This Boise radio station dominates at #1. Others tanked. Ratings winners, losers
Nobody remains on top of The Bull for long.
After a blip last fall, Boise’s most consistently dominant radio station has exploded to No. 1 again.
The country powerhouse at 101.9 FM finished with a 6.6 share in the newly released spring 2025 Nielsen Audio Ratings. We’re talking specifically about the bragging-rights demographic — listeners 12 and older between 6 a.m. and midnight in the metro survey area.
Top finishers behind The Bull? Three completely different types of formats. Grabbing an unusually strong number, prayers apparently were answered at Christian contemporary hits station KTSY-FM 89.5. It finished in second with a 5.8 share — tying with hot adult contemporary station My 102.7. Taking third place with a 5.5? Good ol’ Bob with his variety mix at 96.1 FM.
This ain’t The Bull’s first rodeo. Normally a ratings monster, the station inexplicably dipped to a 3.9 in the last book. But anyone familiar with Boise radio knew the aberration wouldn’t last. The Nielsens, which measure listener share, are released twice a year in this market. And because they rely on actual people to report diaries of what they supposedly listened to during the survey period, results can be unpredictable. In other words, one disappointing ratings book isn’t the end of the world. As the saying goes, the cream always rises to the top — eventually.
Still, it’s never preferable to take a nosedive. That happened to a couple of stations. Playing Christmas music for several weeks, Lite FM usually enjoys an autumn bump before fluttering back to Earth in spring. This time, it dropped out of the sky more like an anvil. Lite FM’s number fell more than three full points to a 2.3. Similarly, popular news-talk station KBOI-AM 670 continued its trend of strong fall numbers, then tougher springs, by decreasing more than two points to a 3.3.
Other quick observations?
Boise is a country-friendly market, but newcomer 107.1 Hank FM still has work cut out for it. The station landed its lowest share (1.2) since flipping formats from K-HITS last year.
For listeners who prefer rock, 96.1 The Eagle and 100.3 The X basically appear to be locked in as winning formats.
And from an overall perspective — meaning all demographics — Iliad Media Group enjoyed its best book in the history of the company, according to CEO Darrell Calton. It’s no coincidence that Iliad owns The Bull, My 102.7 and Bob, among others.
25-54: Money talks
To be fair, the 12+ numbers have somewhat limited significance in the real world. The Nielsens are whittled down to various other demographics with money repercussions. The top dogs in 12+ aren’t always the winners in the niche that’s most important to advertisers: listeners ages 25 to 54 between 6 a.m. and midnight.
This time, though, they mostly are. No. 1 in 25-54 was The Bull. Then came Bob and My 102.7 tied at second. But third place in 25-54 went to Wow Country 104.3, which was only among the top eight in 12+.
Spring 12+ numbers
Below is the Treasure Valley breakdown. These are stations’ quarter-hour shares among listeners 12 and older between 6 a.m. and midnight.
- KQBL-FM 101.9 (The Bull, country, Iliad Media Group): 6.6
- KTSY-FM 89.5 (Christian contemporary, Idaho Conference of Seventh-Day Adventists): 5.8
- KZMG-FM 102.7 (My 102.7, hot adult contemporary, Iliad Media Group): 5.8
- KSRV-FM 96.1 (Bob, variety hits, Iliad Media Group): 5.5
- KBSX-FM 91.5 (public radio, Boise State): 4.7
- KKGL-FM 96.9 (The Eagle, classic rock, Cumulus Media): 4.3
- KQXR-FM 100.3 (The X, active rock, Lotus Boise): 3.7
- KAWO-FM 104.3 (Wow country, Townsquare Media): 3.3
- KBOI-AM 670 (news/talk, Cumulus Media): 3.3
- KBSU-FM 90.3 (classical, Boise State): 3.3
- KKOO-AM 1260 (101.5 Kool FM, classic hits, Iliad Media Group): 3.3
- KIDO-AM 580 (news/talk, Townsquare Media): 2.9
- KWYD-FM 101.1 (Wild 101.1, pop contemporary hits, Iliad Media Group): 2.9
- KSAS-FM 103.5 (Kiss FM, pop contemporar hits, Townsquare Media): 2.5
- KJOT-FM 105.1 (Jack, variety hits, Lotus Boise): 2.3
- KLXI-FM 99.5 (K-Love, Christian contemporary, Educational Media Foundation): 2.3
- KXLT-FM 107.9 (Lite FM, adult contemporary, Townsquare Media): 2.3
- KARO-FM 98.7 (Air-1, Christian contemporary, Educational Media Foundation): 2.1
- KIZN-FM 92.3 (Kissin’ 92.3, country, Cumulus Media): 2.1
- KQBL-FM HD3 96.5 (The Alternative, alternative rock, Iliad Media Group): 1.6
- KRVB-FM 94.9 (The River, adult album alternative, Lotus Boise): 1.6
- KOAY-FM 88.7 (Christian contemporary, Idaho Conference of Seventh-Day Adventists): 1.4
- KCIX-FM 105.9 (Mix 106, hot adult contemporary, Townsquare Media): 1.2
- KQBL-FM HD2 99.1 (I-Rock, Iliad Media Group): 1.2
- KQFC-FM 97.9 (Magic 97.9, adult contemporary, Cumulus Media): 1.2
- KTHI-FM 107.1 (Hank FM, classic country, Lotus Boise): 1.2
- KTIK-AM 1350 (sports, Cumulus Media): 1.2
- KFXD-AM 630 (Power 105.5, urban contemporary): 0.4
- KSRV-FM HD2 99.9 (Fox Sports, Iliad Media Group): 0.4
- KGCL-FM 90.9 (Spanish Christian, Educational Media Foundation): 0.2