RNZ audiences

Live Radio Listening 

August 2023: These results relate to live radio listening in New Zealand by people aged 10 years and over, nationwide, for the second survey of 2023.

  • In a typical week, 648,700 New Zealanders aged 10+ listen to RNZ National and RNZ Concert, down from 678,200 from the previous survey.
  • RNZ National’s audience 10+ is 532,400 in a typical week, down from 557,300 in the previous survey.
  • In a typical week, 192,000 New Zealanders aged 10+ listen to RNZ Concert, a decrease of 18,000 from the last survey.
  • RNZ's share of all radio audiences in New Zealand has decreased slightly, with both RNZ National and RNZ Concert down by 1.1 percentage points. The total share across RNZ National and RNZ Concert is 12.8%.
  • The number of listeners to all radio across Aotearoa increased slightly to 3,661,800 from 3,651,200 listeners, up 0.3% on the previous survey.
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Definitions: - Cumulative audience is the number of different listeners to a station over a week. 

*Station share is the percentage of all radio listening that is done to a station over a week; it takes into account the number of people listening and how long they listen. (Station shares cannot be compared with Total NZ - Commercial Survey results, as the commercial share figures are based on commercial radio stations only, whereas the shares reported here are based on listening to all radio stations.)

Source: GfK Radio Audience Measurements, All Radio Stations, Total New Zealand -  RNZ - Survey 1/2023, All 10+, Mon-Sun 12mn-12mn, Cume and Share %. 

Online Audiences

  • Website traffic grows in July 2023 - rnz.co.nz added 78,000 unique audience members (15+) in July 2023 to reach a unique audience of 880,000 according to the latest Nielsen figures, a 10% increase from June 2023, and up 7.5% increase from July 2022.
  • Usage of RNZ app remains popular - In July 2023 the RNZ app had 147,100 users, an increase of 5,600 (+3.8%) on June 2023.
  • Audio streams - RNZ audio content was streamed on rnz.co.nz 322,000 times in July 2013 a 3% increase from June 2023.  
  • Podcast downloads - In July 2023 more than 2,965,000 podcasts were downloaded, an increase of 92,000 (+3%) from June 2023.
Awards

2023 PANZ Book Design Awards
  • The RNZ Cookbook was released in November 2022 and has been named a finalist in two categories - Best Cookbook and Best Typography. The winners will be announced in a ceremony on 21 September.
Voyager Media Awards
  • Best original podcast – ongoing/episodic - The Detail (Joint winner with Between Two Beers) Newsroom and RNZ.
  • Le Mana Pacific Award - Lydia Lewis
  • Best reporting – environment - Farah Hancock
  • Feature Writer of the Year (short-form) - Guyon Espiner

All awards

*****

Performance against Charter

RNZ continues to meet the expectations of its listeners and website users.

How much do you agree or disagree that the combined services of National, Concert and the RNZ website meet RNZ's requirements to...? AGREE NEITHER agree nor disagree DISAGREE Don't Know Total
Help to keep New Zealanders informed 93% 4% 2% 1% 100%
Provide accurate news 89% 7% 3% 1% 100%
Provide programmes and content of interest to a wide cross-section of New Zealanders 86% 10% 3% 1% 100%
Provide fair and balanced information 83% 12% 4% 1% 100%
Reflect a sense of distinct New Zealand identity 82% 15% 3% 1% 100%
Provide programmes and content which balance special interest with those of wide appeal 79% 17% 2% 1% 100%
Reflect New Zealand's cultural diversity 79% 16% 4% 1% 100%
Support New Zealand music 77% 18% 4% 2% 100%
Reflect New Zealand arts and artists 75% 21% 2% 2% 100%
Reflect Maori culture and language 64% 23% 9% 4% 100%

(Source: RNZ Listeners and Users Survey, 2016, Nielsen)

Trust in News Report

RNZ is proud to be the most trusted media organisation in New Zealand. Two independent reports* highlight the value of RNZ as an independent, non-commercial media organisation. In a time when trust in media is trending down, these results are a reminder of the importance of strong, independent public media. Here is the Trust in news in New Zealand 2022 report.

* Myllylahti, M. & Treadwell, G. (2022). Trust in news in Aotearoa New Zealand 2022. AUT research centre for Journalism, Media and Democracy (JMAD).
Value Indices (2022) Kantar Public commissioned by RNZ.

2021: RNZ remains the most trusted media outlet in New Zealand as reflected in the 2021 AUT Survey and the widely shared Trust in News Report

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

Why does RNZ carry out research?

It is important for RNZ to know how many people are using its services and how well they think RNZ performs against its Charter.

RNZ is a tax-payer funded public service broadcaster established under the Radio New Zealand Act.  RNZ’s Charter clearly defines the objectives to be achieved and services to be provided by the broadcaster. For example the Charter requires RNZ to commission research among a representative selection of the general public. Each year radio surveys are carried out among New Zealanders.

How are the radio surveys conducted?

In 2016 RNZ and the commercial stations came together to use one system for radio measurement in New Zealand. The Radio Broadcasters Association (RBA) has commissioned the research company GfK to run radio audience measurements in New Zealand from 2016 for five years. 

The surveys run for much of the year, and the people surveyed reflect the population distribution based on the latest Statistics New Zealand information.

Results are at various levels, for example Total New Zealand for nationwide coverage, as well as results for the three main metropolitan cities.

Respondents complete a Radio Diary (hard copy or online) in which they record their radio listening in any given quarter hour over the period of a week. They are also asked demographic questions and other questions about their media habits.

Much of the resulting information appears in Radio New Zealand’s Annual Report.

About Radio New Zealand