is one of Finland's two prominent tabloid-size evening newspapers and the largest paper in the country. Its counterpart and biggest rival is Iltalehti. According to the National Media Research done in 2019, Ilta-Sanomat is also the biggest digital media in Finland and reaches about 2.5 million Finns. Johanna Lahti has been the editor-in-chief of Ilta-Sanomat since November 2019, when the previous editor-in-chief Tapio Sadeoja retired after 38 years in office.

History and profile

The paper was established in 1932 as the afternoon edition of Helsingin Sanomat. In 1949 it became a separate newspaper and was named Ilta-Sanomat. Its sister paper is Helsingin Sanomat and both papers are part of Sanoma. Ilta-Sanomat is published in tabloid format six times per week. The paper has an independent political stance.

Circulation

The circulation of Ilta-Sanomat was 212,854 copies in 1993, making it the second largest newspaper in Finland after its sister paper Helsingin Sanomat. In the period of 1995-1996 the paper had a circulation of 213,600 copies. Ilta-Sanomat had a circulation of 215,000 copies in 2000. Its circulation was 218,829 copies in 2001, making it the second most read paper in the country. In 2002 it had a circulation of 214,610 copies on weekdays and 243,443 copies in weekends. It was again the second best selling newspaper with a circulation of 205,000 copies in 2003. Next year the circulation of the paper was down to 201,000 copies. The paper had a circulation of 195,673 copies in 2005, and of 186,462 copies in 2006. Its circulation was 176,531 copies in 2007. The circulation of Ilta-Sanomat was 161,615 copies in 2008 and 152,948 copies in 2009. It was 150,351 copies in 2010 and 143,321 copies in 2011. In 2010 the online version of Ilta-Sanomat was the second most visited website in Finland in 2010 and was visited by 1,823,956 people per week.

Editors-in-chief