Podcast listening held steady at the top of Triton Digital’s U.S. Podcast Ranker in September, with the three largest sales networks maintaining their positions and both iHeart Audience Network and Audioboom posting increases in average weekly downloads.
Triton reports iHeart Audience Network remained the largest podcast sales network in the U.S., with 67.3 million average weekly downloads, up 2.1% from August’s 65.9 million. That kept iHeart more than four times the size of its nearest competitor in Triton’s monthly rankings.
Audioboom held second place with 15.5 million average weekly downloads, an increase of 3.7% from August. Cumulus Podcast Network remained third with 2.9 million, down slightly from the prior month.
The BBC ranked fourth with 2.3 million average
The BBC ranked fourth with 2.3 million average weekly downloads, followed by Salem Podcast Network at 1.5 million. PRX remained sixth with 1.4 million, while American Public Media Group, Lemonada Media and Gamut Podcast Network held the next three positions.
Beasley Media Group rounded out the top 10 with 629,000 average weekly downloads, up from 607,000 in August. Beasley’s podcast network included 69 active shows in September.
Triton reports there was no movement at all in the top 10 sales network positions during September, even as seven of the 10 networks posted month-over-month increases in downloads. The latest September results reflect only participating publishers and sales networks, rather than the entire U.S. podcast market. The September report covers the four-week period from Aug. 31 through Sept. 27.
The podcast rankings were similarly stable
The podcast rankings were similarly stable at the top, with the same six shows holding their positions from August. It shows iHeart’s “Stuff You Should Know” remained the most-downloaded podcast in Triton’s monthly rankings, followed by Crooked Media’s “Pod Save America,” represented by Audioboom, in second place. iHeart’s “My Favorite Murder with Karen Kilgariff and Georgia Hardstark” held third. Cumulus Podcast Network’s “The Dan Bongino Show” remained fourth, followed by Audioboom’s “The Bulwark Podcast” in fifth.
The biggest gainer in the top 10 was Audioboom’s “Serialously with Annie Elise,” which jumped four positions to ninth. American Public Media Group’s “Marketplace” held steady at No. 10.
Audioboom placed three shows among the top 10 in September, while iHeart had three. The remaining spots went to Cumulus, the BBC and American Public Media Group, with one each.
Several podcasts also debuted in Triton’s September rankings,
Several podcasts also debuted in Triton’s September rankings, including iHeart Audience Network’s “The Right Time with Bomani Jones.”
The September release is Triton Digital’s monthly snapshot based on server-side measurement from publishers and sales networks that opt into its Podcast Metrics program. The rankings are based on average weekly downloads and follow version 2.2 of the IAB Podcast Technical Measurement Guidelines.
Unlike Triton’s monthly updates, its expanded quarterly reports offer a broader view of the podcast industry, including a ranking of the top 200 shows along with audience profiles, genre insights and more than 40 demographic and purchase-intent segmentsHill Insights
See Triton Digital’s latest monthly U.S. Podcast Ranker HERE.
