A Comprehensive Analysis of Kenya’s Leading News Websites For The Period April to June 2024.

During the last few months we have seen more and more evidence that Kenya’s media industry is in serious trouble! The constantly bleak news seems to be that many of the leading players are downsizing as well as restructuring their operations quite dramatically in order to stay afloat and this seems to be happening on a recurring basis.

At the same time, when it comes to media consumption trends, we can see that digital has become one of the most preferred channels next to declining print as well as TV in Kenya. However, one bright spot for ‘traditional media’ seems to be radio and in particular vernacular radio which seems to be doing really well with a focus on peri-urban and rural Kenya where quality Internet access is not as widespread or as cost effective to use as it is in urban locations.

Whatever the case, the emergence of digital-first consumers in Kenya was largely accelerated by the advent of the COVID pandemic which transformed everything as we know it when it comes to media in Kenya. However, globally, even the likes of CNN are struggling at a time when monetizing high quality journalism has come under siege from social media platforms like TikTok, Twitter / X, YouTube and Instagram for news content discovery, consumption and sharing.

The other aspect of Kenya’s digital-first consumer is that they are seemingly unwilling to pay for high quality news media! This trend means that there is declining newspaper consumption as Millennials and GenZers have no time for such. Indeed, even if a digital alternative is available like a paid subscription to a news website or mobile app, many simply aren't boarding. Infact, when do you speak to them, what they tell you is that they get all the news they need from social media and its free too!

Therefore, it seems to me that Kenya’s news media businesses are between a rock and hard place as far as what they can do to sustain quality journalism when the whole industry is being digitally disrupted. Pay walls and digital ads simply aren’t generating sufficient revenues and their current business models will need to undergo dramatic changes if they are to remain viable.

In order to better understand the state of news media in Kenya, from a digital perspective, I decided to do some research on how their websites are performing using Similarweb. I wanted to get a snapshot of the current state of Kenya’s five leading (local) news websites being the Daily Nation, The Standard, Tuko, Kenyans and The Star for the period April to June 2024. One thing to note is that Tuko and Kenyans are ‘pure play’ digital news media and do not have traditional media platforms.

I looked at a range of metrics including visits, engagement, device distribution, and social media traffic as follows:

Monthly Visits & Unique Visitors.

Nation.africa leads the pack with 17.05 million monthly visits, far ahead of its competitors. This impressive figure highlights the its dominant position Kenya’s news and media ecosystem. Tuko.co.ke follows with 6.585 million visits, while the-star.co.ke and standardmedia.co.ke come in at 5.599 million and 4.374 million visits, respectively. Kenyans.co.ke rounds out the group with 3.923 million visits.

When it comes to unique visitors, tuko.co.ke takes the lead with 3.717 million, reflecting its broad appeal and ability to attract a wide audience. Nation.africa, despite its higher overall traffic, recorded 2.470 million unique visitors, suggesting a more loyal and returning readership. The other sites — standardmedia.co.ke (1.199 million), the-star.co.ke (1.129 million), and kenyans.co.ke (937,502) — show solid but smaller unique visitor counts, indicating they cater to a more specific or targeted audience.

Engagement Metrics: Visits per Visitor, Visit Duration, and Pages per Visit

Engagement metrics provide deeper insight into how users interact with content. Nation.africa excels with an average of 6.90 visits per unique visitor, highlighting the site’s ability to draw readers back consistently. The-star.co.ke also shows strong engagement with 4.96 visits per unique visitor, while kenyans.co.ke achieves 4.19 visits. These numbers suggest a highly engaged audience that frequently returns for more content.

In terms of visit duration, nation.africa leads with an impressive 5 minutes and 16 seconds per session, indicating that users are spending significant time on the site, likely consuming multiple articles or in-depth content. Kenyans.co.ke follows with 4 minutes and 21 seconds, while tuko.co.ke lags behind at 1 minute and 48 seconds, suggesting quicker, more transactional content consumption.

The metric of pages per visit further cements nation.africa’s lead, with users viewing an average of 3.46 pages per visit. Standardmedia.co.ke and kenyans.co.ke follow with 2.56 and 2.36 pages per visit, respectively, showing that while these platforms may not attract as many visits, their users are still engaging with multiple pieces of content during their sessions.

