Best Podcast Hosting Providers

Want to jump straight to the answer? The best podcast hosting providers for most people is Buzzsprout, Transistor, and Castos.

Choosing the best podcasting hosts is crucial when starting a podcast. From pushing your podcast to iTunes and Spotify to storing your files and marketing your show, the best software for podcasts can help grow your audience. In this guide, I ranked and reviewed the 8 best podcasting hosting sites, so you can pick the best one for you.

Are you dreaming of starting the next hugely successful podcast and sharing your audio content with the world?

When it comes to recording a podcast, things aren’t as simple as recording some audio and uploading it to iTunes.

With as many as 850,000 podcasts in the world right now, you need to have a solid plan of action.

First, you have to host your audio files.

So how do you pick the best podcast hosting providers?

This guide covers the best options based on price, reliability, technical support, monthly upload volume, compliance, storage, podcast monetization, ease of use, marketing features, integrations with apps, and more.

Let’s get started.

What are the Best Podcasting Hosts?

Here are my top picks for the best podcast hosting providers:

• BuzzSprout
• Libsyn
• Podbean
• Transistor
• Captivate
• Castos
• Podcastics
• Fusebox

1. Buzzsprout.

The best podcast hosting providers for Beginners (Free – $24/month + $20 Amazon Gift Card).

Buzzsprout is my #1 pick for many reasons.

They’re a host that’s been in business since 2009 and are trusted by over 100,000 podcasters. Plus, they’re one of the only companies that offer a totally free plan with unlimited team member accounts.

Buzzsprout allows you to embed a podcast player right on your website – and you can feature just one episode or a whole playlist of episodes:

They offer an easy-to-use analytics dashboard with an algorithm that estimates how many listeners each episode receives within the first 90 days. You can also view which countries your listeners are tuning in from to help you understand your audience.

These analytics features are super helpful and better than most other tools on this list.

Audio quality is also great as you can upgrade to 128k stereo optimization for better sound. Not only that, but they also offer podcast transcription services as an extra add-on.

They make it super easy to upload and schedule your podcast too. You simply upload your audio file, change the episode title and description, and submit your podcast to all significant directories:

Another benefit is that you can easily add episode chapter markers. This feature helps listeners better understand quick details about your episodes at a glance. These aren’t required (and don’t appear on every podcast app), but are a nice feature nonetheless:

Key Features:

• Get your podcast listed in all of the top podcast directories so that more people can find it.
• Advanced podcast statistics will track your progress to see how well your podcast is doing.
• Automatic episode optimization will make sure your episodes sound great and are easy to listen to.
• Dynamic content will keep your podcast fresh and exciting.
• Transcriptions make your podcast more accessible to everyone.

User Experience:

The simplicity when it comes to creating your own Podcast is second to none.

With a great user interface, it’s easy to get started and customize your own show.

You’ll also get a breakdown of each episode, allowing to perform various tasks such as editing and exporting.

The app also makes it easy to share your show with the world.

Pricing:

Their free plan allows you to upload two hours of content hosted for 90 days. If you’re serious about podcasting, you can scale up and upgrade your plan based on how many hours of content you need to upload per month. 

• Free: upload 2 hours each month and episodes hosted for 90 days.
• $12/month: upload 3 hours each month, hosted indefinitely, unlimited storage.
• $18/month: features above, plus upload 6 hours each month.
• $24/month: features above, plus upload 12 hours each month.

What I Like/Dislike About Buzzsprout:

Like:

• A modest fee makes it affordable for people starting out.
• Super easy to use and user-friendly.
• Excellent customer service with great support.
• Stats show you how your podcast is doing, which is great to help improve.

Dislike:

• Better analysis data would make it easier to understand what is working (and what’s not) on your podcast.

Product Updates:

• Updated Settings Navigation so that it’s more intuitive when it comes to creating your podcast.
• Host & co-host information can now be added when creating a new episode.
• Web Notifications are now possible, so you don’t miss any updates on your show.

