In podcast sponsorship, certain brands dominate the conversation. But are the industry's largest sponsors reflecting broader trends in podcast advertising, or do they have distinct preferences?
To find out, we compared the behavior of the top 20 podcast sponsors with podcast sponsors overall using data from Rephonic.
Note: Our sponsor data skews towards active English-language shows averaging more than 250 estimated listeners per week.
TL;DR:
- Shopify is the largest overall sponsor of podcasts
- Larger sponsors seem to prioritise scale over more effective host-read ads
- Top 20 sponsors are more likely to partner with podcasts that have a YouTube channel
- Top 20 sponsors prefer Sports shows
- Big sponsors like Shopify are paying less attention to Business and Entrepreneurship podcasts
📈 Shopify is the most prolific sponsor of podcasts
First, we found the top 20 podcast sponsors by the number of sponsored episodes.
Shopify stands out as the leading brand, having sponsored approximately 44,000 episodes in our data set and counting, while FanDuel comes in second with around 32,000 sponsored episodes.
▶️ Top 20 sponsors are more likely to partner with podcasts that have a YouTube channel
YouTube, which has its own distinct ad system, does not yet allow dynamically inserted ads through RSS feeds. However, our analysis shows that this restriction does not deter major sponsors — they're still keen to sponsor their RSS episodes outside of YouTube.
In fact, 59% of podcasts sponsored by top 20 brands have a YouTube channel. This is much higher than the industry average, where only 36% of sponsored podcasts are on YouTube.
🗣️ Big sponsors prioritise scale over more effective host-read ads
Host-read ads are typically celebrated for their authenticity, personal touch, and higher listener trust. Despite these advantages, our data suggests that the largest sponsors prefer more scalable pre-recorded ads.
Overall, host-read ads feature in 48% of all sponsored podcast episodes, whereas among the top 20 sponsors, this number drops to 39%. This trend indicates that larger brands may favor dynamically inserted ads because they can easily reach a broader audience without the complexities of coordinating personalized, host-read ads.
🏈 Top 20 sponsors prefer Sports shows
Major podcast sponsors clearly favor sports content. Out of the top five most overrepresented categories by top 20 sponsors, three are sports-related.
This could be because sports podcast listeners are particularly open to ads. Research suggests that sports listeners are 2.3 times more likely to trust podcast advertisements compared to traditional media, such as print or radio.
🏦 Big sponsors like Shopify are paying less attention to Business and Entrepreneurship podcasts
In contrast, Business and Entrepreneurship podcasts receive comparatively less attention from the top 20 sponsors. This might be because business-related shows have less broad appeal, so the sponsors are more targeted.
Having said this, Shopify has sponsored the largest number of Business and Entrepreneurship episodes, but it targets these categories less frequently than podcast sponsors overall.
Only 3.4% of episodes sponsored by Shopify are in Business or Entrepreneurship categories, compared to 7.5% of all sponsored episodes. This is surprising since audiences of these shows seem to align with Shopify’s target market of business owners.
Interestingly, NetSuite, a business management software company sponsors the third highest number of Business and Entrepreneurship episodes, behind Indeed in second place. NetSuite demonstrates what is arguably a more strategic focus, with 22% of its sponsorship efforts dedicated to these categories.
Final thoughts
Top 20 podcast sponsors usually prefer sports-related content, scalable ad options, and shows that are on YouTube. They often shy away from Business and Entrepreneurship shows, even though these audiences might align with some of their target audiences.
While these findings can point smaller advertisers toward promising areas, like Sports shows, it’s important to remember that just because larger brands choose them, it doesn’t mean they’ll guarantee the best return on investment for smaller sponsors.
If you’re looking for the opportunities that will maximize your ROI, try Rephonic. It’s a database of over three million podcasts with data such as listener numbers, sponsor insights, audience demographics, contact information, and lots more. Start your free trial now and find the right shows to sponsor.
