November’s Triton Podcast Ranker showed how quickly listening behaviour can shift.
While the top of the chart remained largely intact, significant listener gains and losses across the Top 300 reshaped positioning beneath the surface, revealing a clear split between lifestyle growth, cooling news cycles and the familiar rise-and-fall rhythm of sport and true crime.
At the very top, Hamish & Andy remained #1 – but even the market leader wasn’t immune to audience softening.
Hamish & Andy hold #1 as Top 5 audiences fluctuate
Hamish & Andy retained the top spot in November with 842,414 listeners, down from 881,262 in October – a loss of 38,848 listeners month-on-month.
The show remained comfortably ahead of the field, but the drop underscored a broader trend playing out across the upper ranks.
The most significant positional change inside the Top 5 came at #2 and #3.
Mamamia Out Loud rose to #2 after growing its audience from 622,695 to 655,915, adding 33,220 listeners.
That lift allowed it to overtake ABC News Top Stories, which slipped to #3 after falling from 783,353 listeners in October to 645,709 in November, a loss of 137,644 listeners.
Shameless held #4 despite a 21,994 listener decline, dropping from 532,029 to 510,035, while Sky News Australia Update remained at #5 after losing 21,468 listeners, finishing November on 461,512.
The November Top 5 now reads:
- Hamish & Andy
- Mamamia Out Loud
- ABC News Top Stories
- Shameless
- Sky News Australia Update
The composition stayed the same, but the momentum underneath it shifted decisively.
News cools, lifestyle consolidates
Audience losses for ABC News Top Stories, AM and other daily news podcasts point to post-October fatigue after an intense news cycle.
While still large in absolute terms, several news brands experienced softer November numbers amid increased competition and easing urgency.
Lifestyle titles, by contrast, proved more resilient.
Mamamia’s growth was incremental rather than explosive, but enough to change ranking order – reinforcing that steady audience accumulation can be as powerful as headline spikes.
Live radio shows remain volatile
Live radio programs again featured prominently across the Ranker, though November highlighted how uneven that performance can be.
The Kyle & Jackie O Show slipped two places, falling from #15 to #17, with listeners edging down from 273,953 to 270,386 – a loss of 3,567 listeners.
Others, however, experienced dramatic upside.
The month’s biggest story: Fitzy & Wippa’s breakout surge
The most striking result in November came from Fitzy & Wippa with Kate Ritchie, which delivered the largest combined ranking and audience jump on the board.
The Nova breakfast show surged from #129 in October to #26 in November, climbing 103 positions.
Its audience jumped from 52,055 listeners to 222,899, a gain of 170,844 listeners in a single month.
The result reinforced live radio’s capacity for rapid podcast growth when distribution, promotion and listener demand align.
Biggest risers in November
The strongest upward moves were concentrated among live radio podcasts and topical content returning to season.
Fitzy & Wippa with Kate Ritchie aside, Shandee’s Story delivered the single biggest climb on the chart, rising 216 places as renewed interest in the case drove discovery.
Sport-focused content also returned sharply as calendars aligned. The ABC Cricket Podcast climbed 107 places, reflecting increased engagement as the cricket season ramped up.
Among news and current affairs, Hack rebounded strongly, rising 30 places after a weaker October, while Late Night Live posted a modest gain of eight places, one of the few ABC current affairs titles to move up.
True crime franchise I Catch Killers with Gary Jubelin continued its steady progression, climbing five places and reinforcing its durability in a volatile category.
Sharpest falls across the Ranker
November’s biggest declines were dominated by sport podcasts coming out of season and true crime titles losing momentum after earlier court-driven spikes.
The Mushroom Trial: Say Grace fell 71 places, one of the steepest declines on the board, as interest cooled following earlier legal developments.
ABC Rewind and The Mushroom Cook each dropped 54 places, highlighting the sharp reversals that can follow narrative-driven attention.
Sports commentary podcasts also corrected.
Triple M Rocks Footy NRL dropped 33 places, while Whateley and Dan Does Footy each fell 20 places after strong October performances.
SEN Breakfast slipped 15 places, though it remained a solid mid-table performer.
Smaller moves with strategic significance
Several established titles posted minor movements that nonetheless point to longer-term stability.
AM edged up four places, remaining one of the most resilient daily news podcasts in the Ranker.
Happy Hour with Lucy & Nikki and Straight Talk with Mark Bouris both rose one place, continuing their pattern of incremental, consistent performance.
The Imperfects slipped three places but remained firmly inside the Top 20, reinforcing its long-term audience base rather than short-term volatility.
What November shows
November’s Ranker reinforced several underlying truths about the Australian podcast market.
Seasonality remains a dominant force, particularly for sport and court-driven true crime.
News podcasts remain powerful but are exposed to cycle fatigue, while lifestyle and evergreen formats continue to consolidate quietly. At a network level, the ABC’s breadth is proving as valuable as its tentpoles.
The rankings may look familiar. The audience behaviour beneath them is shifting… fast.