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Streaming remains hugely lucrative as US subscriber numbers pass the 100 million mark, according to a new report from the Record Industry Association of America (RIAA). Vinyl also remains on the uptick with young consumers.
It’s official – streaming services remain the absolute champion of music consumption.
According to a new revenue report by the Record Industry Association of America (RIAA), US subscriptions to music streaming services have surpassed 100 million for the first time. This includes brands like Spotify, Apple Music, YouTube Music, TIDAL, and more.
Interestingly, physical media sales are growing at a slightly larger rate thanks in huge part to vinyl, which continues to show long-term popularity with Gen Z listeners in particular.
Streaming accounted for 84% of recorded music revenue in 2024, with physical media totalling 11%. This accounts for CDs, vinyl, and additional formats like cassette tapes. Digital downloads only made up 2% of all revenue, a far cry from the late noughties iTunes era, where more millennials purchased songs than streamed them.
‘Paid subscriptions, ad-supported services, digital and customised radio, social media platforms, digital fitness apps and others grew 4% to a record high of $14.9 billion USD in revenue,’ the RIAA wrote in its report. This is roughly half a billion dollars more than 2023.
US paid music subscriptions rose by about 3.2 million over 2023, reaching that all-important 100 million this time around. Physical music revenue was up by $100 million USD to total $2 billion USD in 2024. The majority of this was made up of vinyl sales.
In fact, vinyl outsold CD for the third consecutive year, though it’s a surprise this wasn’t happening earlier in the decade.
CD revenue still grew, however. It rose by 1% to total $541 million USD, making it a sizable and worthwhile media format even in 2025.
The growth of paid subscriptions will largely be down to Spotify, which has experienced a surge in users.
It turned a profit for the first time last year and recently announced a ‘new era of streaming’ deal with UMG. The company has also been experimenting with new subscription models and premium tiers, offering a greater variety of customisation to users based on their preferences.
