U.S. podcast advertising revenue in the U.S. 2015-2026

Podcast advertising in the United States generated more than 1.9 billion U.S. dollars in revenue as of 2023. This marked a five percent increase from the previous year's value of 1.8 billion. Podcast ad revenue was expected to further increase to 2.6 billion by 2026. 

Brand awareness ads grow presence in podcasts

Direct response ads, in which consumers are encouraged to visit a website or use a code from a sponsor, generated most of the podcast ad revenue in the U.S. in 2021. They remained the leading campaign type in podcasting. However, brand awareness ads appeared as a growing go-to option, with a 46 percent share in the 2021 revenue, against 26 percent in 2016.

Podcast: popularity on the rise

Eight out of 10 Americans aged 12 years or above are aware of podcasting in 2022. Over 60 percent of U.S. consumers in this same age group listened to audio podcasts in the country, more than double from a decade ago. The series of audio files made available on the internet deal with various topics and are typically released episodically. In September 2021, iHeartRadio ranked as the most popular podcast publisher in the United States, with a unique audience of 30 million listeners that month.