Ultimately, with their month-to-month pricing and easy-to-use dashboard, Buzzsprout is my #1 choice.

I recommend you get started for free and then upgrade to any plan you want based on how many hours of content you plan to upload each month.

As an added bonus for my readers, when you sign up for Buzzsprout and upgrade, you get a free $20 Amazon gift card. 🙂

2. Libsyn

Best Podcast Hosting For Multiple Shows ($5/Month + 2 Month Free).

Libsyn’s user interface is top-notch, making it easy to navigate and understand – even for first-time users.

They offer a wide variety of features that are perfect for both novice podcasters and professionals.

Libsyn’s recent addition of Libsyn Studio lets you create and record a podcast using only your computer, with no extra equipment required.

Requiring no additional equipment means that anyone can start podcasting immediately – a huge advantage for Libsyn.

They also offer various ways to offer subscriptions, run ads, and monetize your podcast.

If you want to share your knowledge about a topic while building a community around your show, then Libsyn is a great platform to consider.

Key Features:

• Advanced stats provide detailed information about your audience and their interaction with your show.
• The social promotion scheduler makes it easy to share your episodes on social media and reach a larger audience.
• Unlimited bandwidth means you can upload as many episodes as you want without worrying about exceeding your limit.
• The ad-free podcast website gives you a professional look and feels without the hassle of dealing with ads.
• The custom podcast player lets you customize the look and feel of your player to match your brand.
• Podcast monetization allows you to run ads on your show and earn revenue from your episodes.

User Experience:

Libsyn has finally released its new user interface, Libsyn5, to all users.

This makes navigating the platform easier and finding the features you need.

The new interface is clean, modern, and easy to use – even for first-time users.

Pricing:

Based on the number of hourly uploads per month, you can choose from the following plans:

• 3 hours: $5
• 6 hours: $15
• 10 hours: $20
• 14 hours: $40
• 27 hours: $75
• 55 hours: $150

What I Like/Dislike About Libsyn:

Like:

• Libsyn is easy to contact and happy to help with responsive customer service.
• Regarding posting options, there are various ways to share and schedule your content.

Dislike:

• There is no free trial you can use to test out the platform before committing to a paid plan.

Product Updates:

• New social scheduling features help you promote your episodes on social media even better.

Get started with Libsyn.

3. Podbean

Best Easy Podcast Hosting Service ($29/Month + 1 Month Free).

PodBean is my #3 recommendation. They’ve been in the podcasting hosting space for over 10 years, host 540,000 podcasters, and are the easiest-to-use host on this list.

Key Features:

• 5 hours of storage on the free plan.
• Unlimited storage on the $9/month plan.
• Dynamic ad insertion.
• Patreon program to accept recurring revenue from listeners.
• Auto-uploads to YouTube.
• Mobile app.
• Auto-posting to social media like Facebook and Twitter.

User Experience:

The user experience on Podbean is quite straightforward, with the commonly seen left-hand side menu giving you access to all the features you need.

The process of creating a podcast is very simple, and you can even import existing audio files if you want to.

You can choose a different podcast logo or go with the default one, and the colour scheme can be customized to match your brand.

Finally, the stats overview screen gives you a good idea of how your podcast is performing and where you need to focus your efforts.

Pricing:

• Basic (Free and Open-Source): 5 hours of storage and 100 GB monthly.
• Unlimited Audio ($9/month): Unlimited storage and bandwidth, pro themes, advanced design, and ad marketplace.
• Unlimited Plus ($29/month): Features above, plus Patreon program and dynamic ad insertion.
• Business ($99/month): Features above, plus multiple domains, private podcasts, advanced statistics, and live chat support.

I recommend podcasters serious about running their professional show get their $29/month PodBean Unlimited Plus Plan as you get unlimited audio hosting and video storage.

What I Like/Dislike About PodBean:

Like:

• A straightforward podcast hosting provider that makes it easy to get your show online.
• No downtime and fast downloads mean your listeners can always hear your latest episode.
• Upload video and audio podcasts with just a few clicks, making it easy to get started.
• Easy to distribute shows to a broad audience, thanks to integrations with major podcast platforms.

