Podcast publishers and radio executives must track how iHeartMedia maintained its dominance as the largest U.S. podcast publisher in June, even as a major shift occurred at the top of the individual show rankings with “Crime Junkie” overtaking “The Daily.” This data from Podtrac signals that while seasonal slowdowns are typical, the competitive landscape for audience share remains volatile, directly impacting rights valuations and advertising strategies for Black music and urban radio professionals who rely on podcast integration.
Publisher Dominance Holds Despite Seasonal Dip
Podcast listening softened in June as the industry entered its standard summer slowdown, with Podtrac reporting declines in unique monthly audiences and downloads for most publishers. Despite these lower listening levels, the competitive order at the top of the publisher rankings remained largely intact. The iHeart Audience Network retained its position as the largest podcast publisher measured by Podtrac, securing 55.1 million U.S. monthly listeners and 267.6 million downloads and streams. iHeartPodcasts ranked second with 29.5 million listeners and 150.3 million downloads and streams. The NPR Sales Network held the No. 3 position with 17.0 million monthly listeners, followed by Libsyn at No. 4 with 12.8 million listeners. PodcastOne climbed one spot to No. 6, while Barstool Sports entered the Top 10 at No. 10 as Paramount slipped to No. 11.
Crime Junkie Dethrones The Daily at Top of Chart
The most significant change in the monthly podcast rankings occurred at the very top, where Audiochuck’s “Crime Junkie” debuted at No. 1, becoming the most-listened-to podcast measured by Podtrac in June. This debut ended “The Daily’s” one-month run atop the rankings, with The New York Times podcast slipping to No. 2 and “NPR News Now” falling to No. 3. “Pod Save America” ranked seventh, “Pardon My Take” held eighth, and “Stuff You Should Know” remained at No. 10. Further down the chart, “Rotten Mango” posted one of the month’s biggest gains, climbing eight spots to No. 17, while “Today, Explained” rebounded two positions to No. 18.
The data also highlights a fundamental shift in consumption, with video becoming an increasingly important distribution platform rather than just a promotional tool. Across the 18 publishers in Podtrac’s Global Multi-Channel Rankings, about 26% of all full-episode consumption now comes from video, while roughly 74% still comes through traditional audio. The iHeart Audience Network remained the world’s largest podcast network, generating 551.9 million combined audio and video downloads, streams, and views in June. This mix varies considerably by publisher, as Paramount generated about 61% of its full-episode consumption from video in June, while The Volume drew approximately 58% from video.
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