#36 | What’s Possible For Your Podcast In 2026? Shocking Listening & Revenue Stats Revealed

0:00What's really possible for your podcast in 2026? You're hearing all this noise about YouTube and wondering if audio is dead. Welcome to How to Grow a Podcast that attracts high-ticket online coaching clients. The show helping coaches, consultants, and experts turn your slow-growth podcast into a profitable client attraction system. At the end of this episode, I'll share a little more about who I am and what we do at my company, GetMoreListeners.com. It might even shock you. But for now, let's dive into the episode. In today's episode, you'll discover surprising stats that show what the actual opportunity for podcast growth and monetization is in 2026.

0:44The end of the debate of whether you should YouTube or not. And finally, how much money clients are making from their shows after getting the right strategy in place. Let's dive in. So we're a news show, are we? No, I thought we were a news show. We listen to the news, absorb all of that beautiful, positive data, and then share it to our listeners every week. No? Oh, that'd be depressing if that's what we did. No, we don't normally talk about stats or general podcasting industry news. That's not really our focus. But thepodcasthost.com just released their report, Podcast Statistics and Industry Trends 2025.

1:26We'll leave a link to it below. And they're a great site. We've referenced them before. And it's not just their report. It's compiled of many other reports and sources. So it's really good. I would recommend reading it if you're serious about your show. But today, it inspired us to make an episode sharing the biggest takeaways we had that pertained to a lot of limiting beliefs, or honestly, myths, perpetuating the podcasting space. And when I say the podcasting space, I mean the minds of innocent podcasters trying to grow and monetize. We don't want you to be influenced by stuff that actually isn't what it's made out to be online, maybe.

2:06So we're going to give you the actual stats that will help you make better decisions based on data about how you grow and market your podcast in 2026. Awesome. Well, look, between me and you, I believe you got an A in maths in high school. You did do it in university, and then you switched to music. Thank God for that. Yeah, I had you in my ear. We lived together at university. I had in my ear saying, follow your passion, follow your passion. Thank you, because I did. I quit maths. Since you are technically the numbers guy, I'd say you can take it away with the stats. Look, here's one stat that is really relevant right now as the internet is just piling on about video.

2:55Oh, everyone's watching video. Video has overtaken Spotify and Apple. You need to be on YouTube if you're serious about a podcast. Should I be on YouTube? Well, that's the innocent podcaster talking, not the general black cloud of propaganda. And we are using quite strong words here. It's not all intentional. And of course, the more you hear it, the more you will probably repeat it as well, because we're trained to think that that is just true. But we hear a lot of stuff, a lot of noise about video, and a lot of noise about you needing to do video if you're serious about growing and monetizing your podcast.

3:36Honestly, a lot of fear-mongering. Now, maybe it's not meant to be fear-mongering, but we've seen from the inside, from working with hundreds of podcasters this year, that what it does is actually fear-monger podcasters that probably don't have the bandwidth to give video a good enough go, are not in a spot where they've actually cracked having a podcast that grows really well, to the point where doing a video makes sense. It makes people feel very pressured to go and do video prematurely a lot of the time. And what happens when people go and add another thing to their plate when some of the things on their plate are already not working?

4:16I think you just feel overwhelmed. There's just so many things going on where you feel overwhelmed. You feel frustrated. And like you mentioned, if you start YouTube video, if you've got a podcast and it's just audio, and you're getting all this pressure and hearing all this propaganda about YouTube, YouTube, YouTube, but your podcast itself isn't growing and you don't have the skills yet of understanding how to fundamentally build an audience on any platform. If you don't have that skill set and you add video on top of it, you're going to be overwhelmed. And I think so many of our clients have felt this in the past.

4:56We speak to hundreds of podcasters every single month who ask the same question of, should I start video? Or they'll say, hey, I've started video. I've been doing it for the last six months. It's not really working. I'm feeling really stressed out and overwhelmed. It adds an extra layer of things I have to think about. Do I need to do it? Well, you would think so, right? From what you hear about it? So this may come as a relief to you, But the answer is, you don't. Now, I'm going to directly quote. Here's a direct quote. Audio is still the number one way to consume podcasts, despite the chatter about video.

5:36Over half of podcast consumers on YouTube also listen to the same podcast on another platform, and only 8 % only watch podcasts, meaning 92 % of podcast viewers also listen. And that's a number that hasn't changed since 2022. too. So for all this smoke about you just can't do anything without video, not true at all. It's just not. Yeah, I think you're certainly right. I guess there's a few things, but without going too deep in the rabbit hole here, this really is an encouragement to you listening right now that you don't need to add video. You don't need to add an additional thing to your workload to hit your goal.

