View all newsletters
Sign up for our free email newsletters

Fighting for quality news media in the digital age.

  1. Data
  2. Audience Data
February 18, 2016

National press print ABCs for January: Mirror losing ground against cut-price Star ahead of new launch

By Dominic Ponsford

The Daily Mirror lost ground against the Daily Star in January apparently hurt by the latter's price cut.

The Mirror, which costs 60p during the week, fell 12.3 per cent year on year to just over 800,000 copies per day. The 20p Daily Star rose 10.6 per cent to just over 470,000.

Meanwhile, the 40p Sun fared only a little better than the Mirror – dropping 9.7 per cent year on year.

The plunging Mirror sales may explain parent company Trinity Mirror's plan to launch a new cut price daily newspaper in the news few weeks. The title is reportedly set to be called New Day and may be a retaliatory strike.

The Times was the only other national newspaper to grow its circulation year on year in January, by 1.9 per cent to 404,155 (with the help of around 20,000 additional free bulk copies).

The soon-to-close Independent had a paid-for sale of under 40,000 in January. The Independent on Sunday was a little high at around 42,000 (excluding bulks).

The Sunday Mirror appears also to be suffering at the hands of Richard Desmond. It costs £1.30 and fell 14.7 per cent year on year compared with a 12.7 per cent year-on-year increase for the 50p Daily Star Sunday.

Content from our partners
How PA Media is helping newspapers make the digital transition
Publishing on the open web is broken, how generative AI could help fix it
Impress: Regulation, arbitration and complaints resolution

The Sun on Sunday, costing £1, meanwhile held up better falling by 6 per cent year on year.
 

National newspaper ABC figures for January 2015 (source ABC)

Title Jan-16 MoM% YoY% Bulks Free
Dailies          
The Sun 1,787,096 -0.75 -9.68 53,723  
Daily Mail 1,589,471 -0.56 -5.88 77,034  
Metro 1,348,033 0.19 0.14   1,348,033
London Evening Standard 898,407 4.82 2.38   898,407
Daily Mirror 809,147 -0.32 -12.26 45,000  
The Daily Telegraph 472,033 -0.92 -4.58    
Daily Star 470,369 4.12 10.61    
Daily Express 408,700 1.99 -10.75    
The Times 404,155 -1.1 1.9 41,879  
i 271,859 1.28 -3.03 66,714  
Financial Times 198,237 -5.27 -9.66 21,359  
Daily Record 176,892 -0.51 -13.17 4,959  
The Guardian 164,163 -1.13 -11.47    
City AM 97,259 -1.5 -6.74   97,259
The Independent 55,193 -1.57 -10.02 15,356  
Sundays          
The Sun on Sunday 1,487,301 1.27 -6.01 55,273  
The Mail on Sunday 1,388,059 0.16 -5.03 66,660  
The Sunday Times 770,370 0.97 -3.9 32,847  
Sunday Mirror 749,061 1.01 -14.68 45,000  
Sunday Express 369,666 4.05 -7.03    
The Sunday Telegraph 355,044 1.1 -6.9    
Daily Star – Sunday 299,146 0.7 12.72    
Sunday People 279,837 -0.73 -16.49 1,750  
Sunday Mail 195,167 -1.22 -12.43 3,810  
The Observer 183,210 -0.25 -7.64    
Sunday Post 163,037 -1.28 -12.94    
Independent on Sunday 91,644 -1.37 -6.15 49,538  

 

Topics in this article :

Email pged@pressgazette.co.uk to point out mistakes, provide story tips or send in a letter for publication on our "Letters Page" blog

Select and enter your email address Weekly insight into the big strategic issues affecting the future of the news industry. Essential reading for media leaders every Thursday. Your morning brew of news about the world of news from Press Gazette and elsewhere in the media. Sent at around 10am UK time. Our weekly does of strategic insight about the future of news media aimed at US readers. A fortnightly update from the front-line of news and advertising. Aimed at marketers and those involved in the advertising industry.
  • Business owner/co-owner
  • CEO
  • COO
  • CFO
  • CTO
  • Chairperson
  • Non-Exec Director
  • Other C-Suite
  • Managing Director
  • President/Partner
  • Senior Executive/SVP or Corporate VP or equivalent
  • Director or equivalent
  • Group or Senior Manager
  • Head of Department/Function
  • Manager
  • Non-manager
  • Retired
  • Other
Visit our privacy Policy for more information about our services, how New Statesman Media Group may use, process and share your personal data, including information on your rights in respect of your personal data and how you can unsubscribe from future marketing communications.
Thank you

Thanks for subscribing.

Websites in our network