News/Talk still tops the dial, but radio’s youngest measured listeners are finding their favorites in Country, Pop, and Alternative. Nielsen’s Q3 edition of The Record finds steady listening across the board as football season began and baseball ended.
Nielsen and Edison Research found US consumers spent 3 hours and 55 minutes a day with audio on average in July, August, and September.
Of the ad-supported audio day, radio and podcasts claim 83%. Streaming music services get 15%. For adults 18+, radio alone takes 62%, with podcasts at 21%, ad-supported streaming audio at 15%, and satellite radio channels at 2%. The picture is younger and more split among adults 18-34, where radio holds 42% and podcasts a sizable 33%, ahead of streaming audio at 24% and satellite at 1%, according to Edison Research’s Share of Ear for Q3 2026.
Radio’s reach touches 92% of US adults every month, more than 242 million people, ahead of TV-connected devices (90%), smartphones (87%), and live and time-shifted TV (85%). That reach carries across audiences, including 92% of Black adults, 93% of Hispanic adults, and 87% of adults 18-34. It also meets listeners on the move. About 65% of adult radio listening happens away from home, and the share climbs to 73% during weekday drive times. In the car, AM/FM gets more than 80% of ad-supported audio time.
Spoken word is where radio punches above its weight online. News/Talk, All Sports, and All News make up 17% of all radio listening, but about 36% of AM/FM station streaming among those 18+. News/Talk alone takes 22.1% of streams, rising to 24.2% among adults 35+. Among adults 25-54, All Sports is the number one streamed format at 13.0%.
Younger listeners still start with music. Adult Contemporary leads station streaming among adults 18-34 at 13.1%, with All Sports next at 11.9% and News/Talk at 8.5%. Pop Contemporary Hit Radio (7.2%) and Urban AC (6.6%) also over-index with that group. Alternative (6.9%) and Hot AC (6.2%) take more of station streaming among adults 25-54 than they do of total radio listening in that demo. On the dial overall, Country and Pop Contemporary Hit Radio each reach 6.4% of adults 18-34, and Alternative (4.4%) and Classic Hits (5.5%) both ticked up from Q1.
The leaders held their ground. News/Talk is still the number one format at 10.2% of total radio listening among adults 18+, and Adult Contemporary is still the top music format at 7.1%, matching its Q1 share. Urban AC posted 5.0% among adults 18+, and Mexican Regional reached 3.6% among adults 25-54.
