of 2023, the podcasting industry in the United States is valued at $2 billion. The industry is expected be worth $4 billion in 2024.

19. Podcast Global Market Size (Revenue)

According to the market figures, the worldwide podcasting market is worth $23.56 billion in 2023 and is expected to increase at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 27.6% between 2023 and 2030.

Taking that CAGR into consideration, the podcast market size would be 38.36 billion in 2025 and 131.13 billion in 2030.

Here is a table showing the market size of the podcasting industry over the years:

20. 79% of Americans are aware of podcasting

As of 2023, 79% of the American population is aware of podcasts. If we take a look at 2006 numbers, It was just 20%

That is an increase of 59% in the span of 17 years.

21. Swedish People Consume Most Podcasts

47% of Swedish people claim that they have listened to at least one podcast in the previous year.

22. 91% of Australians know about podcasts

As per a study by infinite dial, 91% of Australians who are above the age of 12 are aware of podcasts.

23. 62% Million US Citizens Have Listened To a Podcast

More than 205.5 million US citizens have listened to a podcast at least once in their life.

When an identical survey was carried out back in 2006, only 29% of the American population listened to podcasts at least once in their life.

Here is a table showing the share of the U.S. population that has listened to podcasts over the years:

24. US Monthly and Weekly Podcast Listeners

41% of people in the USA tune into a podcast every month.

28% of the population do it weekly, and they consume around 11 episodes on average while they are at it.

As per a report by Insider Intelligence, around 144 million people in the U.S. listen to a podcast every month.

25. Gen Z Discovers Podcast More Than Twice The Rate of Other Age Groups

It’s a common misconception that podcast listeners are predominantly older. However, one Spotify fan study reveals a different reality. In fact, Gen Z is leading the way in consuming podcast content, with a rate more than double that of any other age group.

26. 22% of people listen to a podcast while driving

As per an infinite dial report, 22% of people tune into a podcast episode while they are commuting.

27. The Smartphone Is The Most Popular Device To Stream a Podcast

79% of people in the U.S.A. listen to a podcast from their smartphones.

It is no wonder as Around 280 million Americans access the internet via a smartphone.

1/4th of all Podcast listeners tune in via a web browser.

Only 6% of people use a tablet to listen to a podcast.

28. Most Popular Podcast Platforms

As per the latest studies, Spotify is the leader in podcast streaming.

Although Spotify has a bigger podcast library, many people around the globe use an iOS device and use apple podcast to tune into their favourite shows making it the second biggest player in podcast streaming

Spotify had recently surpassed Apple in the leaderboard, but Apple has come back to regain the top spot.

Here is the overview of the top Podcast streaming apps in 2023:

29. Apple Podcast Is King In Terms Of Podcast Downloads

Spotify might be the king when it comes to streaming podcasts, but when the topic is about downloading podcasts, Apple Podcasts take the lead.

Over 70% of all podcast episode download requests come from Apple Podcasts, which is much more than Spotify’s share of downloads which is 8.9%

Here is a table showing the most popular apps which users use to save podcasts offline:

30. Podcasts Are Most Popular among people aged 12-34

As per the Infinite Dial report, 50% of people between the age of 12 to 34 listen to podcasts every month.

31. Weekly Listeners average 8 podcast episodes

An average weekly US podcast listener listens to 8 episodes.

32. Podcast ranking and Listeners

Buzzsprout did a study in which they revealed that the top 1% of podcasts get an average of 3994+ downloads in the first 7 days of release.

Here is the overview of podcast ranks and the Average no. of downloads in the first 7 days of release:

33. Video Podcast Statistics

Video podcasts, also referred to as vodcasts, have become increasingly popular in recent years by offering a unique combination of audio and visual content that caters to diverse audiences. The increase in video podcast consumption corresponds with the overall growth of the podcasting industry.

Spotify and Apple have integrated video podcasting features into their platforms, highlighting the considerable market potential for this format.

Here are some interesting statistics about video podcasts:

• A study done by the podcast host revealed that just 17% of podcast hosts record their episodes in video format as well.

The survey also revealed that Just 10% of Podcasters go live.

• It is clear that the number of video podcasts is increasing rapidly. In November 2022, Podcast Index listed 39,194 video podcasts. In May 2023, this number has grown to over 50,800.

