Leading Brands in Canada’s Music & Podcasts Category: Q4 2023 Review

In the dynamic world of music and podcasts, Canada has witnessed significant activity from major players like Spotify, YouTube Music, and SoundCloud Limited. In Q4 2023, these brands showcased varied trends in audience engagement across their websites and apps. Sensor Tower's comprehensive data provides critical insights into these trends, leveraging unique cross-referencing capabilities that include web, app, and advertising data.

Spotify

Spotify's presence in Canada remains robust, with its website and Spotify: Music and Podcasts app continuing to attract a significant audience.

• Audience Trends: The website's visits increased from 121M in September to 135M in October, before settling at 122M in December. The monthly true audience grew steadily, surpassing 11M by December. Both web and app visitors showed a balanced distribution, with app-only visitors consistently outnumbering web-only visitors.

• App Engagement: The app saw a gradual increase in monthly active users, reaching over 10M by December, reflecting a stable growth trajectory in mobile engagement.

• Ad Spend & Channels: Spotify's monthly advertising spend peaked in September at over $600K, with impressions reaching nearly 200M. Instagram was a dominant channel, delivering the highest impressions, while Snapchat saw a notable spike in December.

YouTube Music

YouTube Music continues to be a formidable player with its website and YouTube Music app.

• Audience Trends: The website's visits rose from 134M in September to 162M in December. The monthly true audience also saw growth, rising to over 5.4M by the end of the year, with a significant portion accessing via the app.

• App Engagement: Monthly active users of the app climbed to nearly 4.8M in December, indicating a healthy rise in user engagement.

• Ad Spend & Channels: Minimal monthly ad spend was observed, with only a small campaign on Instagram in December, generating limited impressions.

SoundCloud Limited

SoundCloud's digital footprint, through soundcloud.com and the Soundcloud: The Music You Love app, remains significant in Canada’s music landscape.

• Audience Trends: Website visits fluctuated, peaking at 27M in August, with a monthly true audience nearing 2.3M by December. App-only visitors consistently topped the chart, highlighting a preference for mobile access.

• App Engagement: The app experienced a peak in monthly active users in November at over 1.6M, before a slight dip in December.

• Ad Spend & Channels: SoundCloud's monthly advertising efforts were modest, with spend peaking in December at over $45K, primarily on YouTube, achieving significant impressions.

Conclusion

Q4 2023 saw diverse trends across leading brands in Canada’s Music & Podcasts category. Spotify, YouTube Music, and SoundCloud Limited each demonstrated unique strengths in audience engagement and advertising strategies. Sensor Tower's unparalleled data insights provide a comprehensive view of these trends, essential for understanding cross-platform user behavior in the digital music landscape.

For more detailed insights, explore Sensor Tower's offerings in Web Insights, App Performance Insights, and Pathmatics.