US Podcast Consumption reaches record high: The Infinite Dial® 2025

The percentage of Americans who have consumed a podcast has reached an all-time high, according to The Infinite Dial® 2025, released by Edison Research with support from Audacy, Cumulus Media, and SiriusXM Media.This latest installment is part of the longest-running annual survey of digital media consumption in the United States.

Now in its 27th year, The Infinite Dial is widely recognized as a trusted industry benchmark for media consumption habits. Presented by Megan Lazovick, Edison Research Vice President, alongside James Cridland, Editor of Podnews, the study highlights critical insights into podcast consumption, online audio trends, in-car audio usage, smart speaker usage, social media behaviors, and other digital media habits.

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Key Findings from The Infinite Dial 2025:

Podcast Consumption Reaches an All-Time High

• 70% of Americans age 12+ have listened to a podcast.

• 51% of those Americans age 12+ have watched a podcast.

• 73% of Americans age 12+ have consumed a podcast in either audio or video format, representing an estimated 210 million people.

• Podcasting achieves new heights with 55% of Americans age 12+ now being monthly consumers.

Video Integration is Expanding Podcast Reach

• 48% of Americans age 12+ have both listened to and watched a podcast.

• According to Edison Podcast Metrics, YouTube is the service used most often to listen to podcasts with 33% of U.S. weekly podcast listeners using the service.

• A strong male video podcast audience drives higher monthly podcast consumption among men (57%) compared to women (52%).

Lazovick says, “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.”

Public Opinion Supports Social Media Regulation

• Social media reaches 86% of Americans, an estimated 248 million Americans.

• Nearly half (48%) of Americans express support for banning social media access for anyone under the age of 16.

Online Audio Reaches All-Time High

• 79% of Americans age 12+ listen to online audio monthly, an estimated 228 million people.

• Among Americans aged 55+, listening preferences for the online audio brands they use most often are more evenly distributed across multiple brands.

Car Audio Continues Its Digital Shift

• Among Americans age 18+ who have driven or ridden in a car in the past month (88%), 40% have Apple CarPlay or Android Auto, and 33% actively use one of these systems.

• Among Americans age 18+ who have driven or ridden in a car in the past month (88%), 28% have Apple CarPlay, with 22% actively using it.

• Among Americans age 18+ who have driven or ridden in a car in the past month (88%), 19% have Android Auto, with 13% actively using it.

“As someone who has been using Infinite Dial since I was working at the original Virgin Radio in London, I’ve watched digital audio evolve from a niche to mainstream,” says Cridland. “These numbers don’t just inform strategy – they validate the direction our industry has been moving.”

Other findings include:

• Smart TVs are now in three-quarters of Americans’ homes.

• X usage has slightly increased among Americans age 18+, with the rise primarily driven by Republicans at 25%. Usage among Democrats is up by one percentage point to 22%, while it remains steady at 21% among Independents.

• Among the 31% of monthly TikTok users, 39% say they would use Instagram more often if TikTok were banned.

Click here to download The Infinite Dial 2025

About The Infinite Dial

The Infinite Dial is America’s longest-running survey of digital media consumer behavior, tracked annually since 1998. The study provides important benchmark measures around usage and behavior around streaming audio, podcasting, radio, smart audio, social media, and more. Annual results and trending data from The Infinite Dial are relied upon by its audience of content producers, media companies, agencies, and the financial community.

How the study was conducted
In January 2025, Edison Research conducted a national survey of 5,020 individuals age 12 and older. The survey was conducted in both English and Spanish using 1,006 telephone surveys and 4,014 online interviews. The data was weighted to national 12+ U.S. population figures.