US Podcast Revenue (2015–2025)
Podcasting is one of the newest digital marketing tools available on the market, especially when compared to other more traditional channels like social media.
Nevertheless, its potential to build brand image, establish credibility, and ultimately grow a business is immense. This is shown by the growth in podcast revenue that’s been forecast for the coming years.
Podcast revenue: 2015–2024
The latest statistics show that in 2024, podcasting revenue in the US is expected to hit $3.2 billion, a 42.7% annual rise. This marks an acceleration from the previous year and is the fastest annual growth rate in three years. In 2022 and 2023, US podcast revenues grew by an average of 25.4% per year.
By experts’ estimations, from 2015 to 2024, US podcast revenue will increase by an exponential 30 times. This translates to an average annual growth rate of 47.8% over this period.
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Podcast revenue forecast: 2025
To further highlight the tremendous growth, US podcast ad revenue is set to increase further. By 2025, US podcast ad revenue is forecast to be just under $4 billion. Considering total ad revenue was just $105.7 million in 2015, this means that growth is expected to skyrocket by nearly 40-fold in just a decade. This is also an average annual growth rate of 45.3% from 2015 to 2025.
Between 2015 and 2025, the biggest annual increase in podcast revenues is expected to have come in 2017, when total revenues surged by 85.6%. In comparison, the smallest rise was in 2020, when revenues grew by 19%.
Podcasts’ increasing popularity driving podcast revenue
One of the biggest drivers behind the increasing podcast revenue in the US is its growing user base. In 2022, 62% of US consumers said they listened to podcasts. This was a five percentage point increase from 57% in 2021.
In fact, podcasts have become increasingly popular in the US in recent years. The latest podcast listener numbers show that in 2024, there will be an estimated 109.1 million people tuning in to podcasts every week, a 5.3% annual increase. Between 2022 and 2026, the number of US consumers listening to podcasts weekly is set to increase by 21.3% from 98.4 million to 119.4 million. This is in line with the number of global podcast listeners, which has also risen over the past few years and is projected to surpass half a billion in 2024.