Earlier this year, YouTube became the “most frequently used service for listening to podcasts in the U.S.” and it’s now seeing “1 billion monthly active viewers of podcast content.”
YouTube hit that 1 billion milestone as of January 2025, and previously noted how “viewers watched over 400M hours of podcasts monthly on living room devices” last year. The popularity of “podcasts with video” (versus just audio) is credited.
Google notes how the service is “often the first place people go when looking for a new podcast,” with its search and recommendations system mentioned as helping “people discover their next favorite podcast.”
On the Creators side, YouTube has ”added more and more podcasters into our revenue sharing program, the YouTube Partner Program.”
More broadly, YouTube says it “specifically developed our podcast product experience to make it easier for fans to find podcasts they love, discover new ones, and watch (or listen!) wherever they want,” with both the main app and YouTube Music noted.
Last year, YouTube Studio added an RSS upload capability that turns audio into a simple video, while Google Podcasts shut down in favor of YouTube Music. YTM gained some much-needed improvements, but it was a quiet second half of the year for updates. The YouTube app also added a “Your podcasts” page in the You/Library tab.
The company says there is “more to come” on “making [YouTube] the best home for all your favorite podcasts.”
This milestone underscores how YouTube has come to play an essential role in podcasting for creators and audiences, and how our investments to improve the podcast experience on YouTube are paying off.
More on YouTube:
- YouTube for Android TV gains a ‘dubbed’ tag for AI translated audio
- YouTube on TVs adding music ‘Display’ with live lyrics, artwork
- YouTube Design on its new red color and magenta gradient
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