Online music streaming services have officially overtaken traditional radio as Australia’s most widely used audio platform, according to data from the Australian Communications and Media Authority (ACMA). While radio remains a powerful force, particularly in cars and among older Australians, the figures underline a fundamental change in how music is consumed and how new artists break through to audiences.
by Paul Cashmere
The latest data shows that 72 per cent of Australian adults use an online music streaming service in a typical week, compared to 64 per cent who listen to traditional radio. The numbers confirm what has been gradually unfolding over the past decade.
Streaming has become the default listening choice for younger Australians, while radio continues to maintain strong connections with older audiences and commuters.
The significance of the shift extends well beyond audience measurement. For much of the second half of the twentieth century and into the early 2000s, radio airplay was the primary mechanism for turning songs into national hits. Today, streaming platforms, social media algorithms and user-generated content increasingly determine which tracks break through.
Australia’s youngest listeners are leading the transformation. Among 18 to 24-year-olds, 94 per cent use streaming services weekly, while only 41 per cent listen to traditional radio. The gap is even more pronounced when considering the role of platforms such as Spotify, TikTok and YouTube in music discovery. For many younger listeners, playlists, recommendations and viral trends have replaced radio presenters as tastemakers.
The pattern continues among Australians aged 25 to 39. Streaming usage sits between 80 and 85 per cent, comfortably ahead of radio, which attracts between 65 and 75 per cent of the demographic. This group often combines both formats, using streaming at home, at work and during exercise, while returning to radio during weekday commutes.
The balance begins to shift among Australians aged 40 to 54. This audience increasingly adopts a hybrid approach, maintaining subscriptions to streaming services while continuing regular radio habits, particularly around breakfast and drive programming. Radio reaches between 75 and 82 per cent of this demographic, while streaming attracts roughly 60 to 70 per cent.
The picture changes dramatically after the age of 55. Radio becomes the dominant audio medium, reaching more than 80 per cent of listeners in both the 55 to 65 and 65-plus demographics. Streaming usage falls to around 45 to 55 per cent among those aged 55 to 65 and drops further to approximately 31 per cent among Australians over 65.
The divide highlights what researchers describe as the industry’s “great flip”. Australians under 40 largely treat audio as an on-demand experience, selecting content based on mood, activity and personal preference. Australians over 55 are more likely to use radio as a daily companion, consuming live programming, local news, talkback and familiar music formats.
Despite streaming’s overall lead, radio remains exceptionally strong in one critical environment: the car. Research indicates that around 84 per cent of drivers still choose radio during commutes, making it the dominant in-car audio source. Breakfast and drive-time programming continue to deliver some of the largest audiences in Australian media.
Radio’s strength in the car helps explain why the medium remains commercially influential despite the rise of streaming. Commercial radio collectively reaches around 15 million Australians each week, providing advertisers with a scale that individual streaming platforms often struggle to match.
However, the distinction between radio and streaming is becoming less clear. More than one-third of Australians now stream live radio through apps, smart speakers and connected devices. Younger audiences who may rarely switch on an AM or FM receiver still engage with radio brands through digital channels.
The evolving landscape raises important questions about the future of music discovery. Historically, a song added to heavy rotation on major radio networks could quickly become a national hit. Today, many successful tracks first gain momentum through streaming playlists, TikTok trends, influencer content and algorithm-driven recommendations before radio programmers respond.
Industry observers increasingly view radio as a validator rather than an originator of hits. Songs that achieve significant streaming numbers often receive radio support later in their life cycle, once audience demand has already been established online. While radio can still amplify a successful record, the initial spark is increasingly digital.
That does not mean radio’s influence has disappeared. For older audiences, radio remains one of the most effective platforms for introducing new music. It also continues to play an important role in artist interviews, local promotion and event awareness. Yet the data suggests the centre of gravity for music discovery has shifted.
As streaming continues to grow and radio expands its own digital distribution, Australia’s audio market is becoming less about competition between formats and more about how audiences move between them. The future of music discovery is likely to involve both platforms, but the evidence increasingly points to online ecosystems as the place where tomorrow’s hits are first created, shared and heard.
