Infinite Dial 2026 – Radio reaches more Australians than any other audio source, podcast listening continues to grow

The tenth Infinite Dial Australia has been released and it shows a healthy and growing, but changing, audio consumption nationally.

The results came from a survey of 1600 Australians 10+, conducted in Q1 2026. Data collected could be compared to NZ and the US and UK.

Infinite Dial Australia 2026 key insights were:

• Commercial radio reaches four times more Australians than ad-supported Spotify. 
• 55% of Australians are now consuming podcasts monthly
• Total radio is the dominant in-car audio choice, with 82% tuning in weekly and 60% tuning into commercial radio – ahead of music streaming (52%). 
• More than one in three Australians aged 25–54 now stream radio each week.

77% of Australians listened to total radio in a week, that includes AM, FM and DAB+ – broadcast or streaming. That is the highest percentage compared to NZ, the US and UK.

TikTok weekly usage was down a percent from last year. When it came to type of podcast, 72% of those who had consumed a podcast in the last month had actively watched the video, whereas 76% had actively just listened to the audio. YouTube (89%) was far and away the video platform of choice.

Below is something of the equivalent podcast watching data from 2025, which still shows just how much podcast watching has increased.

Lizzie Young, CEO, Commercial Radio & Audio said:

“Millions of Australians choose commercial radio every week, and the continued growth of podcasting reinforces that audio reaches Australians across every format – anytime and anywhere. No other medium has audio’s unique combination of trusted scale, resilience and versatility. For brands seeking growth, audio is essential.”

The Infinite Dial Australia 2026 report can be found here.