A reported 80 million consumers paid for a music subscription in 2019, up 12 million from the previous year.
The rebound in music consumption continued in 2019 thanks to continued growth in the streaming market, according to MusicWatch’s 2019 Annual Music Study released Wednesday (March 18).
According to the findings -- based on a survey of 5,000 respondents nationwide aged 13 and older and complemented by MusicWatch’s audiocensus study of 3,000 people who provided detailed music listening behaviors -- the number of music buyers in the U.S. hit 116 million in 2019 across paid subscriptions, CDs, paid downloads and new vinyl, the largest number since 2007.
Streaming now accounts for 39% of all music listening in the U.S., with the streaming population rising to 204 million in 2019. That's the first time that number has surpassed 200 million, driven in part by stronger engagement and willingness to subscribe among older consumers. Meanwhile, a reported 80 million consumers paid for a music subscription during 2019, a growth of 12 million over the previous year. YouTube’s premium and ad-supported services continued to enjoy the biggest share of music listening in Q4 2019, though Spotify, Apple and Amazon all grew their shares.