YouTube is the first place younger viewers go as soon as they switch on their TV sets, according to regulator Ofcom’s annual report on the UK’s media habits.
People spent an average of 4 hours 30 minutes per day watching TV and video content at home in 2024, according to Ofcom. And while broadcast TV still accounts for the majority of viewing (56%), audiences are increasingly turning to YouTube. The platform is now the second most-watched service in the UK, behind the BBC.
At home, people spent 39 minutes on YouTube per day in 2024, with 16 minutes of this via the household’s TV set. Younger adults aged 16-34 are driving this trend, watching 18 minutes of YouTube a day on TV, while one in five (20%) children aged 4-15 head straight to the app as soon as they turn the set on.
It’s not just Gen Z and Alpha driving this trend, said Ofcom. Over 55s are watching nearly double the amount of YouTube content on their TVs compared to the previous year (11 minutes per day in December 2024, up from 6 minutes in January 2023). 42% of all YouTube viewing by this age group was on a TV set (up from 33% in 2023).
According to Ofcom, the content audiences are watching on YouTube has evolved. Half of the platform’s top-trending videos now more closely resemble traditional TV, including long-form interviews and game shows. “This shift positions YouTube as a direct competitor to ad-supported TV services,” said the regulator, “while offering broadcasters a way to reach wider and younger audiences”.
Ofcom noted that some broadcasters are “increasingly offering their own programmes on YouTube, for example ITV and Channel 4 make full length programming available on their channels, retaining control over adverts. Ofcom has identified these sorts of partnerships, making public service content available and prominent on online platforms, as critical to sustain the future of public service media.”
Ed Leighton, Ofcom’s interim group director for strategy and research (pictured), said: “Scheduled TV is increasingly alien to younger viewers, with YouTube the first port of call for many when they pick up the TV remote. But we’re also seeing signs that older adults are turning to the platform as part of their daily media diet too.”
Ofcom also noted changes in audio habits. “More than nine in ten UK adults (93%) listen to some form of audio content each week, increasing to 98% of 16-34-year-olds. YouTube (47%) and Spotify (36%) are the most popular online audio services, while BBC Sounds is the most popular from a radio broadcaster (24%).”
According to Ofcom, people aged 15-34 now spend more than half of their weekly listening time with streamed music and podcasts (58%, up from 40% in 2019). “Podcasts are also increasingly available in video as well as audio form. Platforms such as YouTube, Spotify, and Global Player now regularly host video versions of UK podcasts, helping creators engage with broader audiences.”
