Radio remains a large, multi-platform audio medium. In Q4 2024, UK radio reached 50.272 million adults aged 15+ each week, while U.S. and international measures show how listening varies by car use, age, delivery mode and time spent.
Key Radio Audience Statistics
The most useful headline measures are:
- 50.272 million UK adults aged 15+ were reached by all radio weekly in Q4 2024.
- 20.6 hours per listener was the average weekly listening time for UK radio listeners in Q4 2024.
- 1,033,110 thousand total hours of UK radio listening were recorded in Q4 2024.
- 31.690 million UK adults aged 15+ were reached weekly by all BBC Radio in Q4 2024.
- 28.679 million UK adults aged 15+ were reached weekly by all national commercial radio in Q4 2024.
- 61% of UK adults aged 16+ reached music radio weekly in Ofcom’s 2024 Audio Survey.
- 52% of UK adults aged 16+ used online music services weekly in Ofcom’s 2024 Audio Survey.
- 72% of UK radio listening hours came from analogue or DAB radio sets in RAJAR data cited by Ofcom in 2024.
- 55% of the U.S. car-travel audience aged 18+ used online audio in their primary car in January 2025.
- 74% of the same U.S. car-travel audience used AM/FM radio in their primary car in January 2025.
- 54% of U.S. car-audio users aged 18–34 used AM/FM radio in January 2025.
- 84% of U.S. car-audio users aged 55+ used AM/FM radio in January 2025.
- 83.1% of Norway’s population had weekly radio net reach in 2024.
- 79 minutes per day was Norway’s average population time spent with radio in 2024.
- 136 minutes per day among Norwegian radio listeners was the average listening time in 2024.
- 4 hours 5 minutes per day was U.S. time spent with audio in Q2 2024.
- 67% of U.S. daily ad-supported audio time was attributed to radio in Q2 2024.
- 54% of UK music-radio listeners said they listened for background listening in Ofcom’s 2024 survey.
Contents
- UK radio audience reach and listening scale
- Radio audience trends by broadcaster and service
- Digital radio and online audio audience data
- In-car radio audience statistics
- International radio audience trends and listening time
- Radio content preferences and audience uses
UK Radio Audience Reach and Listening Scale
RAJAR’s Q4 2024 measure covers the UK, including the Channel Islands and Isle of Man, among adults aged 15+. Its weekly reach threshold is a survey measure, not unique annual reach.
| UK radio measure | Q4 2024 result |
|---|---|
| All radio weekly reach | 50.272 million adults |
| Average hours per weekly listener | 20.6 hours |
| Total listening | 1,033,110 thousand hours |
| All BBC Radio weekly reach | 31.690 million adults |
| All BBC Radio average listening | 14.4 hours per listener |
| All BBC Radio total listening | 456,363 thousand hours |
Source: RAJAR, Quarterly Summary of Radio Listening: Survey Period Ending 15 December 2024.
The same RAJAR release recorded 27.434 million people reached weekly by all local commercial radio in its national TSA, or target survey area. That TSA is not identical to the whole UK population, so it should not be treated as directly interchangeable with the UK-wide figures.
All national commercial radio reached 28.679 million UK adults weekly, while the RAJAR “Other radio” category reached 5.661 million; “Other radio” is a category, not a single broadcaster.
Radio Audience Trends by Broadcaster and Service
Station-level results show different combinations of reach and listening depth. These are observed RAJAR measures for UK adults aged 15+ in Q4 2024.
| Service | Weekly reach | Average listening |
|---|---|---|
| BBC Radio 2 | 13.645 million | Not reported here |
| BBC Radio 4 including 4 Extra | 9.371 million | Not reported here |
| BBC Radio 1 | 7.537 million | 6.8 hours per listener |
| BBC Radio 5 live including Sports Extra | 5.693 million | Not reported here |
| BBC 6 Music | 2.776 million | 9.3 hours per listener |
| BBC Radio 3 | 1.952 million | 7.5 hours per listener |
Source: RAJAR, Quarterly Summary of Radio Listening: Survey Period Ending 15 December 2024.
Regional and specialist services add further variation. BBC Radio Scotland reached 745 thousand people weekly in Scotland and averaged 5.5 hours per listener, while BBC Radio Wales reached 362 thousand in Wales and averaged 8.4 hours.
BBC Radio Cymru reached 120 thousand people weekly in Wales and averaged 8.5 hours per listener. BBC Asian Network UK reached 579 thousand UK adults weekly and averaged 5.3 hours.
The Q4 2024 national commercial weekly-reach index was 107 versus Q4 2023, where the prior period equals 100. BBC Radio 1’s total-hours index was 111 versus Q4 2023; both are relative indices, not absolute percentage changes.
