Latvian Radio 2 leads radio listening in Latvia

Latvian Radio 2 accounted for the largest share of radio listening in Latvia during the winter and spring of 2026, with 18.4% of total listening time, LSM reported, citing a study by research company Fifty5blue, formerly Kantar.

On average, 57.3%, or 852,500 Latvian residents aged 16 to 74, listened to the radio at least once a day during the six-month period. On a weekly basis, the figure was 80%, or 1.189 million people.

Each radio listener spent an average of four hours and 16 minutes listening to the radio per day, eight minutes more than during the same period a year earlier.

Radio Skonto ranked second by share of listening time, with 12.6%, followed by Latvian Radio 1 with 8.8%.

Latvian Radio 2 was the most listened-to station on a daily basis, reaching 10.9%, or 162,600 people. Radio Skonto was heard daily by 10.2%, or 152,300 people, while Latvian Radio 1 reached 7.1%, or 106,200 people.

On a weekly basis, Radio Skonto had the largest audience, reaching 29.5%, or 438,100 people. Radio SWH ranked second with 25.1%, or 372,700 listeners, followed by Latvian Radio 2 with 24.6%, or 366,100 listeners.

Solvita Kronberga, a manager at the media research company, said the daily radio audience across all listening locations had remained stable compared with the same period in 2025. It had declined slightly in cars and at home, while the decrease at work was more pronounced.

At home, radio reached the same-sized audience as a year earlier, but people listened for longer. The trend was particularly pronounced among those aged 55 to 64, men and residents of Zemgale.

At work, the opposite trend was observed: both the total number of radio listeners and the length of listening declined, reducing the average audience. The sharpest drop in the daily radio audience at work was recorded among people aged 55 to 64 and men.