Harker Report: Podcasting Faces ‘Realignment’ As Listening Habits Evolve.

After several years of strong growth, a new report sees a “realignment” in how podcast listening is fitting into the media habit of Americans. Harker Bos Group’s just-released “The State of Media 2025” report, from its Crowd React Media division, says fewer listeners are tuning in with the same frequency they did in 2024, reporting that most show genres have seen a shift toward more occasional listening.

“This trend may reflect broader changes in media habits, with audiences continuing to explore podcasts — just on their own terms,” the report says. “As media choices continue to expand, podcast listening appears to be settling into a more flexible role in people’s lives — something they still value, but perhaps not as a daily habit for as many listeners as before.”

Harker says among the people it surveyed, 51% say they listen to podcasts at least sometimes. But that is down from 58% a year earlier. More importantly, frequent listening dropped from 21% to 17%. And conversion — the share of users who listen frequently — fell from 36% to 32%.

“That’s not the end of the world. Podcasts still reach half the population. But the medium is slipping out of people’s daily routines, especially compared to its pandemic-era highs,” it says. “With only 32% of podcast users listening frequently, the challenge now is less about reach — and more about staying top of mind.” The data shows younger adults remain “the heart” of the podcast audience, even though younger audiences are “sampling more but committing less.” 

Women are said to be the most consistent audience, but Harker says podcasts continue to attract a younger, male-skewing audience. Four in ten 18- to 34-year-old males listen weekly, with 21% listening frequently. And men show stronger loyalty with 35% conversion, compared to 28% for women.

Harker says genres like Interview Shows (55%), Society & Culture (50%), and Film/TV (50%) continue to attract broad audiences, but much of their strength now comes from occasional listeners. Even so, this year’s data reflects a general softening across the board. Sports podcast reach fell to 44% in 2025, down from 67% in 2024. Film/TV fell from 69% to 50%, and Society & Culture from 71% to 50%.

Digging deeper into the data, Harker says that some of the softness may be tied to specific show categories. While top genres like News and Comedy retain traction, Harker’s report says most categories have seen shifts toward more occasional listening. “In 2025, podcast listening has softened — not disappeared,” it says.

That more casual attitude could have implications for advertising. Harker says among those that it surveyed, 13% report listening to every commercial while nearly half say they skip all the ads, and another 39% skip some. Host-read ads are the most skip-resistant. Still, host-read ads are holding the line. Over 40% of listeners say they’re more likely to consider a product if the ad is read by the podcast host.

YouTube Dominant With Younger Viewers

As more podcasters embrace video, the Harker study finds YouTube continues to hold a powerful position in the digital media landscape in 2025, with 69% of users watching videos on the platform at least once per week. That’s a slight decline from 75% in 2024, but the drop is concentrated among occasional users. Frequent viewers — those who watch three to five times per week — remain steady at 49%.

The platform continues to skew younger and male, though its reach is broad. Among men, 75% report weekly usage, compared to 64% of women. Age plays an even bigger role: 84% of 18- to 34-year-olds use YouTube weekly, and 66% say they watch frequently. Even among users 55 and older, more than half (53%) watch YouTube at least weekly.

Despite the growth of short-form video on platforms like TikTok, younger YouTube viewers aren’t just there for quick hits. Among 18- to 34-year-olds, only 11% prefer ultra-short content, while nearly half favor videos that run 10 to 30 minutes. In contrast, 27% of older users prefer ultra-short videos, showing a clear generational divide.

YouTube is more than a passive viewing platform — it’s a social hub. Over half of users (57%) subscribe to channels, nearly half (49%) interact through likes or comments, and 33% financially support creators via merch, ads, or platforms like Patreon. These behaviors are most prevalent among younger audiences and men.

Discovery is driven by both algorithm and loyalty. A majority (52%) of users find content through both recommendations and subscriptions, while 31% rely mainly on the homepage algorithm. This dual behavior rewards creators who invest in both eye-catching content and consistent output.

Similar to podcasts, Harker says creator endorsements carry weight for advertisers. While 30% of all users say they’re more likely to buy a product promoted by a creator, that figure jumps to 41% for users aged 18 to 34, outpacing the influence of podcast hosts. However, traditional pre-roll ads still face challenges, with 65% of users skipping them and 13% paying for YouTube Premium to avoid ads entirely.

The survey is based on data from 1,091 adults aged 18 and older collected between February and April 2025. Download the full report HERE.