Dislike:

• Image dimensions and best practices are lacking in creating covers and episode art.
• The dashboard can be customized more so it’s easier to find the information you need.

Overall, PodBean is my #4 choice and the best easy podcast host with great video and YouTube features.

4. Transistor.

Best Built-In Podcast Analytics ($19.99/month).

Transistor.fm is a high-quality, professional service that hosts some popular podcasts including Drift, Honeybadger, and Cards Against Humanity.

They are known to provide their podcasters with built-in analytics and absolutely everything you need to grow your podcast audience.

Key Features:

• Host unlimited shows.
• Manage multiple users per account.
• Generate branded websites with your own domain name
• Distributing your podcast to major networks.
• View advanced analytics and reporting.

Their analytics tools are where they stand out. Their dashboards show you trends and stats like average downloads per episode, the number of subscribers, and downloads over time. 

Additionally, if you use another hosting platform like Libsyn or Anchor, you can easily import your existing feed into Transistor with simple migration tools. 

User Experience:

A transistor is great when it comes to submitting your show to various platforms. 

The app makes it easy to share your show with the world.

There are also various integrations that you can use to promote your show and get more listeners.

Moreover, the bar graph design on the stats screen makes it easy to track your progress and see how your show is performing.

Pricing Plans:

• Starter Plan ($19/month): Provides unlimited podcasts and episodes, up to 2 users, and 10,000 downloads per month.
• Professional Plan ($49/month): Everything in the starter plan, but now with up to five team members and 50,000 downloads per month.
• Business Plan ($99/month): All features in the previous plans, but with up to 10 team members and 150,000 downloads per month.

Transistor allows you to scale your podcast (and pricing) as your audience grows.

In the end, your plan choice will most likely depend on the number of downloads you need per month, so you can get started with their Starter Plan and upgrade when you need to. 

What I Like/Dislike About Transistor:

Like:

• Support for various platforms means that you can quickly get your show out there.
• Many long-time users love the simplicity and user-friendliness of Transistor.
• It gives you good analytics to track your progress and see where your listeners are coming from.
• The interface is easy to understand and makes it easy to get started.
• Priced based on the number of downloads you receive, making it more affordable for people starting out.

Dislike:

• Sometimes, customer service is slightly unresponsive when it comes to helping out.

Product Updates:

• Add pages and links to your podcast website to give your listeners more information about your show.
• Use the new podcast website template to create a website that looks great and is easy to navigate.
• Display custom episode images on your podcast website so your listeners can see what each episode is about before they listen.

If you take podcast analytics seriously, start your 14-day free trial of Transistor (and get two months free when paid annually).

5. Captivate.

Best for Marketing and Growing Your Audience ($19/Month).

Captivate is a brand new podcast web hosting that is hyper-focused on growing podcast audiences. They were created by Rebel Base Media, which also runs podcast management tools.

This new addition is their best product yet, as they took everything they learned from years of podcast experience and putting into one new podcast management tools.

Key Features:

All plans come with an unlimited number of podcasts, unlimited team members, a new podcast player, advanced analytics, and marketing tools.

A few standout growth features are their automatic best podcast website and built-in calls to action. Every plan comes with a customizable, mobile-friendly website with donation support built-in.

Second, you can build your email list and generate new leads with podcast player calls to action. For example, if someone is listening to your podcast player, they can sign-up directly to your email list via an opt-in form.

Captivate is also constantly upgrading its analytics software. They work with the Interactive Advertising Bureau (IAB) to create more insightful intelligence to monitor the performance of your show.

You can also easily import your show from another top podcast host like Blubrry with one simple import tool. Their podcast as a marketing tool allows you to automatically generate links to places like Overcast and Pocket Casts, which helps new subscribers find your show easily.

