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The Top 50 Podcasts in the US for Q1 2026

Press Release · via Edison Research at SSRS ·

Edison Research at SSRS announces the Top 50 Podcasts in the U.S. from Edison Podcast Metrics based on reach for the first quarter of 2026 among weekly podcast consumers ages 13+.  

The Joe Rogan Experience, Crime Junkie, and The Daily top the list, as they did in Q4 2025. The top six shows remain in the same rank order as Q4.

And the Award Goes To…

After winning the inaugural Golden Globe for Best Podcast in January 2026, Good Hang with Amy Poehler soars from 38th to 13th in one quarter, marking the second consecutive quarter the show has reached a record high.  Other Golden Globe Best Podcast finalists that moved up the ranker: The Mel Robbins Podcast (+3), Up First(+1), and Armchair Expert(+12).

Notable Moves:

  • The Giggly Squad breaks into the top 50 for the first time. It won Best Podcast of the Year at the iHeart Podcast Awards in March 2026.
  • The Herd with Colin Cowherd hits a record high. Cowherd received criticism after launching an AI version of himself.
  • The Dan Bongino Show reenters the top 50. Bongino returned to podcasting in February after a stint as FBI deputy director.
  • Bubbling under: Rappers Joe and Jada reach 57th after climbing the ranks consistently since debuting in May 2025.

OPML icon The above list of podcasts is available as an OPML file for your podcast player

About Edison Research at SSRS

Edison Research conducts survey research and provides strategic information to a broad array of clients worldwide, having conducted research in 66 countries. Edison Research’s The Infinite Dial® series has been the survey of record for digital audio, social media, podcasting, smart speakers, and other media-related technologies since 1998. The company’s Share of Ear® survey is the only single-source measure of all audio in the U.S. Edison Research is the leading podcast research company in the world, producing the only survey-based data on podcast listening in the U.S, Edison Podcast Metrics, and has conducted research for many companies in the space.  On October 15, 2025, Edison Research announced the company’s acquisition by the full-service market research firm SSRS.

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This is a press release which we link to from Podnews, our daily newsletter about podcasting and on-demand. We may make small edits for editorial reasons.

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