The latest Podcast Download – Fall 2025 report from Cumulus Media and Signal Hill Insights offers one of the clearest snapshots yet of how real podcast audiences behave. For creators, the findings highlight not only where listeners are spending time, but how mismatches between perception and reality can shape strategy.
Below are three insights every podcaster should understand, along with the ideal graph to visualize each trend.
1. Audio Still Dominates Podcast Consumption
Even with the rapid rise of video formats, audio remains the anchor of the medium.
92% of weekly podcast consumers say they “listen” to podcasts, while only 8% consume them as video-only. That’s remarkably consistent with eight consecutive studies since 2022, where listening has hovered around 91%.
For creators, the takeaway is simple: video may expand reach, but audio remains the mode through which audiences actually engage.
2. The YouTube–Spotify Reality Gap
Ask listeners where they spend most of their podcast time, and YouTube leads by a wide margin.
But when researchers measure actual behaviour, through Edison’s “Share of Ear”, a very different picture emerges:
Spotify: 29% of podcast time spent
YouTube: 28%
Apple: 18%
In other words: YouTube feels dominant, but Spotify is slightly in front when measuring true listening minutes.
This gap matters. Creators who rely solely on self-reported platform preferences may overestimate their YouTube-first audience and underinvest in audio-first distribution.
3. YouTube Is Now the Top Discovery Engine
While Spotify and YouTube split actual listening time, YouTube is unrivaled for discovery. That’s no surprise.
The report shows 45% of weekly podcast consumers found their newest show on YouTube within the past six months.
Why?
Because YouTube has become the world’s entertainment search engine, and podcast content benefits from recommendations, comments, thumbnails, autoplay, and broad cultural visibility that audio-only apps simply can’t match.
This doesn’t mean creators should rely solely on YouTube, but it does mean ignoring YouTube is now a missed opportunity for audience growth.
The Bottom Line
The 2025 data tells a nuanced story:
Audio remains the core of podcast consumption, Spotify and YouTube are effectively tied for true listening minutes, and YouTube is now the #1 engine for discovery. For creators, the winning strategy isn’t choosing between audio or video, it’s understanding how listeners move between platforms and optimizing for each stage of their journey.