With the Top 40 format struggling, who are the stations still going strong?
It’s not news that Top 40 is going through a long dry spell nationally, but a few stations around the country are out-performing the format and may provide useful models.
Alan Burns and Associates took a look at the leading Top 40s in each of the top 50 Nielsen markets, based on June 6+ shares. The average share for the #1 Top 40 across all 50 markets is only 4.0; however, a handful of stations managed to significantly outperform the average. Here are the top three:
WXXL Orlando 7.9
WNCI Columbus 7.8
KMXV Kansas City 6.6
WXXL and WNCI are owned by iHeart; we’re proud to see our client and Steel City’s KMXV make the top three.
You can see in the chart below, all 50 market/format leaders. The chart shows the June ratings leader, the number of stations in the format (mainstream and rhythmic Top 40s separately) plus whether the market’s Top 40s also have a Hot AC to compete with.
You’ll see that some markets are much more crowded than others. We’ll highlight the competitive-market winners in our next installment.
Alan Burns and Associates has advised winning contemporary music stations like KMXV for over 30 years in markets as large as New York (Z100) and Los Angeles (KIIS) and as small as Biloxi and Fargo. Reach us at (251)243-1592.
| Rank | Market | Leader | June 6+ | #Main Top 40 | Rhyth-T40 | Hot ACs | Hot AC? | |
| 1 | New York | WHTZ | 4.3 | 2 | 1 | 1 | Yes | |
| 2 | Los Angeles | KIIS | 3.9 | 1 | 1 | 1 | Yes | |
| 3 | Chicago | WKSC | 2.9 | 2 | 0 | 1 | Yes | |
| 4 | San Francisco | KMEL* | 3.7 | 2 | 1 | 2 | Yes (2) | |
| 5 | Dallas | KHKS | 4.1 | 2 | 1 | 1 | Yes | |
| 6 | Houston | KRBE/KBXX | 3.5 (tied) | 1 | 1 | 1 | Yes | |
| 7 | Washington DC | WIHT | 3.8 | 1 | 0 | 0 | No | |
| 8 | Atlanta | WWWQ | 5.1 | 2 | 0 | 0 | No | |
| 9 | Philadelphia | WIOQ | 2.8 | 2 | 0 | 0 | No | |
| 10 | Boston | WXKS | 5.2 | 1 | 1 | 1 | Yes | |
| 11 | Miami | WHYI | 4.0 | 2 | 0 | 1 | Yes | |
| 12 | Seattle | KQMV | 4.5 | 2 | 0 | 1 | Yes | |
| 13 | Detroit | WKQI | 5.2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | Yes | |
| 14 | Phoenix | KALV | 4.1 | 2 | 2 | 1 | Yes | |
| 15 | Minneapolis | KDWB | 5.5 | 1 | 0 | 1 | Yes | |
| 16 | San Diego | KHTS | 4.7 | 2 | 1 | 1 | Yes | |
| 17 | Tampa | WFLC | 3.3 | 2 | 1 | 1 | Yes | |
| 18 | Denver | KDHT | 3.0 | 1 | 1 | 1 | Yes | |
| 19 | Puerto Rico | WKAQ | 4.3 | 2 | 1 | 0 | No | |
| 20 | Nassau- Suffolk | WHTZ | 4.6 | 2 | 0 | 1 | Yes | |
| 21 | Portland | KBFF | 3.4 | 2 | 1 | 1 | Yes | |
| 22 | Baltimore | WZFT | 2.2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | Yes | |
| 23 | Charlotte | WNKS | 2.9 | 2 | 0 | 1 | Yes | |
| 24 | St. Louis | KSLZ | 2.5 | 1 | 0 | 1 | Yes | |
| 25 | San Antonio | KBBT* | 3.6 | 2 | 1 | 1 | Yes | |
| 26 | Riverside-San Bernadino | KGGI* | 3.3 | 0 | 1 | 1 | Yes | |
| 27 | Sacramento | KUDL | 2.8 | 1 | 1 | 1 | Yes | |
| 28 | Salt Lake City | KENZ | 3.7 | 3 | 1 | 1 | Yes | |
| 29 | Pittsburgh | WKST | 5.4 | 2 | 0 | 1 | Yes | |
| 30 | Orlando | WXXL | 7.9 | 1 | 0 | 1 | Yes | |
| 31 | Las Vegas | KLUC | 3.1 | 1 | 2 | 1 | Yes | |
| 32 | Austin | KHFI | 5.3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | Yes | |
| 33 | Cincinnati | WKFS | 2.4 | 1 | 0 | 0 | No | |
| 34 | Kansas City | KMXV | 6.6 | 2 | 0 | 1 | Yes | |
| 35 | Cleveland | WAKS | 3.1 | 1 | 0 | 1 | Yes | |
| 36 | Columbus, OH | WNCI | 7.8 | 1 | 1 | 1 | Yes | |
| 37 | San Jose | KMVQ | 3.1 | 2 | 1 | 3 | Yes (3) | San Francisco signals |
| 38 | Raleigh | WDCG | 3.2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | No | |
| 39 | Indianapolis | WZPL | 4.2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | No | |
| 40 | Nashville | WRVW | 3.4 | 2 | 0 | 0 | No | |
| 41 | Hudson Valley | WHTZ | 3.6 | 3 | 0 | 0 | No | NYC signals |
| 42 | Milwaukee | WXSS | 3.5 | 1 | 0 | 1 | Yes | |
| 43 | Middlesex-Union | WHTZ | 4.2 | 2 | 0 | 1 | Yes | NYC signals |
| 44 | Providence | WPRO | 6.4 | 1 | 1 | 1 | Yes | |
| 45 | Norfolk | WNVZ | 3.0 | 2 | 0 | 1 | Yes | |
| 46 | Jacksonville | WAPE | 3.2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | No | |
| 47 | West Palm Beach | WLDI | 2.1 | 1 | 0 | 1 | Yes | |
| 48 | Greensboro/Winston-Salem | WKZL | 3.6 | 2 | 0 | 0 | No | |
| 49 | Oklahoma City | KJYO | 6.0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | Yes | |
| 50 | New Orleans | WEZB | 3.8 | 1 | 0 | 0 | No | |
| Average share | 4.0 |