listen up! the podcast gender gap is closing

Podcast popularity in the U.S. is largely due to the enormous global supply of English-language podcasting content. In H1 2022, U.S. internet users spent an average of 58 minutes per day listening to podcasts. This year, more than 40% of internet users will be podcast listeners, tuning in to a podcast at least once per month.

So, who’s listening? According to The Women’s 2022 Podcast Report, men currently take the lead, however female listeners are quickly closing in. The report, by Edison Research, notes female listeners make up almost half of all podcast listeners in the U.S., with 48% listening monthly. Women podcast listeners tend to be young, affluent, and highly educated compared to the overall female population in the U.S.: 61% have a college degree, 30% have a household income of $100K or more, and 43% are aged 18-34.

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Women monthly podcast listeners ages 18 and up listen to a variety of genres, but comedy takes the top spot followed by true crime, love & relationships, entertainment & celebrity gossip, and news/information. Spotify and YouTube are the preferred platforms when it comes to listening, with 74% noting they prefer to listen to a podcast with video. The most popular devices to play podcasts are smartphones and tablets according to 74% of women surveyed.

What does this mean for brands?

Podcast media remains an important and bright spot for audio advertising. Spend has been growing steadily over the years, with significant potential user growth in the future. Audiences are forecast to consume more podcast content, as the channel becomes increasingly accessible via audio streaming services. Podcast ad spend exceeded $1 billion in 2021, and will rise to more than $2.2 billion in 2023.

Women are tuned into podcasts now more than ever, and they are listening closely. Podcast advertising drives a stronger brand recall punch than more traditional forms of advertisements. According to Nielsen, podcast advertising drives an average increase in brand awareness of 14 points. Among female heavy listeners, however, the lift rises to 20 points—43% higher than average. 73% of female listeners can recall the brand after exposure.

As the podcast industry continues to grow, especially amongst female listeners, brands have the unique and powerful opportunity to expand reach into important demographics. Amplifying your brand with Causal IQ’s programmatic audio will allow you to reach highly engaged listeners across scalable, quality inventory with deep audience insights.

Ready to tap into the power of podcasts? See how Causal IQ can help your brand speak directly to key consumers.