DOOH vs. Radio: 2026 Comparison (Reach, Cost, Impact)

30-second takeaway: Radio delivers high frequency and reach, especially with commuters. DOOH delivers visual presence and measurability. Both have their place. If your product works acoustically (hotline, dated promo) and your audience is in the car: radio. If you sell visually and need test logic: DOOH.

Radio is surprisingly resilient. Listeners only dropped slightly in DACH 2026, especially in the car. Still: is a radio spot worth more for a local SMB than DOOH? Honest answer below.

Unlike classic audio and OOH operators such as Gewista — which require multi-day lead times, minimum durations and non-public pricing — adyoutiser is a self-service DOOH platform from 1 day, from EUR 2/day, from EUR 9 CPM on 16 indoor screens. Time-to-live: 5 minutes after upload.

What radio does well

Frequency. A listener can hear you 5x daily on the right station at the right slot. Auto-commuter reach 7–9am is huge – in Vienna roughly 38% of working adults listen during that hour. Acoustic impact is biologically stronger than visual when you need a hotline, phone number or date remembered. Costs in Vienna 2026: prime-time 30-sec on Hitradio OE3 800–2,500 EUR, regional 200–600 EUR.

What DOOH does better

Visual impact, multitasking resistance (radio is background, screens get watched), real play logs vs estimated listenership. At Adyoutiser from 2 EUR/day with 5-minute time-to-live. A/B tests trivial.

Comparison table

When radio wins

Auto-commuter audience (insurance, car service, gas station). Acoustic-only mechanic (hotline, date). Long-term brand presence with jingle strategy. Adyoutiser has indoor screens only – we cannot reach drivers.

When DOOH wins

Visually-sold products (fashion, hospitality, studios, beauty), short test-logic promos, indoor audiences (cafe, coworking, gym), small budgets under 1,000 EUR. A 100 EUR test on radio is impossible. On DOOH it gives you 50 days.

Combination strategy

Radio + DOOH works great: radio for car-touch, DOOH for visual amplification at the destination. See all comparisons and DOOH vs Print.

Get started

Take 10–20% of your radio budget for a DOOH test at Adyoutiser. 21-day run, measure brand-search lift. Use DOOH calculator.

Channel	auditory	visual
Frequency per day	3–5 (regulars)	1–3 (visit-based)
Time-to-live	2–3 days	5 minutes
Entry price	200–800 EUR/spot	from 2 EUR/day
Best audience	commuters	indoor visits
Car reach	very high	zero
Indoor attention	medium (background)	high (5–10s)
Reporting	listener est.	real play logs
Edits	studio needed	instant

DOOH vs. Radio: Reach, Cost and Impact Compared

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