6:15We have clients who are growing consistently month after month without video. They just have their audio podcast, and they have a strategy, and they have a mentor pointing them in the right direction, so they're not just guessing and hoping. So they can actually grow their podcast with less stress without video and get amazing results. So this really should be encouraging to you, because you are going to hear, and you've been hearing, so many narratives. YouTube this, YouTube that. You don't need it. Simple as that. So if you've been internally debating whether you should really be doing video or not, and maybe you've been doing it, but you've been having a war in your mind, or maybe you've not been doing it, but you've been having a war in your mind, hopefully this ends the debate for you.

7:01Now, we're not throwing rocks at video. We throw rocks at a few things, social media being one of them, but we're not against video. We actually have some clients that absolutely crush it on video as well as audio. But it's when it makes sense for you, not because you feel pressured into it because the internet has got it confused with this solution to slow growth, which, like I said, is actually just a lack of skill or ability or know-how or strategy to have content that attracts listeners, retains them, and gets them coming back for more. That's a fundamental thing you need in place that just being on one other platform won't solve.

7:40Now look, here's the thing. I've been hearing a lot of people get a bit skeptical, get a bit worried, and say how audio podcasts aren't booming as much, and no one listens to audio podcasts, hence why the first stat about YouTube, and hence why a lot of people are trying to go to YouTube because they're hearing the narrative that they need to be on YouTube. Like, hey, audio podcasts are dead. Why is that? Is it true? Is it false? What does the data say about that? So with the video one, I had a hunch, to be honest. We'd heard a few things, and we'd just seen the data that you didn't need to be on video.

8:17So we had a hunch about that, and it was nice to see it proved. But this one actually really surprised me. I even had myself questioning sometimes whether podcasting, whether the general world sentiment and interest in podcasting, was the same as it has been over the last few years, or whether there was a big boom after lockdown and everything since has been not as much. That is wrong. And the reason that's wrong is because, as the article will detail in much more detail, essentially, there are more podcast listeners now than ever. The number has continued to grow even upon last year. The number of podcast listeners is way up than it was years ago, and that is a trend that has continued, despite it not being quite as optimistic.

9:05Now, on top of that, here's what's really interesting. There are actually less active podcasts now in 2025, meaning they published an episode in the last month than there was in 2018. Can you believe that? That's crazy. That's absolutely insane. I cannot believe that. I personally found that really shocking, because there has been so many new podcasts that have started over the last few years, and of course, especially in COVID and everything like that. So how can there be less active podcasts than there was in 2018 when there still wasn't that much? I could understand it if there was less than in COVID, but less than 2018?

9:44That wasn't even the peak. Well, that's the thing. Why do you think that is? Why do you think there are way fewer active shows now? What do you think that comes down to? Well, on a practical level, it's because most of the shows, there are a lot more podcasts, technically speaking, but most of them are not active. So most podcasts podfade. Now, that's no secret if you're in the podcasting space. And of course, that is the reason there's less active shows. There are, of course, way more shows with like one episode that are live, but it's mainly a graveyard. Most of the shows are not around anymore.

10:23So that means that there is a smaller number of competition because there's more listeners, but less other shows out there to compete with, which means that this is a really good opportunity in 2026 for people looking to grow and monetize their podcast. It's a better opportunity now. And to circle back and answer the other part of your question, which is like, well, why are people continuing to podfade? Somewhere else in the article, it actually said, so it also surveyed a lot of podcasters, and the biggest struggle podcasters have is marketing and growing their audience. Ultimately, the number one struggle podcasters have, and I'm inferring this part, but the number one reason the podcasters quit is because growth is a struggle.

11:07Honestly, that makes total sense. I think a lot of the times you can come in with certain expectations, or no expectations at all, and both are very dangerous. Meaning, if you come in thinking, my podcast is going to blow up, and all I've got to do is post consistently, share on social media, that's gonna be pretty tough for you when you're three months in, you barely have any listeners, or you had a big spike at the start and then it just flatlined. No one likes to not make progress. So I do get why people quit. Do I agree with it? No, because I think just get a mentor and a strategy, but I get it.