Digital Radio and Online Audio Audience Data
Ofcom’s 2024 Audio Survey used 3,333 respondents aged 16+ and asked about self-defined audio categories. These figures therefore describe reported weekly use, not the same population or instrument as RAJAR station reach.
| UK audio category or service | Weekly reach in 2024 |
|---|---|
| Music radio | 61% of adults 16+ |
| Speech radio | 34% of adults 16+ |
| Online music services | 52% of adults 16+ |
| Online music video for background listening | 43% of adults 16+ |
| Personal music stored on a digital device | 41% of adults 16+ |
| YouTube as an online audio service | 47% of adults |
| Spotify as an online audio service | 37% of adults |
| BBC Sounds | 21% of adults |
Source: Ofcom Audio Report 2024.
Delivery mode also depends on listening location. RAJAR data cited by Ofcom attributed 72% of UK radio listening hours to analogue or DAB radio sets; this is a share of hours, not a share of people.
At home, online represented 32% of radio listening hours, compared with 26% on AM/FM. In cars, vans and lorries, DAB represented 55% of radio listening, AM/FM 38% and online 7%.
In-Car Radio Audience Statistics
The Infinite Dial 2025 surveyed 5,020 U.S. people aged 12+ in January 2025. Its car measures apply to adults aged 18+ who drove or rode in a car during the previous month, and the results are self-reported.
| Primary-car audio source | Current use in 2025 |
|---|---|
| AM/FM radio | 74% |
| Online audio | 55% |
| Podcasts | 31% |
| SiriusXM | 24% |
Source: The Infinite Dial 2025.
AM/FM use varied substantially by age among U.S. car-audio users: 54% for adults aged 18–34, 78% for adults aged 35–54 and 84% for adults aged 55+.
Connected-car systems were also measured. Apple CarPlay or Android Auto was actively used by 33% of the U.S. car-travel audience; Apple CarPlay was present in 28% of primary vehicles and actively used by 22%, while Android Auto was present in 19% and actively used by 13%.
These presence and active-use measures are separate findings, so vehicle availability should not be read as equivalent to regular use.
International Radio Audience Trends and Listening Time
Norway’s 2024 radio figures from Nielsen show both broad weekly reach and differences between population averages and averages among listeners. The measurement used PPM, with a phased replacement of the PPM 360 meter by PPM Wearables and an updated in-car detection algorithm.
| Norway measure | 2023 | 2024 |
|---|---|---|
| Daily net reach | 60.3% | 58.0% |
| Weekly net reach | 84.1% | 83.1% |
| Average population time per day | 83 minutes | 79 minutes |
| Time per radio listener per day | Not reported here | 136 minutes |
| Time per listener aged 65+ per day | Not reported here | 203 minutes |
Source: Nielsen, Radio Listening in Norway 2024: Radio and audio maintain a strong position.
Among Norwegians aged 65+, daily net reach was 73.4% in 2024, up from 72.9% in 2023, and weekly net reach was 90.5%, up from 90.1%.
Daily in-car radio listening reached 1.626 million Norwegians, or 33.4% of the population, in 2024. Time spent among Norwegian in-car radio listeners rose from 38 minutes in 2023 to 44 minutes in 2024.
Podcasting is adjacent audio behavior rather than radio reach: Norway’s weekly podcast listening was 40% in 2024 and daily podcast listening was 13%.
Radio Content Preferences and Audience Uses
Nielsen reported that U.S. listeners spent 4 hours 5 minutes per day with audio in Q2 2024, nearly 20% of the day. The measure includes radio, podcasts, streaming music and satellite radio, with both ad-supported and ad-free listening included.
Within daily ad-supported audio time, radio accounted for 67%, podcasts 19%, streaming audio services 11% and satellite radio 3% in the United States in Q2 2024.
| U.S. ad-supported audio-time share | All measured audience | Adults 18–34 where reported |
|---|---|---|
| Radio | 67% | 48% |
| Podcasts | 19% | 35% |
| Streaming audio services | 11% | Not reported here |
| Satellite radio | 3% | Not reported here |
Source: Nielsen, The Record: Q2 U.S. audio listening trends.
These are shares of ad-supported audio time, not total audio reach. The 18–34 figures are age-group shares of time, so they should not be compared directly with weekly-reach percentages.
Ofcom’s UK survey adds motivations. 54% of music-radio listeners said they listened for background listening, while 76% of UK radio listeners said they valued music played on radio; that figure rose to 84% among local-radio listeners.
Among UK adults aged 55+, 46% used speech radio to catch up on news and 42% used it to learn something new. These reasons are self-reported and refer to speech-radio users in that age group, not all adults.