This report presents findings on how families with young children aged from birth to 5 engage with audio stories at home in 2026, based on a nationally representative survey of 3,194 parents and carers in the UK.
The research explores how many families engage with audio stories and in what ways, including when and why they listen, whether children listen independently or with an adult, what benefits families feel they get from listening, as well as how they find audio content.
It complements our annual study of parents’ engagement with daily activities which are known to support children’s early literacy development, including shared reading, singing songs and playing.
Key findings
Audio stories are part of everyday life for many young children
- 3 in 5 parents (60.0%) said their child listened to audio stories at home. Of these, around 1 in 2 (47.9%) listened with an adult and almost 2 in 5 (36.9%) listened both with an adult and independently.
- More than half (54.4%) of parents of children aged from birth to 2 said they listened to audio at home, increasing to almost 2 in 3 (64.6%) parents of 3- to 5-year-olds.
- Around 1 in 2 parents said their child listened to audio stories at least daily, whether with an adult (46.5%) or independently (49.1%).
- Among families who listened, audio stories were a part of everyday routines. Around 1 in 3 listened while winding down before bed, to help children sleep or while having quiet time, and around 1 in 4 during play or travel time.
Shared and independent listening were felt to offer benefits for enjoyment of stories, family connections and children’s language learning
- Parents listened to audio together with their child for many reasons, from simply enjoying stories together as a family (42.1%) and spending quality time together (39.4%) to supporting their child’s language and communication (39.2%).
- Similarly, independent listening was associated with the child’s enjoyment of stories (49.7%), entertainment (43.0%) and relaxation (42.1%).
- Alongside relaxation and word learning, some parents also felt that audio listening could have a variety of wider benefits for their child, from improved attention, listening skills and imagination to an increased interest in stories and books.
Children’s experiences varied across families
- A slightly higher percentage of parents of children with SEND reported listening to audio at home (68.3% vs 58.0%)
- Compared with families in low, medium and higher income households, fewer families in very-low-income households reported listening to audio at home.
Conclusion
Overall, this report illustrates that audio stories are a regular part of many families’ daily and early learning routines, offering children an enjoyable way to experience stories at home.
This highlights the importance of expanding our understanding of family listening habits, the perceived benefits of audio stories and the value of supporting accessible, meaningful engagement with audio content in the early years.
Note: Variations between different groups are descriptive and do not indicate causality or differences in parents’ involvement. The analysis did not account for other variations between families, such household composition, technology access or wider literacy practices, nor did it explore whether audio listening supplemented or replaced other shared activities.
About tonies®
As a partner in the research, tonies®, the interactive audio platform for children aged 1 to 12+, is committed to helping families discover the power of audio storytelling.
Through its partnership with the National Literacy Trust, tonies hopes to build a deeper understanding of how children and families engage with audio stories and how listening can complement other everyday activities that support early language, literacy and imagination.
