The State of Healthcare Audio Advertising: Why Benchmarks Matter More Than Ever

Healthcare marketers face constant pressure to prove ROI while staying compliant. Traditional channels like search and display are crowded and expensive, but audio is emerging as a scalable, high-performing option. According to Podscribe’s Q3 2025 Performance Benchmark (PPB) Report, podcast and streaming audio now reach more than 85% of U.S. adults. This milestone places audio squarely at the center of modern media planning.

With audio reaching the mainstream, the key question is no longer if it works, but how well your campaigns are working compared to the market. That’s where benchmarks come in.

The Reach Curve: Scaling Audio Campaigns with Confidence

The Q3 2025 PPB Report highlights an audio reach curve showing more than 80% uniqueness between podcast and streaming audio listeners. Advertisers who run both can expect to reach more than 85% of U.S. adults.

This insight is critical for brands moving beyond one-off podcast buys and into scaled audience strategies such as programmatic and run-of-network (RON) campaigns. These approaches have grown nearly 2.5x over the last 10 months.

Healthcare Audio Advertising by the Numbers

Benchmarks are more than numbers. They give context to a fragmented channel like audio. Without them, marketers are left guessing whether results are strong or falling short.

Average performance metrics across all campaigns in all industries:

But let's just focus on healthcare.

Visitor Rate: 0.30%

Healthcare outperforms the overall average of 0.25%, showing stronger initial engagement. Listeners are more likely than average to visit a healthcare site after hearing an ad.

Conversion (Purchase) Rate: 0.011%

Slightly below the overall average of 0.015%. Healthcare ads drive site visits effectively, but converting those visitors into customers requires stronger optimization strategies—tailored landing pages, clear calls to action, and careful frequency management.

Median Cost Per Acquisition (CPA): $263

‍Healthcare sits in the mid-to-upper range compared to other industries. While it’s not as low as categories like Retail ($65) or Fashion ($92), it is significantly more efficient than high-cost verticals like B2B ($557) or Telecommunications ($870). This suggests that healthcare campaigns can still drive conversions at a relatively manageable cost, especially considering the high lifetime value of a healthcare customer.

Median Cost Per Visitor (CPV): $8.31

Healthcare falls near the middle of the pack on visitor costs. Higher than industries like Retail ($0.50) or Technology ($3.27), but well below Non-Profit ($30.27) or Gambling ($31.54). This indicates that while healthcare traffic isn’t the cheapest to acquire, it’s also not prohibitively expensive, giving marketers reasonable room to scale.

Healthcare advertisers see moderate acquisition and visitor costs paired with above-average engagement, but face a challenge in closing the loop on conversions. The high visitor rate suggests audiences are curious and willing to explore healthcare offerings, but the slightly lower conversion rate signals a need to refine the post-click experience.

By using the reach curve and benchmarking data, healthcare marketers can identify the sweet spot for frequency, optimize conversion paths, and ensure campaigns not only drive traffic but also deliver measurable ROI.

Audio’s Mainstream Moment

Reaching 85%+ of U.S. adults means podcast and streaming audio advertising are no longer niche. But with mainstream adoption comes competition. Advertisers who thrive will be those who use benchmarking data to optimize buys, test new strategies like programmatic, and measure outcomes with precision.

The Bottom Line

Podcast advertising has grown up and the stakes are higher than ever. With powerful tools like the PPB report, advertisers don’t need to guess. They can compare performance against industry norms, understand where their campaigns stand, and make smarter, data-driven decisions.

Ready to add audio advertising through Podscribe to your marketing strategy? Contact us today.