Radio continues to dominate van listening habits among UK tradespeople, despite the rapid growth of podcasts in the wider consumer market.
New research from InstallerSHOW found nearly three-quarters (74%) of installers mainly listen to the radio while driving between jobs or working on site. In comparison, just 11.6% said they regularly listen to podcasts.
Personal playlists were the second most popular option, used by 36% of respondents, while audiobooks barely registered among the trade audience.
The findings suggest traditional broadcast media still holds significant reach within the construction and installer sectors, particularly during working hours.
The survey also explored installers’ music tastes, with nostalgic acts dominating responses to questions around “guilty pleasure” listening. Oasis was the most commonly named artist, followed by Queen, Taylor Swift and ABBA. Sabrina Carpenter and Coldplay also got a few mentions.
InstallerSHOW’s Lucy Dixon said: “It’s great to see our audience are listening to such a wide range of music and, possibly, belting out some classic rock in the van while driving between jobs. We were a little surprised to see Oasis is considered a guilty pleasure, perhaps liking Britpop is no longer cool.”
InstallerSHOW 2026 runs 23 to 25 June at the NEC and free tickets are available here.
