The Biggest Podcasts Are Regularly Inking $100 Million Deals. Who’s Listening?

Since the medium’s creation two decades ago, podcasting has evolved from an overlooked cottage industry into a major economic force. And the biggest players are starting to earn a lot. 

In the last eight months, five chart-topping podcasts have signed multi-year deals each worth $80 million or more with several distribution networks, including SiriusXM, Spotify and Amazon’s Wondery. Most of the deals are structured similarly: The shows will be available on all platforms but the distribution networks will have exclusive rights to ad sales on all content, as well as the right to produce live events and merchandise. 

So, is access to large podcast audiences (with the intent to sell ads against them) really worth nine figures? According to Morning Consult Intelligence data — which draws on millions of consumer survey interviews about demographics, psychographics, and shopping behaviors collected daily in more than 40 countries — the answer is likely yes. 

Zeroing in on U.S. data, we found that people who listen to podcasts at least once weekly are in many ways superconsumers — that is, they earn more, consume more, spend more and generally engage with the world around them more than average U.S. adult, making them highly lucrative advertising targets. 

The podcast class

Relative to the general population, frequent podcast listeners are more likely to make at least $100,000 per year and have investments worth $50,000 or more. They’re also more likely to hold advanced degrees and be employed full-time.

In addition to their over indexing on general employment, frequent podcast listeners over index on holding high-ranking titles like CEO and director, too. These leadership positions likely come with increased flexibility as nearly one-third (30%) of frequent podcast listeners work remotely, six percentage points higher than the share of all U.S. adults (24%) who do the same.

Outside of work, the cohort has deep roots in domestic life: More than half (55%) own homes and 36% are currently caring for children. Of those with kids, 44% are under the age of two, which shakes out considering a plurality (37%) of frequent podcast listeners are millennials. 

This kind of profile means that frequent podcast listeners are responsible for supporting lots and lots of needs (and wants!). Additional Morning Consult Intelligence data quantifies the great extent to which they are doing so. 

Moving and shaking (and listening to podcasts) 

Podcast enthusiasts make purchases much more often than the average consumer in almost every key category. 

Nearly 3 in 4 (72%) podcast enthusiasts shop via mobile apps at least once weekly, compared to just 57% of all U.S. adults. Double-digit gaps also exist for weekly shopping via social media (27% vs. 16%, respectively) and usage of meal delivery services (55% vs. 37%, respectively).

This group isn’t pinching pennies when it comes to health and happiness, either. They over-index on attending live events, traveling, flying first class and exercising relative to the general population. Unsurprisingly, they’re also likelier to rate their health as “excellent” or “very good.” 

The underlying factor compelling this outsized level of consumption by frequent podcast listeners — beyond their financial status and familial obligations — is a desire to be tastemakers. Much more so than the average adult, podcast enthusiasts like to stay up to date with current affairs, regularly host social gatherings, participate in emerging trends and recommend products to others.

And many of these same motivations are reflected in the digital spaces where they are especially active, too. 

Podcast people’s (other) preferred platforms 

Frequent podcast listeners are more likely than the general population to use every platform that Morning Consult tracks, but the below chart displays where these gaps are largest. The cohort’s interest in worldliness and prestige is clearly reflected by the appearances of several news outlets and subscription streamers.

Frequent podcast listeners’ presence on so many culture-driving platforms makes them all the more lucrative; if they try out a brand they heard about on a show, they very well may take to the likes of X or Instagram to spread the good word, providing advertisers with even more bang for their buck. 

Put simply, podcast enthusiasts are capital-C Consumers. They’re everywhere, and they’re eager to both influence and be influenced, which distribution networks are betting (in ever-larger quantities) will be able to net them all kinds of revenues. 

And that bet wouldn’t be a bad one. As one example, Jason and Travis Kelce’s “New Heights” podcast, which just inked a $100 million deal with Amazon’s Wondery, was already selling seven-figure ad packages last year in what was only the show’s second season. That kind of fee is certainly poised to scale alongside the Kelce brothers’ star power — and when you add in revenue from merchandise, content licensing and live events, the economics start to make more sense. 

Podcast prospects 

These megadeals will likely only remain available to celebrities or those few podcasters with extremely large and loyal followings (such as Alex Cooper). But their existence is evidence of the medium’s graduation into a bonafide form of mainstream media — at least for a subset of very sought-after consumers. 

The evolution of major podcast advertisers is evidence of this, too. Once upon a time, podcast ads were largely populated by under-the-radar direct-to-consumer companies. Today, the list of top spenders looks more like the Fortune 500.

That said, the broader podcast industry is still finding its footing after a 2023 marked by show cancellations, layoffs and lawsuits. And while a full recovery will take time, there are several reasons for long-term optimism.

Morning Consult Intelligence data shows that the next generation of audio enthusiasts is particularly diverse: 37% of Gen Z frequent podcast listeners are non-white, 47% are women and 26% identify as LGBTQIA — all very coveted advertising audiences.

Plus, perhaps more importantly than anything else, the medium exists in a largely positive context. Relaxing and learning are among the top reasons that listeners tune into podcasts. This limits the negative experiences and brand safety risks that plague so many other digital channels, positioning podcasts as a uniquely durable communications solution.

This memo utilizes data from Morning Consult Intelligence, our new product that makes it easy to explore and build thousands of custom audience profiles to better understand your target customers. To learn more about Morning Consult Intelligence, request a demo here.