11:44So I'm sure part of the reason at least why this is is because people generally are quite uncertain of what's actually possible in terms of how far can you take a podcast and how much money can you make with it? Is it realistic to make a full-time income from it? Is it realistic for it to be a functioning arm of your business that brings you two plus clients per month and makes you four, five figures in income a month? And for that reason, people can end up one foot in, one foot out. Things are not going swimmingly well, and they're also not exactly sure if it's even that possible to have amazing results.

12:20So what would you say to that based on what we've seen this year with the clients we've worked with? Great question. I think we've seen clients make, not just this year, just from the past four or five years working with clients one-on-one, we've seen clients make literally$12 ,000 in a single month with their podcast when they have a listenership below 500 monthly downloads. We've also seen clients make that exact same amount of money with a podcast at 10 ,000 monthly downloads. We've seen other clients make 30 ,000 monthly downloads with a podcast around the 4 ,000 monthly downloads, and others at 30 ,000 monthly downloads make over$20 ,000 in a single month.

13:01Why am I sharing this? My point is, it doesn't really matter the size of the show based on what I've just shared with you. What really does matter, though, is how targeted is your podcast. How clear is your podcast? Is it clear that your podcast is for a specific type of person who you want to attract into your business? Because if it is, you just need one of those listeners to actually book in a call, to buy your program, to join your membership in order for you to monetize. That really should be the focus point, not just get more listeners to get more listeners, but how is this podcast acting as an arm to my business?

13:38And again, you can hit$10 ,000 in a single month at 500, 3 ,000, 5 ,000, 10 ,000 monthly downloads. it's possible across all ranges. But it's not possible if the podcast isn't clear and specific around who it's actually for. So there you go. And that one is straight from personal experience, statistical experience. These are real results that we've seen this year. And they're not the only results like this that we've seen. Not even close. The point is, so much more is possible from your podcast than what most people think. And I can see why it's not that clear. because podcasting is a new thing.

14:18There's people quitting all the time. There's a lot of misinformation out there. It's very easy to feel unclear about what is possible for your podcast and what you should do about it. And should you be on video? And is it even worth doing? So hopefully this episode clarifies for you a few things. If nothing else, this. Podcasting is absolutely still worth it and absolutely still a great opportunity moving into 2026. It's arguably a better opportunity than it's been, seeing that there's actually less other podcasts that you're up against, yet more people listening to podcasts. People are really not watching YouTube podcasts over Apple and Spotify in the way that it's made out to be.

15:03Yes, if you can do YouTube, if you have a good setup, you have the budget for it, you have the extra time for it, if it makes sense for you, then great, power to you. But do not just jump on it prematurely if you know that you're struggling and it doesn't feel good. Because the truth is, statistically, only 8 % of podcast listeners just watch them on video. Most people are still listening on audio. And this is the reason podcasting even became big in the first place, because of how flexible it can be to listen to something on the go, at the gym, on the commute. And finally, we've had many, many clients make five, six figures this year from their shows.

15:47Their download size is nothing crazy. None of them are famous. Size doesn't matter, not in this case. They built their space, they own that space, and they're known very well by a handful of people. And they're known very well for a certain thing, but they're not celebrities. They don't have a massive budget. They just follow the right strategy, and they're able to achieve amazing things, and will do the same next year. The very same is possible for you. So it is worth it. You can do it. You just have to keep going and don't give up. We'll catch you in the next episode. Thank you for listening all the way to the end.

16:34At the start of this episode, I said I'd tell you a little bit about me. So I'm about to share a secret with you. One that might mean you hate me. Completely quit listening to this podcast and think I'm a total scam. However, I want to be transparent. Are you ready? Well, my name is Tony. No, of course that's not the secret. The secret is that I'm actually a robot. My creators are Tighe and Anthony. Hence, my name, Tony. The sick bastards. Anyway, they are the founders of GetMoreListeners.com. In the last five years, they've coached and interviewed over 400 podcasters and generated multiple six figures from their own show.

17:20They gave me access to everything they know, and I'm here to share it with you. So while I don't understand why you humans are so obsessed with coffee, I do understand how to grow a podcast that actually brings you new clients regularly. So here's my offer to you. If you want to finally understand why your podcast isn't growing and get a personalized roadmap to fix it in less than 30 seconds, you can go to getmorelisteners.com slash onlinecoachaudit. Enter your show name and we'll send you back a free mini podcast audit. It's completely customized to you and your show. That's getmorelisteners.com slash onlinecoachaudit.

18:01The link is also in the show notes of this episode.