Podcast advertising saw a strong rebound in the second quarter, with Magellan AI reporting a 28% year-over-year increase.
The growth easily outpaced the 17% gain recorded in the first quarter, as early-year concerns over tariffs and the economy subsided. Each month in the April-to-June stretch outperformed the one before it.
The second quarter traditionally sees more ad dollars than the first, and this year was no exception. Magellan says the top 10 advertisers spent a combined $128 million during April, May, and June, up 20% from the first quarter.
BetterHelp remained the largest spender at $16.4 million, followed closely by Amazon at $15.9 million and Toyota at $14.4 million. Unilever entered the quarterly rankings for the first time, investing $10.2 million to secure ninth place.
Financial services led all categories, with $104.3 million spent — a 56% jump from last year. Business services and software ranked second at $77.3 million, while consumer services and software totaled $70.7 million.
Other high-growth sectors included insurance (+54%), gambling (+26%), automotive (+24%), and food (+20%). Produced ads rose 76% in spending year-over-year, while host-read ads climbed 31%. Programmatic and run-of-network spending were flat.
Brand diversity also expanded, with 1,196 newcomers buying podcast ads in the quarter. The average first-time spend was $42,600, higher than in past quarters. Sports was the most popular genre for new advertisers, with one in five using it in their media plans. News and Comedy were also top picks. Mid-roll placements dominated, accounting for 56% of second-quarter ads compared to pre-roll’s 30% share.
Despite the spending surge, Magellan says ad loads have dropped 11.6% year-over-year, meaning listeners heard roughly 39 fewer seconds of ads per episode. Top 500 podcasts dedicated 9.1% of their runtime to ads, compared to 8.1% for shows ranked 501 to 3,000. True Crime had the highest ad load at 12.06%, with Society & Culture (9.01%) and Education (8.48%) next in line.
Average advertiser spend on top 500 shows reached $318,000 per month, up 6% from the first quarter. Ads of 30 seconds remained the most common length at 35% of the market. Direct response campaigns accounted for 43% of spending, with brand awareness at 55% and tune-in promotions at 3%.
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