Podcast Listeners Grow More Diverse

In the past six years, podcast audiences in the United States have grown more diverse. Data from Edison Research shows that older Americans, people of color as well as the non-college educated have taken to podcasts to a higher degree as the genre keeps expanded in size, scope and concerning the topics it covers.

As the following chart shows, the share of monthly podcast listeners among the population 55 years old and above in the U.S. has grown from just 13 percent in 2018 to 27 percent in 2024. While previously, just 11 percent of U.S. podcast listeners were Black, this has now changed to 15 percent - more in line with African-Americans' share of the U.S. population. The share of Latino listeners even doubled between 2019 and 2024. Another big jump up was among Americans who are not college educated. They now make up more than half of U.S. podcast listeners, up from just 39 percent in 2018, as podcasts existed a more white, affluent and educated audience and entered the mainstream. Now, an estimated 135 million Americans listen to podcasts on a monthly basis, up from 73 million six years ago.

The rise in popularity of podcasts hasn’t gone unnoticed by the advertising industry. According to estimates by IAB and PwC, podcast advertising revenue in the U.S. will reach $2.2 billion this year and grow to more than $2.6 billion by 2026. Podcasts give brands a chance to get their message across to their audience in a way that is sometimes described as personal and less intrusive than other forms of advertising. Most podcast ads are read by the host, which has the positive side-effect of projecting the host’s credibility onto the advertised product/service.