Bounce Rate & Total Page Views

Bounce rate is an essential indicator of how well a site retains its visitors. Kenyans.co.ke achieves the lowest bounce rate at 46.7%, suggesting that nearly half of its visitors go on to explore additional pages. Nation.africa follows closely with a bounce rate of 49.26%, which is commendable given its large volume of traffic. The higher bounce rates on tuko.co.ke (59.46%) and standardmedia.co.ke (56.92%) indicate that these sites might need to improve content retention strategies.

In terms of total page views, nation.africa is the undisputed leader with 58.94 million, reflecting its strong performance across the board. Tuko.co.ke (14.55 million), the-star.co.ke (12.38 million), standardmedia.co.ke (11.20 million), and kenyans.co.ke (9.259 million) all show substantial, though significantly smaller, page view counts.

Country Rank & Device Distribution

The country rank provides a quick snapshot of a site’s overall popularity. Nation.africa is ranked #8 in Kenya, the highest among the five, reflecting its strong market position. The-star.co.ke follows at #27, standardmedia.co.ke at #34, kenyans.co.ke at #35, and tuko.co.ke at #50. These rankings highlight the varying degrees of reach and influence each site has withinKenya’s digital news and media space.

Device distribution data reveals a strong preference for mobile access across all platforms, which is consistent with global trends in digital news consumption. Nation.africa sees 92.8% of its traffic from mobile devices, emphasizing the importance of mobile optimization for news platforms. Kenyans.co.ke and the-star.co.ke also show significant mobile traffic at 90.6%, with standardmedia.co.ke and tuko.co.ke not far behind.

Channels Overview & Social Traffic

The channels driving traffic to these sites provide insight into their marketing and Search Engine Optimization or SEO strategies. Nation.africa dominates again with 51.16 million visits, driven primarily by strong organic search performance, indicating effective SEO practices. Tuko.co.ke comes in next with 19.75 million visits, showing robust performance across various channels, while the-star.co.ke achieves 16.79 million visits.

Social traffic analysis reveals varying strengths across platforms. Kenyans.co.ke leads on Twitter, leveraging the platform effectively to drive traffic, while tuko.co.ke excels on Facebook, which aligns with its broad reach and diverse audience. Nation.africa maintains a balanced social presence, ensuring its content reaches a wide array of social media users.

Visits Over Time

Looking at visits over time, nation.africa consistently outperforms its competitors, maintaining a steady lead with 51.16 million visits over the quarter. Tuko.co.ke shows resilience with 19.75 million visits, while the-star.co.ke and standardmedia.co.ke follow closely, illustrating their ability to maintain a steady flow of traffic despite fierce competition.

Analysis of Kenya’s Leading News Websites For The Period April to June 2024.

The following table shows all the key insights from SimilarWeb on this basis:

Key Highlights:

Nation.africa dominates in almost every category, leading in total visits, visit duration, pages per visit, and organic search traffic.

Tuko.co.ke shines in unique visitors and Facebook-driven social traffic.

Kenyans.co.ke has the lowest bounce rate, indicating strong visitor retention, and leads in Twitter-driven social traffic.

The-star.co.ke and Standardmedia.co.ke are consistent performers across the board, with strong showings in visits per visitor and other key engagement metrics.

Conclusion

This comprehensive analysis reveals a highly competitive and dynamic digital news landscape in Kenya. Nation.africa stands out as the clear leader across most metrics, from total visits to engagement and SEO effectiveness. Tuko.co.ke demonstrates strong performance in attracting unique visitors and driving social traffic, particularly on Facebook. Kenyans.co.ke excels in retaining visitors with a low bounce rate and strong Twitter presence, while the-star.co.ke and standardmedia.co.ke remain relevant players with consistent performance across multiple channels.

As mobile continues to dominate as the primary device for accessing news, these platforms must prioritize mobile optimization and continue to refine their social media strategies to engage with an increasingly mobile and social audience. The future of digital news and mediain Kenya will likely see these platforms continuing to innovate and adapt to maintain and grow their respective audiences.