Australians hungry for more podcasts: PodPoll 2024

Two million Australians lay claim to a daily podcast habit, with the latest audio insights providing a snapshot of who’s listening, what genres we like, and the podcasts we may see more of in the future.

Australian podcast production house Deadset Studios and market research agency Insightfully have today released the findings of PodPoll 2024, an in-depth survey into podcasting listening habits and behaviours.

Deadset Studios’ Director Kellie Riordan (pictured above) says there’s been extraordinary growth in both podcast creation and consumption over the past five years, but there’s still room for more podcasts in under-serviced categories

“We haven’t yet reached ‘peak podcast’ as Australians told us they’re keen for more,” says Riordan.

“Anyone saying the podcast market is saturated is wrong, especially given there’s only 4.5 million podcasts out there and more than 4 billion YouTube videos.”

“If you’re trying to reach a particular age demographic or people interested in a specific topic, podcasts represent strong value given the number of hours spent listening. Plus, we know there’s a strong appetite for new titles, with two in five people sampling new shows each month.”

PodPoll 24 shows 39% of Australians have a regular listening habit, meaning 8.2 million sets of ears are glued to podcasts in any given month.

In addition to the two million daily podcast devotees, four million Australians are tuning in at least once a week and a further 2.2 million at least each month.

The poll found Spotify is the clear favourite among listeners, with 58% of respondents preferencing it. But YouTube overtook Apple as the second biggest platform for podcast consumption in Australia.

Thirty percent say they are using the visual medium to consume a podcast, nudging ahead of Apple Podcasts (28%).

Insightfully Managing Director Leanne White says this year’s survey drilled into current podcast listening trends and generational demographics to provide a useful overview of who’s listening, when and why.

Comedy is again the most popular genre. News and current affairs podcasts are a new entry in the top three at second spot while true crime comes in third.

White says generationally speaking, Millennials and Gen Z are now the highest consumers across the country.

“Sixty percent of listeners are between the ages of 25 and 34. Three million Millennials/Gen Y hear a podcast each month, closely followed by 2.2 million Gen Zs.”

The PodPoll 24 report can be found here.