From Tesla To Chevy, Podcast Listening Differs Dramatically By Vehicle Brand.

The type of vehicle parked in a driver’s garage may be one of the strongest indicators of what they’ll hear through the speakers.

New Edison Research Share of Ear data shows podcast listening in the car varies sharply by vehicle brand, with Tesla owners dedicating 17% of their in-car ad-supported audio listening to podcasts — more than double the overall average and more than eight times the level measured among Chevrolet drivers. The findings suggest that automakers are attracting audiences with distinctly different media habits, even before advertisers consider age, income or lifestyle.

The data, released by Cumulus Media and Westwood One, tracks the share of ad-supported audio listening among drivers of major vehicle brands. While AM/FM radio remains the dominant in-car audio source across every brand, podcast usage ranges from just 2% among Chevrolet owners to 17% among Tesla drivers.

Tesla owners stand alone in the study. Podcasts account for 17% of their in-car listening, vs. 10% among Subaru owners and 8% among Honda, Hyundai, Ford and Toyota drivers. BMW owners devote 6% of in-car listening to podcasts, followed by Nissan at 5%. At the other end of the spectrum, Dodge, Jeep and Kia drivers each spend 4% of their in-car listening with podcasts, while Chevrolet drivers register just 2%.

Those differences suggest vehicle ownership increasingly serves as a proxy for media consumption habits. Rather than podcast listening being evenly distributed across motorists, the data points to distinct audience profiles depending on what people drive — and what automakers put in their dashboards.

Even among Tesla owners, however, broadcast radio remains the dominant source of ad-supported audio. AM/FM radio accounts for 67% of Tesla drivers’ in-car listening, well ahead of podcasts at 17%. At the other end of the spectrum, among Chevrolet drivers radio commands an overwhelming 90% share of in-car listening while podcasts account for just 2%.

The Share of Ear data suggests podcasting’s strongest automotive audience is not simply luxury buyers. BMW owners devote 6% of their in-car listening to podcasts, well below Tesla’s 17% and behind Subaru’s 10%. Several mainstream import and domestic brands — including Honda, Hyundai, Ford and Toyota — cluster together at 8%, indicating podcast listening may be tied more closely to specific consumer segments than vehicle price alone.

For marketers, the findings hint at an opportunity to rethink audio buying strategies. Auto brands have traditionally purchased media broadly to reach all drivers, but the Edison data suggests podcast audiences differ significantly by the vehicles consumers own.

For instance, Tesla drivers spend 36% of their ad-supported listening time with podcasts, vs. 21% for the average American — making them among the most podcast-oriented audiences in the study. While at the other end of the spectrum, Chevrolet drivers allocate only 11% of their ad-supported audio listening to podcasts, revealing a threefold gap between the industry’s most and least podcast-oriented vehicle owners.

That could make podcasts a more efficient channel for brands targeting EV buyers or other consumer segments with above-average podcast consumption, while traditional broadcast radio remains the most effective way to reach drivers across virtually every automotive brand.

The study also underscores podcasting’s continued growth in the dashboard. While AM/FM radio still dominates ad-supported in-car listening overall with an 83% share, podcasts have become the clear No. 2 source at 7%, ahead of ad-supported versions of SiriusXM, Spotify and Pandora.