New data shows BBC is the world's most visited news site

The BBC’s online news brands, BBC.co.uk (UK) and BBC.com (ex-UK), came in first place with a combined 1.2 billion website visits in April 2021. This figure was 8% higher than April 2020, when the sites recorded 1.1 billion visits.

Demand for BBC News’ output from audiences around the world has hit record highs recently, as readers and viewers seek trustworthy, independent and objective coverage of world changing events.

In 2020/21, BBC.com saw continued expansion in its audience reach, with year-on-year growth of +19%, and reached a new peak of 180 million monthly unique browsers in November 2020, driven by the US election and ongoing coronavirus coverage. A new daily peak of 31 million browsers visited BBC.com the day after the US voted for its next president, which was nearly 50% higher than the previous peak.

BBC.com’s feature sites (BBC Future, BBC Reel, BBC Culture, BBC Travel and BBC Worklife) also saw exceptional growth in 2020/21 at +24% year-on-year, with top stories including, “Why Zoom chats are so exhausting” and “The last secrets of the world’s lost continent”.

Separate research* shows that the BBC is still considered the world’s most trusted and reliable international news broadcaster.

David Weiland, CEO of BBC Global News, says: “In turbulent times, audiences want to know that they can rely on the information they are given. Misinformation, spread either unwittingly or deliberately, has unfortunately caused social and political harm. Fake news has a detrimental effect on people’s lives, and it is vital that audiences know they can turn to sources, such as the BBC, for accurate, impartial information.”

The past year has shown how disinformation is spreading online to millions of people. Examples include widely shared memes which link falsehoods about COVID-19 vaccinations to freedom and individual liberties. Other posts seek to downplay the risks of coronavirus and suggest there is an ulterior motive behind the development of a vaccine.

The BBC offers a uniquely objective brand of news, which gives audiences the facts so they can make informed decisions about the issues that really matter. The rigorous verification process at the BBC is core to our editorial values and principles of accuracy and impartiality, and every story is authenticated before it's broadcast.

*Source: Brand Tracker Q1-Q4 2020

HG