IGEM Digimonitor 2024: Audio and AI are booming

Each age group uses different platforms - be it for digital news, social media or podcasts. The age gap is particularly wide when it comes to artificial intelligence: the use of ChatGPT is almost taken for granted among young people, while older people use AI tools comparatively rarely.

The results at a glance

The results are representative of the internet-using Swiss population aged 15 to 75 (6.3 million people). Due to a change in methodology, the results from 2024 are not comparable with previous years.

• Ask ChatGPT: 40% of the Swiss population use AI tools such as ChatGPT - among 15 to 19-year-olds, the figure is already 70%.
• Every generation has its own social media: Instagram is the number 1 platform for the second time in a row; however, Snapchat, TikTok and BeReal are also popular among younger people.
• Six devices per head: Smartphones, TVs and laptops are the most popular devices; more than a quarter of the Swiss population already wear a smartwatch; virtual reality glasses remain a niche market.
• TV remains the leading medium: 3.5 million people watch TV every day - that's twice as many users as YouTube and more than three times as many as Netflix's daily users.
• Audio is booming: Radio and music streaming reach 80% of the population every day; almost two thirds of the population listen to podcasts from time to time.
• Regional differences: German-speaking Switzerland listens to the radio the most, French-speaking Switzerland goes to the movies the most and Ticino loves teletext.

57% of 15- to 34-year-olds use AI

Artificial intelligence has become an indispensable everyday assistant for many: 2.5 million (40% of the population) occasionally use AI tools. Men (46%) use the technology significantly more often than women (34%), although the ratio is more balanced among younger users. Among 15 to 34-year-olds, 57% are already supported by AI and in the 15 to 19 age group, the figure is as high as 70%. The tools are mainly used to answer questions (32%) and to create texts (31%), translations (30%), images (12%) and programming codes (9%). The most popular AI application is ChatGPT: 37% of the population aged between 15 and 75 use this tool, more than half of them on a weekly basis.

Instagram remains social media number 1

In 2023, Instagram toppled Facebook from the social media throne. Instagram remains the most popular platform in Switzerland this year with 3.8 million users (60% of the population). Facebook has 3.3 million (52%), followed by LinkedIn with 2.7 million (43%) and Pinterest with 2.2 million (35%). Snapchat and TikTok each have 1.5 million (23%), although the users here are significantly younger than those of the top 4 platforms. The age differences between the users of the individual platforms are also huge: the average age is 19 on BeReal, 26 on Threads, 30 on Reddit, 38 on Instagram, 41 on X (formerly Twitter), 45 on Facebook and 51 on Xing.

Men use more electronic devices

On average, the Swiss use around six devices for media consumption. 6.0 million (96% of the population) use a smartphone, 5.7 million (91%) a television and 5.4 million (86%) a laptop. Well over half also have a radio (64%), a tablet (63%) and a PC (60%). Smart home devices (38%), smartwatches (27%) and games consoles (23%) are also widespread. Virtual reality glasses (4%), on the other hand, remain a niche product. Electronic gadgets are particularly popular with men: they use an average of 6.7 devices, while women only use 5.9.

Messenger, news and TV/video streaming are the top 3

Three types of media are used by practically the whole of Switzerland: Messenger services with 6.2 million users (98% of the population), digital news with 6.10 million (97%) and TV/video streaming with 6.08 million (96%). WhatsApp is the lone leader among messenger services with 6.06 million users (96%). Swiss private media are the leaders in digital news (86%), just ahead of the websites and apps of SRF, RTS and RSI (80%), with news on social media and YouTube (77%) also gaining in importance among the younger generations. YouTube dominates TV/video streaming with 5.0 million (79%), followed by Play SRF/RTS/RSI with 3.6 million (57%) and Netflix with 3.4 million (54%).

29% pay for a digital news subscription - premium accounts on social media hardly in demand

Almost the entire population consumes digital news, but only 1.8 million (29% of the population) are prepared to pay for a digital news service. Older people and people with higher incomes are most likely to pay for a paid subscription. The willingness to pay for a premium account on social media is even lower: On average, only around 1% of users use a paid version. Snapchat and LinkedIn users are most likely to pay for premium services. The willingness to pay to avoid advertising is significantly higher: On Disney+, 69% of the total 1.5 million viewers pay for ad-free streaming, while on YouTube, 7% do.

TV remains the leading medium

Although streaming is becoming increasingly important, the reach of television remains unmatched: with 3.52 million viewers per day (56%), TV serves an audience twice as large as YouTube with 1.76 million (28%). With 1.0 million viewers per day (16%), Netflix reaches less than a third of the TV audience. The TV is still by far the most important device for TV consumption, well ahead of laptops/PCs and cell phones. Even among 15 to 34-year-olds, 89% still use a TV set at least occasionally. The frequency of use increases significantly with age: Among 15-34 year olds, 42% switch on the TV every day, among 35-54 year olds the figure is 61% and among 55-75 year olds it is as high as 76%.

Audio is booming - almost two thirds listen to podcasts

Almost all of Switzerland wears earbuds: 4.6 million (73% of the population) use headphones or a headset. In addition to videos and social media, pure audio content is also consumed: 5.0 million (80% of the population) listen to music streams or radio every day, and podcasts are more popular than ever: 4.0 million (63%) listen to podcasts occasionally. Younger listeners are in the majority, but a good half of the older generations also use podcasts. While older people tend to use the offerings of SRF/RTS/RSI or Swiss private radio stations, younger people tend to use Spotify and YouTube. At the same time, traditional radio remains popular: 5.7 million (90%) listen to the radio from time to time and 3.3 million (52%) even listen to it every day.

Teletext still reaches a third of the population

Teletext is celebrating its 40th birthday this year. Even though the media landscape has changed fundamentally since 1986, the medium is still relevant: 2.1 million (34% of the population) use teletext. This is a larger user group than Disney+, Snapchat, TikTok, Apple Pay, Telegram or X. The service is predominantly used by men and tends to be used by older people who use it to keep up to date with sports and news. What is surprising, however, is that more than a quarter of 15 to 34-year-olds also use Teletext occasionally - just as often via the app as via the TV.

Regional differences: what makes the different parts of the country tick

The French-speaking Swiss are the biggest cinephiles in the country: 60% go to the cinema at least every 6 months, compared to 54% in German-speaking Switzerland and 52% in Ticino. French-speaking Switzerland is also the leader in the use of social media and gaming. In German-speaking Switzerland, on the other hand, radio is listened to particularly often: 92% listen to this medium occasionally, compared to 88% in Ticino and 86% in French-speaking Switzerland. Podcasts are also most popular in German-speaking Switzerland. People in Ticino, on the other hand, watch television most often every day and use teletext particularly frequently.

The Digimonitor study has been surveying the use of electronic media and devices in Switzerland every year since 2014. From 2024, the data is representative of the internet-using Swiss population aged 15 to 75 (6.3 million people). Due to a change in methodology, the results from 2024 are not comparable with previous years. The online survey took place in April-May 2024. Intervista surveyed 1,970 people on behalf of IGEM Interessengemeinschaft elektronische Medien and WEMF AG für Werbemedienforschung, 1,008 of them in German-speaking Switzerland, 762 in French-speaking Switzerland and 200 in Italian-speaking Switzerland. The confidence interval is a maximum of +/- 2.2 percentage points. You can find more information here.