Even In A Video Push, Study Shows Podcasting’s Power Audience Is Still Listening.

As the podcast industry leans deeper into video, research suggests the medium’s most valuable audience may still be listening. A new report from Sounds Profitable identifies a segment that it calls Audio Primes — podcast consumers who listen to at least 75% of their shows as audio — and finds they are not only highly engaged, but younger, more affluent, and more commercially valuable than the broader podcast audience.

“The Audio Prime is definitely a younger consumer,” Sounds Profitable partner Tom Webster said Thursday during a webinar presenting the findings.

That runs counter to a common assumption that audio-first listening is a legacy behavior. Instead, Webster said the data points to a more intentional, high-value user — one that chooses audio even as video options expand. “They’re making a conscious choice,” he explained.

The analysis shows Audio Primes make up more than one in five (22%) of podcast consumers, based on data collected earlier for the Podcast Landscape study of more than 5,000 Americans. But they punch above their weight.

Compared to the broader audience, audio-centric podcast fans skew younger, are more likely to hold college degrees, and over-index among higher-income households, making them a particularly attractive target for advertisers. They are also more likely to be parents — a detail Webster said helps explain why audio remains essential. “Hands free and eyes free is a necessity and not a preference,” he said.

Despite a preference for listening, Audio Primes are not retreating from video. The analysis shows they over-index across nearly every major video platform. In fact, 90% report using YouTube, significantly higher than the broader podcast audience, underscoring just how immersed they are in visual media even as they favor audio for podcasts.

“They’re not just listeners. They’re actually super-consumers,” Webster said, noting that their behavior extends well beyond podcasting. The data show 69% of Audio Primes listen to AM/FM radio, compared to 65% of the total audience, indicating they over-index for traditional radio listening as well.

That creates a more nuanced picture of the modern podcast user. Rather than choosing between audio and video, Audio Primes are actively selecting the right format for the moment. Video serves one purpose — lean-back, screen-based consumption — while podcasts fill a different role, one that is more portable and integrated into daily routines.

“They’re making a conscious choice,” Webster said.

The implication is podcasting is not losing ground to video, even as those platforms grow in popularity for consumption and discovery. Instead, Audio Primes are using video — especially YouTube — as access points, while still engaging with podcasts in an audio-first way. That dynamic helps explain why YouTube ranks as the top platform for podcast consumption even among this group. Webster said it is less a shift away from audio than a shift in where audio is being accessed.

Habitual Listening Drives Loyalty

What separates Audio Primes most is not just who they are, but how they behave. They are more frequent podcast consumers as 77% listen weekly or more, far outpacing the broader audience. That consistency translates into strong habits and deep loyalty. Most rely on a single platform for listening, and nearly half follow just one or two shows — returning to them regularly rather than spreading attention widely.

“They're incredibly loyal — 22% say they have never stopped watching or listening to a podcast,” Webster said. He noted the data also shows they are spending more time with podcasts. Nearly half of those surveyed say their listening has increased over the past year, while relatively few report cutting back.

For advertisers, the findings point to potential warning. While Audio Primes are less sensitive to ad loads, Webster said they are more likely to tune out when ads feel out of context to the content. 

By the same token, nearly half say they would be less likely to continue listening if a show used AI-generated voices. “That is one of the things that they’re more sensitive about and why they might stop consuming a podcast,” he said.

Download the study HERE.