Overview
Millions of listeners tune into radio in America daily to hear music, chat on talk shows, get the news and keep up with sports. Although original radio has to compete with streaming and podcasts in 2025, it’s still around, due to engaging presenters, different programs and a faithful audience.
For this blog post, we highlight the most well-known radio stations in 2025, breaking them into categories such as talk, pop, hip-hop, rock and country. No matter if they are well-known powerhouses such as Z100 and KIIS-FM or are talk mergers such as WABC.
Radio in the United States finds success in 2025 by working with digital tools and palying to listeners from many different formats. News, talk shows, music and sports all have those that have become top stations in their field.
1. WTOP-FM (Washington, D.C.) – Leader in News
For many years, WTOP-FM has ranked number one among all U.S. news radio stations for its billing power. That year, the company collected nearly 29% of the radio advertising revenue in the Washington, D.C. region, with $66.3 million from over-the-air revenue.
Radio Ink
2. ESPN Radio is the leading sports broadcasting service.
People interested in sports still consider ESPN Radio in Bristol, Connecticut to be one of the best. Thanks to a large group of affiliates, it offers complete coverage of popular sports events, for example, NFL games and NCAA tournaments.
Muck Rack
Wikipedia
3. Public Radio – Your Trusted Broadcaster
National Public Radio (NPR) is well known for its detailed journalism and broad cultural offerings. According to its website, NPR’s top programs “All Things Considered” and “Morning Edition” are heard by more than 95 million people across the country every week.
Muck Rack
4. KROQ-FM (Los Angeles, CA) – Shaper of Alternative Music
KROQ-FM has supported alternative rock for many years. Kevin Ryder returned to the station’s afternoon show in 2025 and that year saw the introduction of “KROQ EQ,” a show playing electronic dance music on Saturday nights.
Wikipedia
Wikipedia
5. WNCI 97.9 (Columbus, OH) – Highly Involved in Top 40 Music
WNCI 97.9 is still one of the top Top 40 stations and is famous for its vibrant programming and popular show with Dave and Jimmy. Thanks to its 175,000-watt radiated power, it is recognized for having one of the nation’s best FM signals.
Wikipedia
6. WBLS (New York, NY) – Ahead of its Time
For 50 years, WBLS has held a leading position as a radio station for R&B and hip-hop. Rap Station is remembered for its groundbreaking programs and today it keeps the genre fresh with tracks from the past and new material.
The New York Post
7. Experiencing the Evolution of Talk Radio – WGN-AM, Chicago
One of the major changes at WGN comes from adding Senator Ted Cruz’s show, “Verdict with Ted Cruz,” to Sunday nights. Thanks to these changes, WGN is moving up once again in the top five radio ratings in early 2025.
Axios
8. Page Six Radio (SiriusXM) is your guide to celebrity news.
Page Six Radio which started in 2025, gives listeners the chance to hear about the latest celebrity news and gossip. broadcasts each weekday between 8 a.m. and 10 a.m. ET on SiriusXM’s Stars channel, with Evan Real, Danny Murphy and Ian Mohr as your hosts.
Page Six
9. KDFC & KUSC – Combining To Bring You Classical Music
Now, Classical California is the result of KDFC and KUSC merging to provide a single platform for enjoying classical music. Through this collaboration, operations will be made easier and service will be widened across California.
San Francisco Newspaper
10. Connoisseur Media – Making our local radio even better
In an important move, radio group Connoisseur Media from Connecticut confirmed its intent to buy Alpha Media from Oregon which owns more than 200 radio stations in 44 U.S. areas. As a result of this acquisition, Connoisseur’s collection of stations will grow to 218 and reach about 20% of the population in 47 different areas.
CT Insider
These radio stations prove the ability of American stations to adapt and invent in a fast-changing media world.
