Bauer Media Audio UK Celebrates 22.5 Millon Weekly Listeners
Bauer Media Audio UK has continued to engage and entertain across its portfolio, reaching audiences wherever they are. Q4 2025 RAJAR results show 22.5m listeners tuning in each week to Bauer stations - that’s more than UK Spotify listeners or Netflix subscribers.
RAJAR’s latest figures show radio continues to thrive, reaching 86% of the UK population, or 50m weekly listeners. Digital listening dominates, accounting for 75% of all hours, with 30% now taking place online via apps and smart speakers.
The headlines this quarter are:
- Commercial radio’s biggest portfolio, the Hits Radio Portfolio - which is made up of Hits Radio and Greatest Hits Radio - now reaches 12.4m listeners and 14.4m when partner stations are included.
- The Greatest Hits Radio Network attracts a weekly audience of 6.9m, with 1.4m listeners enjoying the network's spin-off stations of 60s, 70s, and 80s music. The main station continues to be the home of the UK’s most listened to commercial radio show with Ken Bruce.
- The Hits Radio Network reaches 6.8m listeners, with recent launches Hits Radio 90s and Hits Radio 00s continuing to grow, reaching 457k and 380k respectively. Showcasing the commitment to reaching diverse audiences, Hits Radio Pride also reached its biggest audience ever with 369k listeners.
- The Absolute Radio Network reaches 5.4m listeners, with the Dave Berry Breakfast Show bringing in 2.2m listeners and Absolute Radio 00s attracting its biggest ever audience - up 20% YoY to 520k listeners.
- The Magic Radio Network has grown its weekly audience to 3.6m, attracting 309k listeners to its Magic Christmas station in the last quarter. The Magic Radio Breakfast Show with Gok Wan and Harriet Scott continues to grow (+13% YoY), while spin-off station Mellow Magic increases 21% YoY to 528k.
- The KISS Network entertains 3.4 million listeners each week, with the main KISS station up nearly 19% YoY and KISSTORY R&B attracting 613k listeners. New KISS Breakfast host Tyler West saw a 39% increase in his drivetime show audience.
- Planet Rock reaches 1.1m listeners a week (+13 %YoY), while Kerrang! Radio reaches 547k (+16% YoY) and Jazz FM reaches 480k.
With Bauer reaching audiences in app, online and via smart speakers the company is home to four of the top five digital commercial stations, including #1 Absolute Radio and #2 KISSTORY. Additionally, Bauer Media Audio UK's expanding digital audio advertising platform, audioXi now reaches 14m a month.
Simon Myciunka, Bauer Media Group’s president of Audio and CEO for Bauer Media Audio UK said, “Entertaining our valued audiences is at the heart of what we do and in an increasingly untrustworthy media landscape, radio remains a trusted home for audiences and advertisers. Continued innovation allows us more ways to reach and better serve audiences and commercial partners – including our award-winning Rayo platform and fast-growing digital audio advertising solution audioXi.”
Gary Stein, director of audio at Bauer Media Audio UK, said, “These results reflect a strong quarter for Bauer, with some stand out performances including the Magic Radio Network, with Gok and Harriet welcoming 110,000 new listeners across 2025. It’s also brilliant to see KISS building real momentum, especially with younger audiences, and this week’s launch of the new KISS Breakfast show with Tyler West and Chloe Burrows marks an exciting next step as we look ahead to a new chapter for the brand.”