Pricing:

• Podcaster Plan ($19/month): Up to 12,000 downloads per month.
• Audio Influencer Plan ($49/month): Up to 60,000 downloads per month.
• Podcast Brand Plan ($99/month): Up to 150,000 downloads per month.

With a ton of great podcasting features in every plan and simple pricing that scales as you grow, Captivate is going to make waves as a new player in the space.

If you’re looking for a growth-oriented top podcast host with lots of marketing features, get a 7-day free trial of Captivate.

6. Castos.

Best podcast hosting wordpress Service ($19/month).

Castos is a full-featured podcast hosting wordpress plugin.

If you already have a WordPress site, here’s how it works:

• You go to the Castos website and start your 14-day trial.
• Install their WordPress plugin.
• Next, when you’re ready to host your episodes, you add them into the new Podcast section inside of WordPress:

Upload your audio file, type in your description, and the podcast will go live on your site with a customizable media player:

That’s it. When you’re ready to add your podcast to directories, you grab your URL and add it to any publisher you’d like.

Key Features:

• Automatic transcription – upload your audio files and transcriptions are added to your dashboard within minutes.
• Republish to YouTube.
• Top podcast editing software by Castos Productions.
• Customizable podcast webpage.
• Analytics podcast Feature.

Pricing:

• Starter ($19/month): unlimited storage and perfect for the essentials.
• Growth ($49/month): Features above, plus YouTube republishing and custom audiograms.
• Pro ($99/month): Features above, plus advanced analytics and video file hosting.

Overall, if you’re looking for a podcast hosting WordPress plugin, Castos is the best choice.

Get started with a free 14-day trial and get 2 months free on annual plans. 

7. Podcastics.

Best Podcast Hosting Provider with Unlimited Episodes (Free – $39/month)

Podcastics is the best podcast hosting provider option that’s very easy to use and offers competitive features. 

Like PodBean, their dashboard is very intuitive. When you first get started, you can set your podcast details with just a few clicks and quickly manage user permissions. If you already have a podcast, you can automatically import it from Apple Podcasts or from any RSS feed. 

And if you’re a podcaster with multiple podcasts, you can build teams within the dashboard, which is great for studios and agencies. 

Some of their other main features include:

• podcast analytics for advertisers, including plays, days and hours, sources, and locations.
• Live streaming capabilities.
• Podcast and episode editing tools.
• The ability to schedule episodes.
• Smart features like QR codes, smart links, surveys, and heat maps.

Podcastics has 5 pricing plans – all offering unlimited episodes. However, unlimited bandwidth and storage start at their $8/month Pro Plan. 

Overall, Podcastics is one of the best podcast hosting providers that is super easy to use with great UX, smart features, and analytics. 

Get started with a 30-day trial. 

8. Fusebox.

The Best Toolbox of Podcast Producing Software (Free-$19/Month).

Fusebox is a great invention created by famous podcaster Pat Flynn of Smart Passive Income. After years of podcasting, he was looking for the best possible podcast player for your website that your visitors will love.

Who better to create the perfect podcasting product than a prolific podcaster himself?

Fusebox has a lot of great features, including email capture (one of the only podcast players to offer this) and other top-notch features.

They have a transcript plugin with SEO-friendly live text that automatically adds podcast transcripts to your website.

And if you’re interested in how the player works, it’s very straightforward.

You install the Fusebox WordPress plugin and add your RSS feed. Next, you enter your subscription URLs to push your show to the major directories. Finally, you customize the colors of your podcast player, and then add the player to your posts and pages.

Overall, if you want to host your files, send them to podcast networks, and display them on your WordPress website, try Fusebox.

If you’re looking to add some great podcast marketing tools to your arsenal, check out Fusebox.

What is the Best free podcast hosting service?

There are low-cost and even free options you can pick from if your budget is tight. Many of the free plans come with limited functionality, but if you’re starting, free hosting services are a great way to test out their features.

You might not be able to host hours of content on your podcast server, but a free trial or free plan can get your feet wet in how podcast hosts work.

Here are my picks for the best free podcast hosting platform.

