Internet radio in the United Kingdom in numbers
As of , radioko lists 1,542 radio stations from the United Kingdom that stream online. 1,510 of the 1,524 stations we could test on played. The count covers the internet streams radioko lists and tests every night, with duplicates merged; it is not the number of licensed broadcasters.
Ofcom counted 543 commercial and community radio services broadcasting on analogue (AM or FM), BBC stations not included (Licensing Priorities for Broadcast Radio, February 2026); radioko counts the stations that stream online: 1,542.
Last updated:
- Stations listed
- 1,542
- Played in our latest check
- 1,510 of 1,524 (99%)
- Did not play
- 14
- No clear result
- 18
- Not tested yet
- 0
- Typical bitrate (median)
- 128 kbps
We hide a station once it fails our check three nights running: these figures describe the stations listed here, not every stream on the internet.
How the numbers are made
| Step | Stations |
|---|---|
| Records in our sources marked as working | 2,359 |
| Moved to or from another country's list, or removed as foreign | +1 |
| Duplicates merged | -546 |
| Cannot play in a browser (unsecured stream, format or address) | -250 |
| Left out on request or by our listing rules | -7 |
| Hidden after failing our check three nights running | -15 |
| Stations listed | 1,542 |
| Played in our latest check | 1,510 |
Stations by region
| Region | Stations | Share |
|---|---|---|
| England | 548 | 36% |
| Scotland | 46 | 3% |
| Wales | 24 | 2% |
| Northern Ireland | 13 | 1% |
| Cayman Islands | 7 | <1% |
| Isle of Man | 5 | <1% |
| Gibraltar | 4 | <1% |
| Falkland Islands | 3 | <1% |
| Saint Helena | 2 | <1% |
| Bermuda | 2 | <1% |
| Anguilla | 2 | <1% |
| Jersey | 2 | <1% |
| British Virgin Islands | 1 | <1% |
| Guernsey | 1 | <1% |
| Montserrat | 1 | <1% |
| Unknown | 881 | 57% |
Cities with the most stations
| City | Stations | Share |
|---|---|---|
| London | 214 | 14% |
| Manchester | 12 | 1% |
| Leicester | 12 | 1% |
| Bristol | 10 | 1% |
| Liverpool | 9 | 1% |
| Glasgow | 8 | 1% |
| Birmingham | 6 | <1% |
| Cambridge | 5 | <1% |
| Plymouth | 5 | <1% |
| Edinburgh | 5 | <1% |
| Belfast | 4 | <1% |
| York | 4 | <1% |
| Sheffield | 4 | <1% |
| Leeds | 3 | <1% |
| Portsmouth | 3 | <1% |
Most common genres
| Genre | Stations | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Pop | 257 | 17% |
| Electronic and dance | 189 | 12% |
| Oldies | 157 | 10% |
| Rock | 131 | 8% |
| Jazz and soul | 101 | 7% |
| Talk and culture | 47 | 3% |
| Hip-hop and R&B | 42 | 3% |
| Community and college | 30 | 2% |
| News | 29 | 2% |
| Classical | 23 | 1% |
| Country and folk | 22 | 1% |
| Christian | 18 | 1% |
| Latin | 16 | 1% |
| Sports | 7 | <1% |
| Unknown | 820 | 53% |
A station can have more than one genre, so the shares add up to more than 100%.
Other languages on air
| Language | Stations | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Hindi | 11 | 1% |
| Polish | 6 | <1% |
| Urdu | 5 | <1% |
| Welsh | 4 | <1% |
| Arabic | 4 | <1% |
| Spanish | 4 | <1% |
| Italian | 4 | <1% |
| Punjabi | 4 | <1% |
| Greek | 3 | <1% |
| Russian | 2 | <1% |
Stream formats
| Stream | Stations | Share |
|---|---|---|
| MP3 | 1,223 | 79% |
| AAC | 118 | 8% |
| HE-AAC | 84 | 5% |
| HE-AAC v2 | 76 | 5% |
| HLS | 23 | 1% |
| Ogg FLAC | 9 | 1% |
| Ogg Opus | 4 | <1% |
| Ogg Vorbis | 4 | <1% |
| MP4 | 1 | <1% |
Featured stations ()
| # | Station | Place | Frequency | Stream |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | LBC UK | London | 97.3 FM | HE-AAC · 48 kbps |
| 2 | Heart 80s | MP3 · 128 kbps | ||
| 3 | Classic FM UK | London | 100.9 FM | MP3 · 128 kbps |
| 4 | Heart London 106.2 | London | 106.2 FM | MP3 · 128 kbps |
| 5 | Smooth Radio | England | HE-AAC · 48 kbps | |
| 6 | talkSPORT | 1089 AM | AAC · 64 kbps | |
| 7 | Capital FM London | London | 95.8 FM | MP3 · 128 kbps |
| 8 | Smooth Chill | MP3 · 128 kbps | ||
| 9 | Heart 90s | MP3 · 128 kbps | ||
| 10 | Times Radio | AAC · 127 kbps |
Our order: stations that played in all our recent nightly checks come first, and among them the best known (a regulator's licence, an encyclopedia article). Updated . Every stream here passed its latest check.
Source: the stations from the United Kingdom listed on radioko and our own nightly test of every stream.
Figures may be quoted with credit: radioko, .