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<\/p>\nIn 2021, society collectively saw turbulent circumstances that impacted the way we listen to podcasts and connect.<\/p>\n
Long periods of lockdown and isolation didn\u2019t stop the adaptations that came and diversified content as we adapted to changing circumstances.<\/p>\n
In 2021, Spotify listeners spent 78% more time listening to podcasts than the year before, with the collective minutes listened on Spotify rising a solid 23% from 2020 to 2021.<\/p>\n
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With a lot more people working from home and spending weekends indoors this meant that there was a lot more digital consumption, and 79% of global audiences agreed they used audio to combat screen fatigue.<\/p>\n
The podcast creator sphere saw a big jump with more people eager to create and share their stories in 2021, resulting in at 67% increase in the number of shows on the\u00a0Megaphone<\/strong>\u00a0platform.<\/p>\n Podcasts are becoming a contagious habit in people\u2019s lives resulting in a spread of uptake.<\/p>\n Older generations are indulging themselves in audio, with a 57% increase in listeners ages 55-64 and a 53% increase for listeners older than 64.<\/p>\n While younger audiences also showed significant growth in uptake, with 18 to 24-year-olds listening to podcasts 27% more in 2021 than the previous year.<\/p>\n According to\u00a0Edison Research<\/strong>, approximately 23 million UK residents listened to a podcast in the last month, with weekly podcast listeners listening to an average of five podcasts per week.<\/p>\n Not only is interest peaking, but content has diversified by including more podcasts on different subjects that are seeing rapid uptake.<\/p>\n Religion and Spirituality grew 625%, Growth Arts 1942% and Sexuality and Identity being investigated heavily with a staggering 2429% increase.<\/p>\n Shared listening has seen an increase with more people at home together over the year that showed growth in listening via smart speakers at 98% and smart TVs at 193%, but the main place for people to listen is still in the car.<\/p>\n Spotify growth for listening in the car exploded with a 2736% increase, which is interesting considering how many people had shifted to working from home.<\/p>\n The podcast audio space is growing steadily with 71% of people aged 16+ in the UK being familiar with podcasts and 59% aged 16+ having ever listened to a podcast.<\/p>\n The space still has plenty of room for growth as more people find content to suit them.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/bprworld.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/12\/graph2.jpg?resize=451%2C338\")
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