Why Age Matters in Media Planning

The latest Making Sense 2026 figures show that the media properties reaching adults most often vary sharply by age. For advertisers, that is a reminder to challenge broad averages and assess whether media investment is reaching the people who matter.

Media plans can look convincing when judged against a single, all-adult reach figure. But audiences are not homogeneous, and the channels people use most frequently can change considerably across generations. The 2026 Making Sense data highlights just how important it is to look beneath the headline numbers.

Across all adults, Facebook leads weekly reach at 51%, followed by YouTube (48%), Instagram (40%), ITV/STV (39%) and Channel 4 (31%). That overall picture, however, masks some substantial differences between age groups.

Among 16–34s, YouTube (66%) and Instagram (63%) lead, with TikTok reaching 46% and Snapchat 32%. Facebook reaches 44% of this group. For 35–54s, Facebook is top at 61%, ahead of YouTube (52%) and Instagram (44%); ITV/STV reaches 34% and Channel 4 28%.

The pattern shifts again among older audiences. For 55–74s, ITV/STV leads at 57%, followed by Facebook at 53% and Channel 4 at 44%. YouTube reaches 35%, while Channel 5 reaches 31%. Among people aged 75+, ITV/STV reaches 61%, Channel 4 44% and Channel 5 37%; Facebook reaches 34% and YouTube 23%.

1. Plan for the target audience, not the average adult

An all-adult ranking is useful context, but it is not a media strategy. A campaign targeting younger adults may need a different balance of social and video platforms from one aimed at older consumers. Using the overall ranking as a proxy for a specific target can lead to misplaced investment.

2. Reach is a starting point, not the answer

Weekly reach indicates how many people use a media property in a typical week; it does not, by itself, show whether an advert was seen, how often the target was exposed, what the exposure cost, or whether it changed behaviour. Reach should be considered alongside campaign delivery, audience composition, frequency, cost and effectiveness.

3. Avoid treating digital and television as one-size-fits-all choices

The figures show strong weekly reach for social and online video among younger groups, while ITV/STV and other broadcasters are prominent among older audiences. That does not automatically make one channel better than another. It reinforces the need to compare like with like: the target audience, campaign objective, buying costs and quality of delivery all matter.

4. Check what the campaign actually delivered

A media plan should be tested against outcomes, not just its original rationale. Did the campaign reach the intended age group? Was delivery concentrated in the right environments? Were the planned audiences, costs and quality benchmarks achieved? Independent review can help advertisers distinguish between a plan that looks plausible and one that delivers value.

For 23 Media Audits, the lesson is not that advertisers should automatically favour one platform or broadcaster. It is that media investment deserves scrutiny at the level of the audience the business is trying to reach. Independent media auditing helps advertisers assess both cost and quality, challenge assumptions, and understand whether agency delivery aligns with agreed targets and business objectives.

Age-based reach data is a useful planning signal, but it should not be treated as a substitute for campaign-level evidence. The strongest decisions combine audience insight with transparent benchmarks and a clear assessment of what was bought, what was delivered and what it achieved.

There is no single media ranking that works for every advertiser. Making Sense 2026 illustrates how quickly the picture changes by age. The practical question is therefore not simply, “Which media property reaches the most people?” It is: “Which combination reaches our target audience efficiently, in the right context, and delivers the results we need?”