1. Buzzsprout

Buzzsprout’s free podcast hosting platform has the most features compared to every other host on this list.

With their free plan, you get two free hours of upload time, hosted episodes for up to 90 days, and a complete podcasting dashboard. If you are just getting started in podcasting, the Buzzsprout free plan is the perfect way to get your feet wet in podcasting and learn the ropes.

When they say they’re the “easiest way to podcast” they’re not lying. With Buzzsprout, you can easily upload your file, add them to every major directory, and start tracking your listeners with their advanced analytics.

Pricing: Free – $24/month

Website: buzzsprout.com

What is the best podcast production equipment I Need for My Show?

If you’re ready to start recording your episodes, you need to purchase some podcast equipment. In its purest form, all you need to start a podcast channel is a computer and a microphone. But that’s kind of like saying all you need to start an e-commerce business is a website – there are tons of different options.

However, I’ve narrowed it down to the essential podcast gear to get started with items that I own.

Here are my top picks for best quality podcast equipment for any level of podcaster.

1. Blue Yeti: best quality podcast microphone.

Don’t use your computer’s built-in microphone. Start with a USB microphone instead – they’re affordable and super easy to use. Just plug in your microphone into your laptop, switch your audio input settings, and record.

The only consideration for microphones is whether you choose a dynamic or condenser mic. Typically a condenser mic is best for one-person shows, and dynamic mics are useful for recording a group.

• A fantastic and highly-rated condenser podcast microphone is the Blue Yeti
• A high dynamic mic is the Blue 1967 Yeti Pro

2. MacBook Pro: Good Laptop for Podcasting.

You don’t need the latest and greatest laptop to start a podcast. Most computers will do just fine. Make sure that your machine was built at least in the last three years. It will also need to be able to handle your audio software.

I use a Macbook Pro, currently discounted on Amazon.

3. Logitech : Best Webcam for Streaming.

If you’re getting into podcasting, you need a good webcam. Your webcam to podcast with video recording and upload them to YouTube. More importantly, your webcam will be used to look professional in meetings.

I must say, one thing that podcasters are great at is looking good on video. Every podcaster I’ve met via Skype or Zoom had a microphone with a boom arm, crystal clear video, and a nicely-designed background in their room or office.

For audio podcasters, a video may not be vital for your episodes themselves, but more for meetings, you’ll have with interviewees, influencers, and potential sponsors.

And you don’t have to shell out hundreds or thousands for an expensive camcorder or DLSR camera. You need a good webcam for streaming in at least 1080p.

1080p and even 4k webcams are very powerful nowadays (and affordable).

The webcam that I use and recommend is the Logitech C920S.

4. Audio-Technica ATH-2000TI: Best Microphone Headphones for Podcasting.

Since audio quality is one of the most critical aspects of your show, a good pair of headphones can listen for p-pops, distortion, feedback, and other issues. You’ll want a pair of closed-back headphones so that none of the sound coming through the headphones gets picked up by your microphone.

A pair that I like are the Audio-Technica ATH-2000TI professional headphones.

5. Mackie PROFXV3: Best Mixer for Podcasting.

A USB mixer helps manage inputs, outputs, levels, and effects. Reverb, flanging, delays, echos, and other effects are not only fun to mess around with, but give your show a professional sound.

My favorite mixer for podcasting is the Mackie PROFXV3.

What is the Best Podcast Making Software to Record My Episodes?

After you’ve chosen the best podcast hosting providers and know where you want to publish your show, it’s time to start recording your audio with podcast software. It’s pretty easy. With a quality microphone and some podcast recording software, you can quickly get your media recorded, edited, and launched like a pro.

Here are some of the best software options to start recording your high-quality audio.

1. Anchor.

Anchor touts itself as the easy way to make a podcast. Ever.

And I have to agree. Anchor’s free podcast recording software allows you to record high-quality audio. Next, you record an unlimited amount of episodes and distribute them to all major websites with one click.

Anchor makes it easy to drag and drop different audio clips to rearrange segments in your episodes. They also give you a free landing page with a custom URL for your show.

