‘Share Of Ear’ Results Are A Reminder Of Digital Audio’s Limited Reach.

Edison Research’s “Share Of Ear” report for third-quarter 2025 again brings good news for AM/FM radio, whether it’s the medium’s continued dominance of ad-supported audio media, or its strength in vehicles. 

Arguably, the report’s most important takeaway is how necessary AM/FM radio is to media plans focused on audio advertising. Edison shows that the unique daily reach of ad-supported Spotify, Pandora and podcasts among persons 18+ stands at 33%, just one-third of Americans. Adding AM/FM radio to the mix boosts that daily reach to 74%.

“You’ll miss two-thirds of America if your audio media plan only has digital audio,” Cumulus Media/Westwood One Audio Active Group Chief Insights Officer Pierre Bouvard says in an analysis of Edison’s findings in Westwood One’s blog.

“Share of Ear,” which has surveyed 4,000 Americans annually to measure daily reach and time spent for all forms of audio media since 2015, shows across-the-board dominance for AM/FM radio vs. other ad-supported media, with its share of daily time spent at 64% for 18+ and as high as 75% for 50+.

“AM/FM radio remains the dominant audio platform for marketers,” Bouvard says. “Streaming music services remain niche players with only a combined 13% ad-supported audio share between Spotify, Pandora, YouTube, and Amazon Music.”

Yet, as the blog notes, marketers and media agencies continue to significantly overestimate audience shares to Pandora and Spotify while massively underestimating AM/FM’s audience. Advertiser Perceptions’ August 2025 study of more than 300 agencies and marketers found that AM/FM radio’s perceived audience daily share was just 26% vs. the actual 64%, while Pandora and Spotify together were a perceived 41%, higher than AM/FM, while their actual combined share is just 11%.

“Edison’s ‘Share of Ear’ reveals AM/FM radio shares are 2.5 times greater than agency/advertiser perceptions,” Bouvard says. “AM/FM radio is 11 times larger than ad-supported Spotify and 13 times bigger than ad-supported Pandora.”

Edison continues to show the power of AM/FM radio in cars, with share of daily ad-supported audio time spent at 84% among persons 18+, the far-and-away leader vs. podcasts (7%) and the combined share of ad-supported SiriusXM, Spotify, Pandora and YouTubeMusic (9%). Even among 18-34s, AM/FM’s in-car share is a powerful 79%.

Also, worth noting in the “Share of Ear” findings is the significant growth of podcasts, with triple-digit growth across all demos since 2017. “At a 20% share [18+], podcasts now have the scale and demographic mass appeal to be considered a major media solution,” Bouvard says. “The older the age group, the greater the growth in the podcast daily audience. Today, podcasts’ greatest reach centers on 25-44s, with significant growth among 45-64s.”

As a result, the median age of podcast listeners has moved from 29 in 2017 to 39 in this most recent Edison report. “In 2017, podcasts’ daily reach was greatest among 18-24s. Eight years later, podcasts’ daily reach has surged, especially in older demographics,” Bouvard says. “The podcast median age soars due to a massive influx of older listeners. The last two years have seen podcasts’ median age grow from 34 in 2023 to 39 in this recent Q3 2025 report. Still, podcasts remain one of the youngest media platforms.”