Cardigan maps stations using CBSA-based markets, FCC signal contours, and census tract data. We track 23,643 stations across 4,164 AM markets and 11,175 FM markets.
We use FCC contour data to map each station's actual signal coverage. That contour gets overlaid on census tract boundaries to estimate population within the signal. The result is an audience estimate that is grounded in physics, not diaries.
CBSA-based market definitions let us group stations by their actual market, even when Nielsen does not track them. Stations that share a market can be analyzed together or separately.
| Rank | Market | Stations |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | New York | 92 |
| 2 | Los Angeles | 78 |
| 3 | Chicago | 64 |
| 4 | San Francisco-Oakland | 51 |
| 5 | Dallas-Fort Worth | 58 |
| 6 | Houston | 45 |
| 7 | Washington DC | 42 |
| 8 | Atlanta | 49 |
| 9 | Philadelphia | 38 |
| 10 | Boston | 35 |
| 11 | Phoenix | 41 |
| 12 | Seattle-Tacoma | 36 |
| 13 | Miami | 39 |
| 14 | Denver-Boulder | 34 |
| 15 | Detroit | 31 |
| 16 | Minneapolis-St. Paul | 33 |
| 17 | San Diego | 28 |
| 18 | Tampa-St. Petersburg | 32 |
| 19 | Portland | 29 |
| 20 | Charlotte-Gastonia | 27 |