With its unlimited free hosting, recording capabilities from anywhere, and one-click distribution, Anchor is the best podcast hosting providers on the market.

Try Anchor recording software today.

2. Zencastr.

Zencastr allows new and professional podcasters alike the ability to record themselves and their remote guests in studio quality right from a web browser. To record your podcast guest in another location, you send them a link and then receive a separate audio track.

This live recording via a VoIP connection connects users through the local microphones. As the podcast host, you press record, and each person’s audio logs from the web browser, without any compression or artificial sounds decreasing the audio quality.

Zencastr is also great for collaboration, as you can share your audio files via Google Drive and Dropbox.

With their free plan, you get up to two guests, 8 hours of audio recording per month, and only pay per use in post-production. If you upgrade to their Professional plan at $20/month, you get unlimited guests and recordings, a live editing soundboard, and 10 hours of automatic post-production every month.

Try Zencastr best software for podcasting.

3. Avid Pro Tools.

Pro Tools is a digital audio workstation (DAW) from Avid Technologies. It is a high-end audio product with crazy amounts of power. I remember using Pro Tools in an advanced audio engineering course back in my college days to mic up and record a live band.

You don’t need this powerhouse to record your podcast. However, if you want the absolute best tool or want studio-quality podcast software, Pro Tools is your #1 choice.

It costs $299 for a 1-year subscription, and you get $850 in bonus gifts, including Pro Sound Effects, tutorials, and royalty-free music. You can also buy it on Amazon.

What Are the Benefits of Creating a Podcast and Why Do You Need One?

Podcasting has become a great way to build an online brand and make money from your show. For example, Joe Rogan’s JRE podcast is estimated to make him an unbelievable $30,000 per episode.

Podcasting is something to take seriously, so don’t skimp out on your host. Here’re some of the most significant benefits of using the best podcast hosting providers:

1. No Compromise in Quality.

Usually, personal servers have limited space to spare.

If you decide to store a podcast on your server, you’ll have to make a compromise between quality, speed, and storage space. This leads to a deterioration in the quality of the podcast since you need to cram a large number of files within a limited space.

Best Podcasting hosts, on the other hand, have inbuilt servers that are able to host large podcast files while maintaining the highest quality. This means that you don’t have to worry about quality any longer.

2. Most Podcast Hosting Sites Can Handle Data Transfers.

Podcasts are delivered via RSS (rich summary site) feeds. When you store your podcast files in your personal account, the users need to download the files directly from there, which necessitates the expenditure of data for every download.

Now picture this:

You have millions of followers, and everyone is downloading files from your account.

It eats up massive bandwidth since your account is using up the bulk of the allotted data for your website host. Coming from a single account, it might just be too much data transfer to handle for your host.

That’s why leaving it to dedicated website hosts to take care of this for you is a great option.

3. You Save Money on Storage.

Deciding to host your podcast files yourself can be costly. For example, to host a one-hour audio podcast three times per week, you need around 200MB of storage space. And publishing a video podcast once every week at an estimated 500MB per episode, you’ll need 2 GB space every month.

That said, podcast hosts take care of cloud storage for you, which comes with a lot of advantages.

However, if you’ve chosen a host that doesn’t provide unlimited bandwidth, and your audience continues to grow, you’ll either need to upgrade your plan or pay the added fees.

Your storage needs typically always continue to grow with your audience and the number of published episodes.

Luckily, easiet podcast hosting sites come with fixed pricing so you already know how much you’ll spend based on your storage requirements.

These plans all come with reasonable prices compared to your monetization potential, and storage is an important factor.

4. Faster Speed.

Arguably, an essential aspect of the need for the best podcast hosting providers is ensuring and providing speed.

How long do you tend to wait for a Dailymotion video to run? 1 minute? 2 minutes? I’d give it only 30 seconds to start playing. If it doesn’t start, I simply leave the video.

