Who are Great Britain’s true crime podcast listeners?

True crime has become a fixture of Great Britain's podcast landscape. One in five Britons (20%) say they most often listen to and/or watch true crime podcasts, making it one of the country's most widely consumed podcast categories.

But who is driving the genre's popularity? And when they tune in, what products and services do they consider a good fit for podcast advertising?

Women and millennials are at the heart of the true crime audience

True crime podcast audiences in Great Britain skew strongly female. Nearly two-thirds (65%) of consumers who most often listen to and/or watch true crime podcasts are women, compared with 35% who are men.

The audience behind true crime podcasts is not only predominantly female, but also millennial. Millennials account for 41% of consumers who most often listen to and/or watch true crime podcasts, making them the genre's largest audience segment by a considerable margin.

By comparison, Gen X accounts for 23% of the audience, while Gen Z (19%) and Baby Boomers (17%) make up smaller shares.

Commute or bedtime: When do true crime podcast consumers hit play?

True crime podcasts are woven into everyday life for most consumers. More than half (56%) say they listen to and/or watch podcasts while doing household chores, making it the most common occasion for engaging with the medium.

The genre also accompanies consumers through quieter moments of the day. More than two in five true crime consumers tune in before going to sleep (43%), while a similar proportion consume podcasts during their commute (41%). More than a third (35%) listen while cooking or baking.

While many of these behaviors are common among both men and women, some differences emerge. Women are considerably more likely than men to consume podcasts while cooking or baking (41% vs. 23%) and are also more likely to tune in before going to sleep (45% vs. 39%). Men, meanwhile, are slightly more likely to listen while working out or doing sport (23% vs. 19%).

Which brands are best placed to reach true crime audiences?

When asked which types of products and services are most suitable for podcast advertising, true crime podcast consumers are most likely to mention entertainment or media subscriptions (33%), food & drink (29%), travel & tourism (26%) and health & wellness products (25%).

Around one in five true crime podcast consumers also consider fashion & beauty (23%) and technology products or services (22%) to be a good fit for podcast advertising.

At the other end of the spectrum, fewer true crime podcast consumers identify financial services (16%) and automotive products (14%) as suitable categories.

Overall, the findings suggest that opportunities to among true crime audiences extend across a broad range of consumer sectors, particularly those tied to lifestyle,

Methodology:

The insights in this article have been sourced via YouGov Surveys: Serviced – providing rapid answers from the right audience. All figures, unless otherwise stated, are from YouGov Plc. The survey was conducted online from March 13, 2026, to April 1, 2026. The Great Britain sample size was n> 2000, and figures have been weighted to be representative of adults aged 18+ in Great Britain. Audiences are nationally representative of Great Britain. The analysis focuses on podcast consumers (audio or video), defined as Britons who listen to or watch podcast content for any amount of time.