• According to a study by Riverside.fm, video podcasts can be up to 50% more engaging than audio podcasts.

34. Advertisem*nts from podcasts have been introduced 69% of listeners are to new products

A study done by the podcast host reveals that 69% of listeners claim to have been exposed to new brands and products as a result of ads from a podcast.

35. Number Of Podcasts on the top two listening platforms

Spotify has 5 million podcast titles in its library as of 2023.

As for Apple podcasts, the number stands at 2.5 million.

36. The Number One Podcast In The World

The Joe Rogan Experience is the number one podcast in the world. It’s a weekly podcast hosted by comedian and UFC commentator Joe Rogan. The show features long-form conversations with a wide range of guests across industries.

Do you know the famous clip where Elon Musk smokes marijuana? Yes, That’s from one of Joe Rogan’s podcasts.

The Joe Rogan Experience is exclusive to Spotify and has approximately 11 million listeners per episode.

Related Read: Best Joe Rogan Podcasts

37. Top Podcasts on Spotify

Here is the region-wise list of top Spotify podcasts.

• Top 5 Spotify Podcasts in the United States Of America

• Top 5 Spotify Podcasts in the United Kingdom

• Top 5 Spotify Podcasts in Australia

Source: https://podcastcharts.byspotify.com

38. Most Popular Podcast Genres

As per Statista, Comedy is the most popular podcast genre in the U.S.

Here is the complete list,

But this study is from 2020, and the trends have changed; although there is no official study as of 2023, here is my personal list!

I made this list after studying all the top 5 podcasts across various world regions.

39. Popular Podcast Genres in the UK.

Statista found out that people in the U.K. aged 25 to 34 loved Comical podcasts.

22% of the respondents voted for Comedy, and 10% voted for Football, which was the second most popular podcast genre in the UK.

40. International podcast Statistics

• Apple podcasts are the #1 choice of French podcast listeners. Deezer, a home-grown podcast listening platform, ranks second in France with 7% votes.

• Relatos de la Noche was the most downloaded podcast in Latin America, with 1.38 million downloads per week.

• Here is the overview of the top 3 downloaded podcasts in Latin America:

• Around 58% of South Korean adults tune into a podcast monthly

• More than 9 million Canadian adults are monthly podcast listeners

• 24% of listeners in Denmark tune in every week.

41. Podcast Duration Statistics

The majority of podcasts are 20-40 minutes long. Only 15% of podcasts are under the 10-minute mark.

Here is an overview of the average duration of podcasts

42. iHeartPodcasts is the leading podcast publisher in the United States

Publishers play an important role in the creation of podcasts. With 30.43 million unique monthly audience, iHearPodcasts is the top podcast publisher in the U.S.

‘Wondery’ and ‘NPR’ comes in the second and third spot with 25.51 and 18.25 million unique monthly audience, respectively.

Here is the list of the most popular podcast publishers in the United States as of 2023:

Bonus Podcast Statistics

Here is a list of additional interesting and important statistics associated with Podcasting.

43.) More people (18%) are listening to podcasts in 2023 than they did eight years ago.

44.) People prefer to listen to podcasts between 10:00 to 15:00. Podcast listening peaks from 08:15 to 08:30 a.m.

45.) households with $100,000 to $150,000 income account for about 17% of the total monthly podcast listeners in the USA.

46.) 51% of monthly podcast listeners have a full-time job, while 25% have a college degree.

47.) 59% of people tune into a podcast while doing something else simultaneously.

48.) 21.7% of podcast listeners are subscribed to over 70 podcasts.

Sources: Semrush, Statista, Edison Research, The podcast host.

Related Read:

Conclusion: Podcast Statistics (2023)

This is our take on podcast statistics as of 2023. The podcast scene is booming. Especially after the pandemic, the industry really took off. This is the set of the most up-to-date figures. We will update this space as more studies keep coming.

If you have other interesting statistics that we missed, please let us know in the comments; we would love to add them to the blog.

Sources:

• Statista
• Podcast Industry Insights
• Edison Research
• Voxnest
• The Verge
• What’s New In Publishing
• Insider intelligence
• The Podcast Host
• BuzzSprout
• Spotify
• Wikipedia
• The Podcast Exchange
• Semrush