The same is true for podcasts. Too much buffering or low speeds won’t keep users captivated for long. Sooner or later, they’ll move on to a competitor’s podcast.

When you host podcasts on your own website, speed becomes an issue. There’s only so much speed that an average web host can provide. When more listeners start to download your podcast, web hosts have no option but to use data throttling.

As a result, users who want to download your podcast will struggle to do so. 

Thankfully, with fully dedicated best podcast hosting providers, you seldom run into these snags. best podcasting hosts give unlimited access to your podcasts, as there’s no conflict regarding bandwidth or speed.

5. Robust Analytics.

It goes without saying, the right analytics tool can help you generate actionable insights and make better decisions.

Before planning out your podcasting schedule, you should determine how your podcasts are performing.

This is where podcast management tools and analytics come into the picture.

Most of these platforms come with an in-built data analytics tool that can help you track the number of downloads per episode, how long listeners are staying engaged, and where they are located. 

This insightful data helps you make quick decisions on the types of content and show formats that your audience enjoys most.

6. Additional Security.

Cyber-attacks are a severe problem today.

And while running a podcast, you simply cannot afford to manage your own security. Hosting a podcast on WordPress or your own server requires you to have a state-of-the-art security system in place, replete with security measures like SSL certificates and firewalls.

On top of that, you need to regularly update and test their functionality and perform daily back-ups.

Best Podcasting hosts, on the other hand, come inbuilt with all the security measures that you need. The tools save and backup your files and take care of security for you.

How Do I Choose from the Best Podcast Hosting Sites?

Twelve million people listened to a podcast for the first time within the last year. To tap into this growing market and pick the best option, you have to consider some different questions.

1. What is the right amount of storage?
2. How much audio storage and content will you be uploading per month?
3. Do you need a new WordPress site or align each episode with a blog post?
4. Can you work with video podcasts or any video format?
5. What kinds of analytics would you like to view?
6. Is it easy to dynamically add advertisements and sponsorships throughout your podcast episodes?
7. Finally, how much do you want to spend on hosting services?

These are just a few of the questions you’ll have to answer when choosing from the best. Consider these questions before finalizing your podcast episode’s cadence and length.

For example, if you’re running a weekly one-hour podcast, you’ll need less storage than if you’re running a half-hour show five days a week. However, don’t let prices limit your show’s options.

Here are some tips for choosing the best podcasting hosts:

1. Know how many hours of monthly audio hosting you need per month.

Best podcast website only gives you two hours of upload time per month, while others provide unlimited uploads.

2. Look into server reliability, bandwidth options, and uptime guarantees.

Look into upgrade options if scalability is essential. With premium plans, you can get access to unlimited storage, upload times, and monthly downloads.

3. Research signup prices vs. renewal prices, as they may be different.

You can also save money by paying annually vs. monthly, so do your homework.

Dive into a free trial to test the product’s ease of use.

4. Make sure the host has a lot of essential features.

Look for things like no-fault overages, media validation, FTP uploading, and ID3 tagging.

7 Useful Steps to Start a Podcast.

Ever since the revolutionary release of the iPod in 2001, podcasts have been growing in popularity. And there seems to be no sign of stopping.

According to a report by Insider Intelligence, 57% of US households are podcast fans. That’s more than 70 million homes in the United States alone.

Where do they listen to these podcasts? Everywhere, apparently.

With the popularity of podcasts at an all-time high, there hasn’t been a better time to start your first podcast.

If you want to should you go about starting your first podcast, you need to follow a series of steps, including:

• Choose a name for your podcast
• Select a cover image
• Introductory music
• Get the necessary equipment
• Create an environment and process
• Record your first podcast and release
• Promote and market your podcast

1. Choose a Name For Your Podcast.

There are three significant naming conventions that you could follow to name your podcast:

• Creative – Ex: ‘Podfast’
• Descriptive – Ex: ‘The Joe Rogan Experience
• Personal – Ex: ‘The Joe Rogan Experience,’ #joerogan

The naming convention you choose to follow should depend on your own preference. For instance, if you want to highlight your core topic, a descriptive name would give a fair idea.

