2024 Reading Trends: Pets take centre stage, joined by politicians and celebrities sharing troubles

The magazine and newspaper app Readly has compiled its annual reading trends report for 2024 showing that 442,000 digital issues were read 170 million times on the platform. Readership increased the most in categories such as Fashion & Beauty (+24%), Crosswords & Sudoku (22%) and News & Politics (+16%). The average subscriber spends 9 hours per month reading digitally on the app.

While Celebrity & Entertainment, Lifestyle, and Cars & Motoring remain the most popular categories on Readly overall, other categories to see an increase in readership this year were Newspapers (+15%), Arts and Culture (+14%), Business and Finance (+12%), gardening (+9%) and lifestyle (+8%). Interior Design and Architecture (+8%) and Home and Renovation (+7%) also made the top 10 growth categories.

In the UK specifically, topics to trend and see the most growth in readership this year were News and Politics (+9%), family and parenting (+8%) and Newspapers (+7%). Science,  Arts and Culture and TV, Film and Cinema also saw growth amongst UK subscribers this year.

– This year, we’ve seen a remarkable increase in readership, particularly in News & Politics, as global events shape public interest. Readly plays a unique role by offering unlimited access to international news and perspectives, allowing readers to gain a deeper understanding of current events from multiple trusted sources. In a time of growing misinformation, we are proud to empower people with reliable information, helping them stay informed and engaged with the world around them, says Chris Couchman, Head of Client Services at Readly

A different type of cover star

Readly's cover trends this year have been shaped by geopolitical conflicts, pets as icons and mental health challenges. Magazine front covers have featured political figure heads such as Vladimir Putin, Donald Trump, and Benjamin Netanyahu showcasing the global reach of political leaders. Pets have become cover stars beyond pet-focussed titles for the first time this year. ‘Be more dog!’ style inspirational headlines have extended across lifestyle, fashion and economic magazines as pets have become icons for readers and an integral part of society.

Mental health, particularly in the celebrity, sports and entertainment industry, has been a focus for magazines and newspapers in 2024, highlighting the growing focus on wellness, its economic impact and the importance of speaking out when struggling to normalise mental health issues amongst readers. RollingStone highlighted Chappell Roan’s journey through mental health challenges, while Vanity Fair featured Selena Gomez, who openly shared her mental health experiences and GQ covered Lewis Hamilton’s experiences with the mental pressures of professional racing.

Mobile and tablet - the dual format effect

For the first time, Readly's report highlights device usage patterns between article reading and issue reading. Mobile devices (45%) are primarily used for article reading, indicating a preference for quick, on-the-go content, while issue reading is dominated by tablet users (82%), reflecting a desire for longer, more immersive experiences. This dual format approach supports diverse user needs, offering both convenience and depth in content consumption.

– We are growing our portfolio of mobile optimised articles to strengthen our position as a go-to for convenient, on-the-go access to premium editorial content. With mobile devices preferred for quick articles and tablets for in-depth issue reading, we’re supporting a more dynamic, flexible way of consuming magazines and newspapers. The ability to seamlessly switch between formats helps create consistent engagement throughout the day, catering to both quick reads and immersive experiences, says Chris Couchman.

UK reading snapshot 2024

●         British readers have read 26M issues

●         13% of all titles read by UK users are foreign titles.

●         Gender split

○         Magazines: 45/55 percent men/women

○         Newspapers: 62/38 percent men/women

●         Most read categories are

○         Celebrity & Entertainment

○         Lifestyle

○         Cars & Motoring

●         Categories readers spend the longest average session reading:

○         TV, film and cinema - 27 minutes

○         Science - 20 minutes

○         Cars and Motoring - 19 minutes

○         Tech - 18 minutes

○         Running, cycling and fitness - 16 minutes

More trends and toplists are found in the full report:  https://corporate.readly.com/files/Documents/Reports/2024_Readly_Trends_Report.pdf

ENDS

For media enquiries:
Kate Tegelaars, press contact at Readly UK
+44 (0)7879 818 71,  kate.tegelaars@readly.com

About Readly
Readly is a European category leader for digital magazines. The company offers a digital subscription service where customers have unlimited access to 8,000 national and international magazines and newspapers - all in one app and at a fixed monthly fee. Readly has subscribers in 50 countries and content available in 17 different languages. In collaboration with around 1,000 publishers worldwide, Readly is digitising the newspaper and magazine industry. In 2023, revenues amounted to SEK 663 million. The Readly share is listed on Nasdaq First North Growth Market. For more information, please visit https://corporate.readly.com.