AQH (Average Quarter-Hour Persons)

AQH (Average Quarter-Hour Persons) is the foundational audience measurement unit of linear radio. Rather than counting every listener at every second, ratings services sample 15-minute blocks and count a person as part of the AQH audience if they listen for at least five minutes of that quarter-hour. The metric therefore represents expected concurrent listenership at any given moment within the daypart.

Because AQH is calculated at the quarter-hour granularity, it feeds directly into almost every other radio metric. Gross Rating Points, Gross Impressions, cost per point, and reach-and-frequency models all derive from AQH numbers supplied by Nielsen Audio, Kantar, or equivalent measurement bodies. A station that wants to move rate card pricing upward focuses first on growing AQH in its highest-value dayparts.