BRS Media’s dotFM Elevates Industry Benchmark With FM Top 100 Hits of 2025 — A New Era of Audio Discovery and Digital Influence

News > Business News

Audio By Carbonatix

6:07 AM on Tuesday, January 27

The Associated Press

SAN FRANCISCO--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Jan 27, 2026--

dotFM, the global media and interactive domain authority powered by BRS Media, today unveils its definitive annual ranking — the FM Top 100 Hits of 2025, highlighting the most influential podcast platforms, audio services, broadcasters, and next-generation digital brands that defined audio consumption and online engagement from January through December 2025.

Now in its 14th edition, the FM Top 100 Hits chart evolves beyond a static ranking, offering a data-driven snapshot of rapid transformation, audience behavior shifts, and innovation across the global audio ecosystem. This year’s chart reflects unprecedented growth in cross-platform integration, Web3-enabled engagement, and new verticals that blur traditional boundaries between creators, listeners, and brands.

Key Highlights From the 2025 Rankings

Castbox.fm is No. 1, due to global adoption and its role as a core discovery platform.
Slingshot.fm debuts as a notable new entry, a business-management platform for creators.
Fast-rising platforms Airbuds.fm, Earn.fm, Tupi.fm, and Gateway.fm show how niche focus and new revenue models reshape engagement.
The chart spans legacy broadcasters, creator SaaS, AI audio, and business tools, showing an “audio hit” now includes more than just content.

The ranking reflects a shift to full-stack creator businesses, where domains connect brand identity, revenue, and audience ownership. It uses growth signals from domain activity, platform visibility, and audience traction in 2025.

Market Signal: Global TLD Query Growth

In 2025, total .FM query activity reached 56.4 billion, a 9.81% increase from 2024. This marks a dramatic rise from 16.6 billion queries in 2015, underscoring a decade of growth in online discovery and direct engagement. This upward trajectory reinforces the strategic importance of premium, purpose-driven domains as gateways to content, commerce, and creator ecosystems. In an era of growing direct brand engagement, domains function as high-value strategic assets. This is especially true for specialized extensions like .FM, which represent vital digital infrastructure beyond their basic addressing role.

“The FM Top 100 Hits of 2025 illustrates how audio has matured into a creator-driven business economy,” said George T. Bundy, Chairman and CEO of BRS Media Inc. “From traditional podcasts to emerging AI Audio-driven platforms, this year’s chart underscores the convergence of technology, community, and artistry that now defines audio influence globally.”

Availability & Access

The complete FM Top 100 Hits of 2025 chart and accompanying insights report are available for download at: https://Get.fm/2025Top100

About BRS Media, Inc:

Based in San Francisco’s South of Market (SoMa) district, BRS Media Inc. is a media technology and brand innovation firm focused on empowering digital creators, broadcasters, and interactive platforms. Its portfolio includes BRS Registry, providing strategic marketing, brand development, and registry consulting for ICANN New Top-Level Domains; dotFM® and dotAM®, pioneering domain innovation for media-centric .FM and .AM brands; and dotRadio™ extensions .RADIO.am and .RADIO.fm, offering the radio industry a modern, purpose-driven namespace designed specifically for radio broadcasters and brands. Additional offerings include Main Street Branding™, which helps clients build world-class digital identities, and the iRadio® service platform. Main Street Branding and dotRadio are trademarks, and dotFM, dotAM, and iRadio are registered trademarks of BRS Media, Inc.