This table contains 195 series, with data for years 1999 - 2007 (not all combinations necessarily have data for all years), and is no longer being released. This table contains data described by the following dimensions (Not all combinations are available): Geography (1 item: Canada), Radio station format (13 items: Adult contemporary music;Album-oriented-rock music;Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (CBC);Contemporary music; ...), Audience characteristics (15 items: Teens 12 to 17 years;Males 18 years and over;Males 18 to 24 years;Males 25 to 34 years; ...).

In 2023, there were *** radio stations in Canada, approximately employing *** thousand people. The drop in the number of radio stati0ons is the most significant so far throughout the measured period.

Radio industry in Canada: facts and financial figures Despite the steady increase in radio stations, Canada’s radio industry has experienced ongoing revenue declines for the past few years. In 2021, operating revenue generated by the radio industry in Canada fell to **** billion Canadian dollars, the lowest figure reported in over a decade. In 2020, revenue generated by Canada’s commercial radio stations has also dropped by over one million Canadian dollars since 2016, with similar downward trends reported for employee numbers, advertising revenues, and many other industry metrics alike. Looking at the most profitable commercial radio stations in Canada, Bell Canada (BCE) stands out as the country’s leading broadcasting company at a ** percent market share.

Radio audiences and listener trends Radio remains one of the leading offline news sources in Canada. While radio has not been able to reach as many Canadians as other digital and traditional media formats in recent years, thousands of listeners still tune in to listen to radio programs, news broadcasts, and music on a daily basis. In 2021, Toronto was Canada’s leading market based on radio audience, with over *** million average daily listeners. As internet radio continues to grow in scope and popularity, an increasing share of Canadians are streaming AM and FM radio online.

Radio broadcasters in Canada have been at the mercy of the constantly evolving entertainment space. In particular, new methods of music consumption, like on-demand streaming services, have been the single greatest threat to these broadcasters. While Canadian radio broadcasters have combated this competition by focusing more on value-added talk show formats, advertising dollars have consistently been routed to the digital and streaming entertainment realms, hurting the primary avenue of revenue generation. As a result, radio broadcasters' revenue will drop at a CAGR of 5.2% to $1.5 billion, dipping 4.4% in 2025 alone as advertising funding is gradually redirected towards music streaming services and podcasts. Canadian radio broadcasters' profit is also poised to slump as reduced industry revenue and relatively steady fixed costs negatively impact financial performance. Rising competition from alternative media platforms, like audio streaming services, has increasingly diverted listeners from radio broadcasts. The rising prevalence and accessibility of smartphones and tablets have boosted the popularity of podcasts and audio streaming platforms like Spotify and Apple Music. The industry's gradual dip has led to an onslaught of consolidation activity. The largest Canadian radio broadcasters have emphasized merger and acquisition activity as a primary catalyst for market share expansion, often acquiring smaller stations to diversify programming content to reach new demographics or expand into new geographic regions. Many smaller broadcasters based in small communities are unprofitable and are susceptible to the same competition that mires even the more prominent radio broadcasters in Canada. This has ultimately led to an abundance of industry exits and layoffs, with both enterprises and employment sinking over the current period. Moving toward 2030, the industry is slated to continue its downward trajectory. Radio broadcasters will still endure the detrimental influence of intensifying competition from podcasts, streaming services and internet-enabled mobile devices. Advertising expenditure via radio will drop as a share of overall advertising expenditure as companies continue to shift their marketing channels toward digital marketing. In response, radio stations will develop new mobile apps and enable consumers to listen without advertisements by paying a recurring fee. Nonetheless, revenue for radio broadcasters in Canada will contract at a CAGR of 4.0% to reach $1.2 billion in 2030.

In the fall of 2021 Toronto radio stations had over 5.86 million listeners, and is by far the leading radio market in the country with consistently over five million listeners each quarter. Considering the average daily radio audience in in Canada, the figures for winter 2021 were the highest recorded in the timeline, and could have been connected to the coronavirus as consumers sought updates on the pandemic.

The radio industry in Canada generated **** billion Canadian dollars in operating revenue in 2023, marking the lowest figure reported in over a decade. Compared with the previous year, operating revenue had dropped by approximately ** thousand dollars.

Radio industry in Canada Canada’s radio industry has experienced ongoing revenue declines for the past few years. In 2019, the revenue generated by commercial radio stations in Canada fell from **** billion to **** billion Canadian dollars, and similar downward trends were registered for employee numbers, advertising revenues, and many other industry metrics alike. Nevertheless, the number of radio stations in Canada has been growing steadily since 2015, with Bell Canada remaining the country’s most profitable broadcasting company based on market share.

Radio consumption trends Radio remains one of the most popular offline news sources in Canada, with thousands of listeners tuning in to listen to radio programs, news broadcasts, and music on a daily basis. In 2020, the Toronto area was Canada’s leading market based on radio audience, with more than **** million average daily listeners. During the first half of that year, ‘Blinding Lights’ by The Weeknd was the most played song on the radio in Canada, with more than ** thousand plays.

