The forecast: In 2021, US Roku monthly users will increase by 11.5%, reaching 111.7 million monthly users. With these figures, Roku maintains its position as the most-used connected TV (CTV) device in the US market, though Amazon Fire TV is catching up.

Altogether, 34.1% of digital video viewers and 40.0% of CTV users will use Fire TV in 2021. More CTV users in the US will use Fire TV than either Apple TV (27.9 million users) or Google Chromecast (31.1 million users) this year. But there will still be more Roku users (109.7 million) and smart TV users (132.0 million) than Fire TV users.

eMarketer forecasting analyst Peter Vahle, senior forecasting analyst Oscar Orozco, and principal analysts Andrew Lipsman and Nicole Perrin discuss the who, what, where, when and why of podcast listening, and how advertiser approaches are changing. They then talk about Roku users viewing habits, tech to fight robocalling and Facebook's couples-only messaging app.

Roku was the top connected TV (CTV) platform in the US last year with 84.7 million users, according to our estimates. This year, that figure will grow 12.5% to 95.2 million.

About two-thirds of the US population are monthly connected TV (CTV) users. Young people are more likely to use CTV than older people. Four in 10 US senior citizens are CTV users—whereas CTV usage is about double that, more than 80%, among those ages 25 to 54.

Device makers, streaming apps, and content producers each want a piece of the ad revenues and user data that are associated with streaming. HBO Max and NBCUniversal’s Peacock aren’t available on Fire TV due to disagreements over inventory and content sharing. HBO Max also isn’t available on Roku.

In the US, Roku and Fire TV are the most popular systems that people use for CTV viewing. Smart TVs are the most common devices used for streaming. There is overlap between categories. Our Roku and Fire TV users include people who use Roku- and Fire TV-powered smart TVs as well as people who bought Roku and Fire TV streaming sticks.

Industry up-and-comers: Between 2020 and 2023, nine platforms have become or will become billion-dollar advertising businesses in the US, including Snapchat, Spotify, Yelp, Roku, Walmart, Instacart, IAC, Pluto TV, and Tubi.

“Roku Recommends” rolls out: The new show from Roku’s branded content studio surfaces top streaming content and gives advertisers a chance to reach viewers who might otherwise skip straight to ad-free services.

CTV has never supported cookies, but Roku and Amazon Fire TV devices still have trackable identifiers in place. Per our estimates, 53.1% of all monthly CTV users in the US will access a Roku device in 2022; 47.3% will use an Amazon Fire TV. To put that into perspective, 221.9 million people will use either a Roku or Amazon Fire TV device—or both—this year. That’s more than 100% of CTV users.