Although radio listenership has been in decline since 2022, MTM’s latest report says that seven in 10 Anglophone Canadians still tune in.

The current decline is said to be, in part, a result of the shift towards remote or hybrid work in the post-pandemic world and the increase in audio streaming. That said, seven in 10 Anglophones tune in to AM/FM radio, while 18% stream AM/FM radio online. More than half (55%) opt to listen exclusively via a regular AM/FM radio receiver, while others use a combination of radio receivers and online platforms (19%). Only 1% use online platforms to listen to radio.

Interest in radio varies by age demo, location and household. It is highest among those age 50 to 64 (83%), those residing in Alberta (78%), households earning more than $75K (78% to 80%) and those with children (77% to 78%). The average Anglophone adult reports spending roughly five hours on regular receiver radio and roughly an hour-and-a-half on streaming AM/FM radio, totaling six-and-a-half hours of radio content a week.

Not surprisingly, younger Anglophones show more interest in streaming audio services than AM/FM radio but usage of this type of content, as well as podcasts, decline with each successive age group. The 18 to 34 demo are most interested in streaming services (78%) and podcasts (44%).  The numbers decline with the older groups: 35 to 49 (68% for streaming versus 43% for podcasts), 50 to 64 (49% versus 30%), and 65-plus (21% versus 16%).

Gender doesn’t have much of an impact on listenership, although men do skew higher when it comes to streaming AM/FM radio. Those who stream AM/FM radio are more likely to listen to other forms of online audio. Half use streaming audio services like Spotify or Apple Music, and also consume music on YouTube. Another three in 10 are podcast listeners. Generally speaking, those who listen to terrestrial AM/FM radio and streaming aren’t loyal to one source, but are big into audio content overall. Radio listeners also use streaming audio services at a higher rate than those who don’t (74% versus 56%).

Smartphones are the most popular device used to stream AM/FM radio (60%), followed by computer (40%), smart speaker (26%), connected TV (14%) and tablet (6%). Smartphones are also the most-used device for streaming podcasts (81%).