Programmatic digital audio ad spending is forecast to reach $2.59 billion this year, and the marketers and media agencies driving that growth have never been more locked in, as every measured indicator of buyer commitment hit a five-year high in March.
The data comes from two sources compiled by the Cumulus Media/Westwood One Audio Active Group: an eMarketer forecast issued in January 2025 projecting programmatic digital audio services ad spending through 2026, and an Advertiser Perceptions survey of 302 marketers and media agencies conducted in March 2026. The Advertiser Perceptions tracker has run annually since February 2022, with sample sizes ranging from 301 to 307 respondents per wave.
eMarketer put 2025 programmatic digital audio spending at $2.26 billion, up from $1.92 billion in 2024 and $1.39 billion in 2022. The forecast projects further growth to $2.59 billion in 2026. The figures cover digital audio services ads transacted or fulfilled via automation. Madison & Wall’s US Programmatic Adoption forecast projects automation’s share of audio climbing from 22% in 2025 to 46% by 2030, a trajectory the firm ties to rising ad-supported listening.
Advertiser Perceptions found 82% of marketers and media agencies currently use programmatic audio buying as of March 2026, up from 65% a year earlier and 41% in February 2022. Media agencies lead direct marketers by 14 points: 87% versus 73%, with both segments recording their highest readings in the five-year series.
Discussion of programmatic audio among colleagues reached 88%, consideration for the next six months hit 52%, and likelihood to use within six months reached 46% — all five-year highs.
On the buy side, Google Display & Video 360 leads demand-side platform usage for digital audio at 46%, ahead of The Trade Desk at 37% and Amazon DSP at 35%, per Advertiser Perceptions’ Demand Side Platforms Report for the second half of 2025. Among publishers monetizing digital audio inventory, Google Ad Manager dominates supply-side platform usage at 69%, with Amazon Publisher Services second at 26% and OpenX and PubMatic tied at 18%.
Performance-focused buyers drive the highest current usage, with 87% of performance-oriented respondents reporting active programmatic audio buying compared to 83% among those with an even brand-performance split and 74% among brand-focused buyers. The performance-focused data is drawn from the March 2025 wave; a comparable 2026 breakdown by campaign focus was not included in the release.
The supply side has moved to meet that demand. iHeartMedia added its audio inventory to Amazon DSP late last year, joining Cox Media Group, Spotify, and SiriusXM in giving programmatic buyers direct access to the broadcaster’s streaming listener base. iHeartMedia Chief Business Officer Lisa Coffey called the integration “another step in making broadcast radio behave like digital media; addressable, measurable, and available programmatically, so marketers of all sizes can buy with greater ease and consistency.”
BIA Advisory Services identified programmatic audio among the growth vectors that will help stations compete for larger, cross-platform campaigns in 2026, alongside FM zone targeting, in-car digital listening, and interactive voice ads.