Radio listening, percentage share by radio station format

This table contains 143 series, with data for years 1999 - 2007 (not all combinations necessarily have data for all years), and is no longer being released. This table contains data described by the following dimensions (Not all combinations are available): Geography (11 items: Canada;Newfoundland and Labrador;Prince Edward Island;Nova Scotia; ...), Radio station format (13 items: Adult contemporary music;Album-oriented-rock music;Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (CBC);Contemporary music; ...).

This table contains 143 series, with data for years 1999 - 2007 (not all combinations necessarily have data for all years), and is no longer being released. This table contains data described by the following dimensions (Not all combinations are available): Geography (11 items: Canada;Newfoundland and Labrador;Prince Edward Island;Nova Scotia; ...), Radio station format (13 items: Adult contemporary music;Album-oriented-rock music;Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (CBC);Contemporary music; ...).

A study of core radio listeners from 2021 on radio consumption in the United States and Canada found that radio consumers stated they listened to AM or FM radio while in a vehicle ** percent of the time. Radio listening at home, work, or school comprised ** percent of time spent listening to radio, compared to only ** percent of listening to radio via a computer stream.

This statistic shows the radio audience composition in Canada in 2013, by demographic and daypart. During the reported period, 51 percent of those listening to radio during mid-day (Monday to Friday, 10AM to 4PM) were females aged 18 and older.

This table contains 195 series, with data for years 1999 - 2007 (not all combinations necessarily have data for all years), and is no longer being released. This table contains data described by the following dimensions (Not all combinations are available): Geography (1 item: Canada), Radio station format (13 items: Adult contemporary music;Album-oriented-rock music;Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (CBC);Contemporary music; ...), Audience characteristics (15 items: Teens 12 to 17 years;Males 18 years and over;Males 18 to 24 years;Males 25 to 34 years; ...).

This table contains 104 series, with data for years 1999 - 2007 (not all combinations necessarily have data for all years), and is no longer being released. This table contains data described by the following dimensions (Not all combinations are available): Geography (1 item: Canada), Radio station format (13 items: Adult contemporary music;Album-oriented-rock music;Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (CBC);Contemporary music; ...), Audience education level (8 items: Grade school education or less;Partial high school education;High school graduate;Partial community or technical college; ...)

According to a study from early 2021 on AM/FM radio consumption in United States and Canada, ** percent of surveyed radio listeners said that their radio consumption has been the same to not changed a lot. Contrarily, ** percent of respondents stated that they listened to less AM and FM radio while ** percent stated that they consumed more radio compared to the previous year.

Radio broadcasting industry, by type of broadcaster and by operating and financial detail for Canada from 1999 to today.

In 2023, radio advertising revenue in Canada amounted to approximately *** billion Canadian dollars. The corresponding figure was roughly **** billion Canadian dollars a year earlier. This marked a slight decrease.

Radio industry in Canada Canada’s radio industry has experienced ongoing revenue declines for over a decade. In 2022, operating revenues from Canada’s radio sector stood at **** billion Canadian dollars. A decade earlier, this respective figure was roughly two billion. That said, radio ranked among Canada's primary offline news sources for Anglophone news consumers as of early 2023.

Is radio advertising still effective? In 2024, global radio advertising spending was projected to reach over **** billion U.S. dollars. A year earlier, the corresponding spending was less than ** billion dollars. Yet, radio remains a popular news and entertainment source for millions of listeners. It makes for an impressive audience base, even if many listen only in the car. A growing trend — in line with the general digitization of the media industry — is consumers moving away from traditional radio and to online radio stations. Aware of the ongoing changes, marketers assign higher budgets to digital radio advertising. The future of the radio will likely be digital.

************************************************************************ are the top two answers among Canadian consumers in our survey on the subject of "Preferred radio content by genre".Find this and more survey data on preferred radio content by genre in our Consumer Insights tool. Filter by countless demographics, drill down to your own, hand-tailored target audience, and compare results across countries worldwide.

The Radio Sector provides a glimpse into various aspects of radio broadcasting in Canada. This section presents information related to audience measurement, Canadian content development, tangible benefits, commercial radio, CBC/SRC radio, non-commercial radio, Internet-based audio services and the availability of radio services and other audio services.

This table contains 234 series, with data for years 1999 - 2007 (not all combinations necessarily have data for all years), and is no longer being released. This table contains data described by the following dimensions (Not all combinations are available): Geography (13 items: Canada;Newfoundland and Labrador;Prince Edward Island;Nova Scotia; ...), Audience characteristics (18 items: Total audience population 12 years and over;Teens 12 to 17 years;Males 18 years and over;Males 18 to 24 years; ...).

View monthly updates and historical trends for Canada Real GDP by Industry: Radio and Television Broadcasting. Source: Statistics Canada. Track economic d…

Statistical and financial information on the commercial radio industry as provided by licensees in their annual returns.