Metro audiences grew by 2% for commercial radio in 2020

The metropolitan audience for commercial radio in Australia was up 2% year-on-year in 2020, to nearly 11.1 million.

The number of people listening at home was up 8% to 6.4 million.

The figures are from industry body Commercial Radio Australia (CRA) and are averaged out from the five ratings surveys which were conducted last year.

CRA said other bright spots in the data included a 2% lift in listeners aged 25 to 39, which was also the largest age group, accounting for nearly 3 million people. There was also a 5% increase in audiences across weekday mornings (9am to 12pm), and a 13% rise in audiences for DAB+ stations.

DAB+ stations had 1.6 million listeners, 676,000 of whom were in a car.

CRA said commercial radio reached 77% of all people aged 10+ each week. Drilling down on the demographics, it said it reached 87% of those aged 10 to 17; 75% of 18 to 24-year-olds; 76% for the 25 to 39s; 80% of 40 to 54s; 78% of 55 to 64s; and 67% of those over 65.

Audiences spent a total of 13 hours and 12 minutes listening to commercial radio each week, CRA added.

CRA CEO Joan Warner said the figures proved radio isn’t just relevant during the daily commute.

“Radio proved its adaptability in emergencies and continued to deliver for listeners in a year where we contended with floods, bushfires, a global pandemic and digital disruption,” she said.

“Radio also showed that while we’re dominant in the car, we’re not reliant on any one platform or place of listening. There has been a strong lift in listeners across digital, mobile and DAB+ platforms and we will continue to evolve and grow those opportunities in 2021.”