THURSDAY, AUGUST 7: Almost 4 million (3.97m) adults tune into Irish radio every week, according to the latest JNLR results which also show Bauer Media Audio Ireland (BMAI) is Ireland’s biggest radio group with the largest number of daily and weekly listeners across its portfolio of national, regional and local stations which includes Today FM, Newstalk, 98FM, SPIN1038, SPIN South West, Cork’s Red FM, iRadio and Beat.
- BMAI Weekly Reach (All Adults): 2.28 million
- BMAI Daily Reach / Listened Yesterday (All Adults): 1.56 million
- BMAI Prime-Time Market Share (All Adults): 28.8%
- BMAI Market Share (20–44-year-olds): 41.52%
Nationally, Today FM retains its position as the leading commercial radio station in Ireland with an increased weekly listenership of 928,000 (+14,000 BoB) and a Daily Reach of 499,000 listeners (+33,000 BoB). Strong listenership increases were recorded across all prime time shows. The Last Word with Matt Cooper delivered massive growth with an audience of 181,000 (+18,000). Meanwhile, The Ian Dempsey Breakfast Show remains unchallenged as the biggest breakfast show on commercial radio with a morning audience of 213,000 (+10,000 BoB) while Dave Moore recorded 198.000 listeners (+5,000 BoB), Ray Foley now commands an audience of 159,000 (+6,000 BoB) and Louise Cantillon on Today FM lunchtime grew her listenership to 119,000 (+12,000 BoB).
Across Ireland, Newstalk now has a weekly reach of 871,000 (+ 10,000 BoB) with a national market share standing firm at 8.2%, reflecting its position as the go to station for a new generation of talk listeners. The Pat Kenny Show remains the most popular programme on commercial radio with 216,000 listeners while The Hard Shoulder, presented by Kieran Cuddihy has powered ahead with an additional 12,000 new listeners, building on its growing reputation as must listen drivetime radio. The Hard Shoulder audience now stands at 165,000.
In addition, record breaking figures were achieved by sports heavyweights Off The Ball, delivering a bump in listeners seeking their daily dose of sports news and analysis to 59,000, an increase of 8,000, BoB. This represents a joint record for the evening show and underlines the appeal of presenter Eoin Sheahan, who took over the programme a year ago. New records were also set for weekends with Saturday’s Off The Ball drawing 158,000 listeners (+ 1,000 BoB) while Sunday’s Off The Ball attracted a bigger 155,000 following (+ 9,000 BoB.)
The Anton Savage Show (Saturday) delivered a record high, boosting numbers considerably adding 6,000 new listeners BoB, to deliver an audience of 139,000.
Elsewhere in the BMAI portfolio, there were notable station and programming performances;
In Dublin, 98FM recorded a Weekly Reach of 195,000 (-3,000 BoB). 98FM’s Big Breakfast with Rebecca & Brendan are the choice of 49,000 (-2,000 BoB) Dublin listeners every morning while 98FM’s Big Ride Home with Brian Maher achieved an audience of 40,000, a massive 11,000 increase year-on-year.
In Cork, Red FM remains the favoured listening choice in Cork across the key metrics of market share (20.9%), weekly reach (174,000) and daily reach (140,000) while its primetime schedule saw more growth.
As for the biggest show in Cork? Naturally, it’s The Neil Prendeville Show with 82,000 listeners. Not to be outdone, Red FM’s Home Run with Colm O’Sullivan clocked in with an increased audience of 60,000 (+21,000 YoY) while Cork wakes up with biggest breakfast show around, Red FM Breakfast with KC on 54,000 listeners (+2,000 BoB).
SPIN 1038 maintains its position as the clear leader for youth audience in the capital with a weekly reach of 155,000 listeners in the important 15-34 audience.
SPIN South West sets the pace with a steady market share of 13.3% and a Weekly Reach of 160,000 (-2,000 BoB). Breakfast favourites, Fully Charged with Ed & Valerie weighed in at 40,000 (-1,000 BoB) while SPIN Hits with Eoghain Fitz scored 63,000 listeners (+1,000 BoB).
iRadio, which broadcasts across fifteen counties, delivered strong audience growth with a Market Share of 9.3% (+0.6% BoB), a weekly reach of 335,000 listeners (+3,000 BoB) and a Daily Reach of 192,000 listeners (+11,000 BoB). The biggest show on the station remains Dave & Fionnuala at an enhanced audience of 91,000 (+7,000 BoB). It was also good news for iRadio in the Morning with Cooper & Oonagh who hit a listenership of 78,000 (+3,000 YoY). Paul Byrne grew his lunchtime audience to 55,000 (+4,000 BoB) while Sharron Lynskey increased her mid-morning show to 62,000 listeners (+6,000 BoB)
In the South East, Beat had a steady, strong performance, delivering a Market Share of 16.5% (-0.4% BoB) and an increased Weekly Reach of 182,000 (+1,000 BoB). Beat Breakfast saw no change at 59,000 listeners while Beat Drive with Darren Rice saw his audience move up to 51,000 (+1,000 BoB).
Commenting on the results, Bauer Media Audio Ireland CEO Chris Doyle said;
“We are continuing to consolidate our position as the biggest audience of any radio group in Ireland. For our listeners, our team, advertisers and partners I’m delighted that we are delivering important results across key audience metrics
These results are a reflection of the appeal, diversity and engagement of our programming across our national and regional network.
While today is an important benchmark, it’s one that we’re going to build on, entertaining and informing current audiences while also attracting new listeners looking for the type of radio and audio that they can’t find elsewhere”
ENDS
Information sourced from JNLR/Ipsos 2025-2 (July ’24 – June ’25)
For further information, please contact: mediaqueries@bauermedia.ie
About Bauer Media Group
We are a media business focused on creating content that matters to millions of people across Europe. Our offering extends from print and online publishing to audio broadcasting and entertainment, alongside investments in other media related sectors.
With more than 500 million copies sold each year, we are one of Europe’s largest Publishers. From women’s and celebrities’ magazines to TV listings to food and special interest, we own some of the most popular publishing brands in Germany, UK, Poland and France – both digital and print. But not only that.
Reaching over 61 million listeners weekly, we operate over 150 radio and podcast brands in nine countries, spanning the UK, Ireland, Poland, Slovakia, Denmark, Sweden, Finland, Norway and Portugal.
Family-owned in the 5th generation, Bauer Media focuses on the long-term, with a consumer-first mindset that guides us across our diverse portfolio. Our workforce of 12,000 shares a common purpose: to deliver content and services that enrich people’s everyday lives.