Nordic Digital Music Survey 2026: Use of paid music streaming services grew moderately in Finland – YouTube is Finland’s most popular music streaming service

When it comes to paid music streaming services, Finland is approaching the subscription level of the other Nordic countries – Sweden, Norway and Denmark – but still differs from them both in terms of the extent of free use and the service preferences.The share of Finns who use paid music streaming services has increased from 41% to 50% in two years, whereas the share of those who only use free services has declined from 54% to 46%. As many as 96% of Finns already use streaming services to listen to music.

YouTube remains the most widely used music service in Finland, with 73% of Finns using it to listen to music. Spotify’s share has increased from around 60% to 65%, while YouTube’s share has declined from 78% to 73%.

Elsewhere in the Nordic countries, Spotify has overtaken YouTube as a means of listening to music. At the Nordic level, Spotify accounts for 67% of the use of streaming services and YouTube for 65%. The free version of Spotify is used by 45% of Finns, while the average for the Nordic countries is only 29%.

“It is a positive development that an increasingly larger number of Finns are using paid versions of music streaming services, even though there is still some way to go to reach the level of the other Nordic countries. In paid services, the remunerations paid to creators for the use of music are considerably fairer. Finns are also more willing than people in the other Nordic countries to pay more for a service if music creators and performers were to receive better remunerations. This is a strong message for music services,” says Markus Kaarto, Chief Licensing Officer at Teosto.

Radio is still a source for new music, but the trend is declining

Recently, 19% of Finns said they had discovered a new song they liked on the radio. However, the trend is declining, as in 2024, 26% of all survey respondents said that they discovered new music on the radio. One in three Finns aged 50 to 65 discover new music on the radio.  Radio was the primary channel for discovering new music for only 2% of 12- to 17-year-olds and 5% of 18- to 29-year-olds.

After radio, the most popular channels for discovering new music among Finns of all ages are YouTube (13%), TikTok (12%), playlists or recommendations provided by streaming services (11%) and recommendations from friends (8%).

TikTok has strengthened its position as a way of discovering new music among those under 30. As many as 35% (+11%) of 12- to 17-year-olds and 23% (+3%) of 18- to 29-year-olds said that they had discovered a new song they liked on TikTok. This channel remains popular among young people in particular, as only 6% of 50- to 65-year-olds said that they had discovered a new song on TikTok. The age gap is already clearly visible among Finns aged 30 to 39, as only 8% of them said that they had discovered new music through TikTok.

Use of commercial video-on-demand services increased, but Yle Areena remains Finland’s most popular streaming service

As many as 90% of Finns stream TV, video or film content (2024: 86%). Finland’s most widely used video streaming service is the free public-service platform Yle Areena, used by 50% of Finns. The trend in the use of public-service TV platforms in Finland is the opposite compared to the Nordic average . The share of Yle Areena users fell from 54% to 50% in two years, while the use of public broadcasters’ streaming services in Sweden, Norway and Denmark increased. On average, the use of public streaming services in the Nordic countries increased from 51% to 53%.

As many as 86% of Finns already use commercial video-on-demand services (2024: 78%). One reason for the growth is the use of YouTube, which was included in the service comparison for the first time. Some 35.7% of Finns say they watch YouTube.. However, Netflix remains Finland’s most popular commercial streaming service, used by 44% of Finns (2024: 41%). At the Nordic level, a total of 55% of respondents use Netflix.

Finns at a glance 2026: music and TV&film streaming

• 96% of Finns said that they use music streaming services (+1%). On average, people listen to music for 3.7 hours a day (+5.7% compared to 3.5 hours in 2024).
• 50% use paid versions of music streaming services (+9%). The share of those who only use free versions fell from 54% to 46%. However, Finns continue to use free music services more than people in any other Nordic country.
• 73% of Finns said that they listen to music on YouTube and 65% on Spotify. Finland remains the only Nordic country where YouTube is a more widely used music service than Spotify. 59% of Spotify users use a paid version of Spotify, but the free version remains the most widely used Spotify option.
• 19% of Finns said that they had recently discovered a new song they liked on the radio (2024: 26%). The next most common channels were YouTube (13%), TikTok (12%), playlists or recommendations from streaming services (11%), and recommendations from friends (8%).
• 29% of 50- to 65-year-olds said that they had discovered a new song on the radio. Radio was the primary channel for discovering new music for only 2% of 12- to 17-year-olds and 5% of 18- to 29-year-olds.
• 35% of 12- to 17-year-olds and 23% of 18- to 29-year-olds said that they had discovered a new song they liked on TikTok. Only 6% of 50- to 65-year-olds said that they had discovered a new song on TikTok. The age difference is also clearly visible among 30- to 39-year-olds, of whom 8% discovered new music through TikTok.
• 90% of Finns said that they used TV and film streaming services (+4%). As many as 90% have access to at least one commercial streaming service (+13%).
• 50% of Finns used the public service streaming service (Yle Areena). The share declined slightly from 2024 (54%). Yle Areena nevertheless remains Finland’s most widely used TV and film streaming service. Yle Areena is followed by Netflix 44%, YouTube 36%, MTV Katsomo 24%, HBO Max 21% and Disney+ 19%.

The survey measuring digital music, TV and film listening and viewing habits in Finland, Denmark, Norway and Sweden was conducted in August 2026 in cooperation with Teosto, the Danish copyright society  Koda and the Norwegian TONO. More than 4,000 Nordic respondents took part in the survey, including 1,000 respondents from Finland. The survey is conducted every two years by the research company YouGov.