Who’s Behind the Wheel: Music Streamers vs. Radio Listeners

by CivicScience | Nov 7, 2025 | Media & Entertainment, General, Healthcare & Lifestyle, Human Interest, Travel & Tourism, Uncategorized

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For many Americans, the car doubles as their favorite concert venue. According to CivicScience data, nearly 9 in 10 U.S. adults report listening to music while driving, with streaming (51%) now holding a slight edge over traditional radio (49%), excluding all other options. Unsurprisingly, Gen Z leads in streaming – though about one-quarter still listen to the radio – while 80% of adults aged 65 and older say they primarily tune in to radio stations.

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Ongoing data from nearly 30K responses show that radio held the lead through 2022, when streaming finally surpassed it. Today, the two are nearly neck and neck, reflecting a slow but steady shift in how Americans soundtrack their drives. But beyond demographics, CivicScience data reveal fascinating lifestyle differences between radio listeners and music streamers. Swipe to see them.

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Car Preferences: Radio listeners over-index on driving American-made cars, while streamers are more likely to drive Japanese models.

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Newspaper Habits: Streamers are more likely to read newspapers overall, but radio listeners lean heavily toward print-only editions. Streamers dominate in digital or mixed print/digital reading.

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Car Buying Behavior: Radio station listeners are twice as likely to buy new vehicles, whereas streamers are twice as likely to lease and roughly 20 percentage points more likely to buy used cars.

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Next Car Type: Radio listeners lead in planning to purchase SUVs and sedans, while streamers over-index in choosing other vehicle types, like convertibles and coupes.

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