Adding a tagline to the name is also something that accentuates your brand value. For example, ‘Podfast’ – is simply the fastest.

If this doesn’t work, you could try out some other ways to name your podcast.

2. Add a Cover Photo.

An appropriate cover photo helps create an image of your brand in the mind of the consumer. It has to be communicative, and catchy and should uphold the niche of the podcast.

The good news is that a lot of the covert art specifications are taken care of by podcasting hosting platforms. You can also customize them to align with your expectations.

3. Add Your Intro Music.

Begin your podcast with a theme song to captivate the interest of the listeners. Opening theme music is also an element of the broader branding of your podcast, and listeners will identify your channel right away based on that music.

Typically, it should be about 5-10 seconds long.

All you need to do is create something unique that aligns with your niche so that your listeners begin to associate it solely with your brand.

4. Get The Necessary Equipment.

For a seamless podcasting experience, you need the best equipment.

The best part is that you don’t need to shell out a massive budget to produce excellent quality podcasts.

The simple basics are:

• Good microphone
• Recording software
• A good podcasting host

Some of the great microphones in the market are Blue Encore and Audio Technica.

It is easier to produce engaging podcasts if you’re working with the right set of equipment.

5. Create Your Podcast Style.

You’ve got to create the perfect environment to attract listeners. This is where you need to get creative and market your podcast to reach your target audience.

For starters, you need an appealing welcome message to start off the monologue on a positive note. You’ll basically talk about who you are and what are you aiming to do in your podcast.

Once that’s done, now you’ve got to get ready with the content you need for each episode :

• The topic
• Outline of the episode
• Key takeaways

Whether it’s banter, pre-planned segments, or an interview, devising a proper structure for your podcast is essential.

Planning ahead before you start makes for a better performance, which naturally rubs off on your podcast delivery and the other people in the room.

6. Record and Release.

How you want to record your podcasts depends entirely upon you. Some podcasters record more than 5-10 podcasts in one go, while some belief in producing one podcast at a time.

I’d suggest using this format for your podcast editing:

Teaser + Intro + Podcast + Advertisement + CTA + Podcast + Subscription Reminder + Outro

Now, to be able to reach the right audience, you need to upload your podcasts on popular platforms like iTunes, Soundcloud, Google Podcasts, and more.

Even better, if you already have a YouTube channel or a blog page, you can share your podcast on those channels as well. That way, you can also invite your regular viewers and readers to check out your new podcast.

7. Promotion and Marketing.

It’s challenging to record a large number of streams immediately after you start. Using social media sites like Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter, and running ad campaigns could be an excellent way to promote your podcasts in the market.

You can connect with industry leaders, and tie up with radio stations to spread the word at a reasonably lower cost.

You can also invite celebrities or industry experts with considerable followings to your show. That’s a great way to reach out to new listeners.

Best Podcast Hosting Providers FAQ.

That’s a Wrap.

There you have it – my list of the best podcast hosting providers to try this year.

When making your choice, first dig deep into the platform’s features. You should be able to upload as much monthly content as needed, be compliant, view analytics, and have enough storage space.

Second, decide if you want free unlimited hosting, or are willing to pay extra to get more features.

Third, do you need a new website? Look for options that couple web hosting with WordPress or Weebly so you can add show notes and blog posts. Ensure your hosting company works with the best software for podcasts.

Finally, examine which hosts can promote you with marketing, crowdsourcing, ads, monetization, expert guidance, and support.

These companies take the guesswork out of storing your podcast, distributing your audio content to the right places, and supporting you on your podcasting journey.

My recommendation for new podcasters is to get started with Buzzsprout and get a free $20 gift card.

So pick the best option tailored just for you and happy podcasting!

^{_{Disclosure: I may receive affiliate compensation for some of the links below at no cost to you if you decide to purchase a paid plan. You can read our affiliate disclosure in our privacy policy. This site is not intending to provide financial advice. This is for entertainment only.}}