Pocket Casts does not host podcasts. We are a podcast player and directory: we read publicly available podcast RSS feeds and make the shows in them searchable and playable in the Pocket Casts apps. We do not store your episode files, we do not create your RSS feed, and there is no way to upload an episode directly to Pocket Casts.
This means that if you want to start a podcast (publish a show, upload episodes, get your podcast into Pocket Casts), you need somewhere to host your show first. Once your show has a working RSS feed, you can submit that feed to Pocket Casts so listeners can find and follow it.
A podcast host is the service where your show actually lives. It handles three things:
- Stores your episode files. Every episode you publish, audio or video, is uploaded to your host, and listeners download or stream it from there.
- Generates your RSS feed. Your host builds and updates the feed that describes your show: its title, artwork, description, and every episode.
- Serves that feed to podcast apps. Pocket Casts, Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and other apps all read the same feed from your host.
One service does not have to do all three. If you already have a website, you may be able to keep your files where they are and add feed generation to your existing site — see Already have a WordPress site? below.
Any host that produces a valid, publicly accessible RSS feed will work with Pocket Casts. Some hosts also support WebSub and Podping, which let us pick up new episodes faster than checking your feed on a schedule — see Podcast Parsing for more on how we read feeds.
Pocket Casts plays video episodes as well as audio ones, so your choice of host matters here too. For your show to be watchable in Pocket Casts, your host has to publish the video in your RSS feed — either as a standard video file (usually MP4) or as an adaptive video stream using HLS (HTTP Live Streaming). Pocket Casts plays both automatically.
Not every podcast host supports video, and not every host that does supports both delivery methods, so it is worth checking before you commit to one if video is important to your show. For more on how video episodes behave in our apps, see Video Podcasts.
Note: Publishing your video only on YouTube, or through another app’s own system, will not make it appear in Pocket Casts — there has to be a video file or video stream in your podcast feed for us to play it.
This is a short, deliberately non-exhaustive list — not a directory of every podcast host available. We plan to add to it over time.
Buzzsprout, RSS.com and Transistor all support WebSub or Podping, which means new episodes can reach Pocket Casts faster than waiting for a scheduled feed check — see Podcast Parsing for how that works.
WordPress.com is built by Automattic, the same company that makes Pocket Casts. It publishes each episode as a post on your own site and generates your podcast RSS feed from those posts, so your show, your website, and your newsletter all live in one place on a domain you control. Paid plans include episode hosting on WordPress.com, listener statistics, and an episode dashboard; on the free plan you can still publish a feed if your episode files are stored somewhere else. Video shows are supported as well — the Podcast Episode block accepts a video file in place of an audio one, and uploading that video to your own site (rather than linking to YouTube or Vimeo) is what puts it in your feed.
Podcasting settings are found under Jetpack > Podcast in your site dashboard — see the WordPress.com podcasting guide for setup steps.
Buzzsprout is a long-established host built around keeping publishing simple: you upload an episode, fill in its details, and it handles your feed and distribution to podcast apps. It also generates automatic transcripts, gives your show a website on your own URL, and includes listener statistics.
Video works differently from audio here. You upload a single video file (MP4 or MOV) and Buzzsprout publishes it as video to Apple Podcasts, Spotify and YouTube, while distributing an audio version to the other apps your show is listed in. If a watchable video episode in Pocket Casts is important to you, check with Buzzsprout first about which apps receive the video.
Castos is the closest of these to a WordPress workflow without being WordPress itself: its Seriously Simple Podcasting plugin lets you manage your show from your WordPress dashboard, while Castos stores your episode files and serves your feed. It hosts unlimited episodes and shows, generates transcripts, and supports private podcasts for bonus or subscriber-only episodes. It can also republish your audio episodes to YouTube automatically.
Video is well supported, and Castos documents it for Pocket Casts specifically: you submit a video podcast the same way as an audio one, and apps that support video play it while the rest fall back to your audio. Three things to check before you rely on that, though — video uploads need its higher-tier plan, MP4 is the only video format it accepts, and a show that mixes audio and video episodes will publish only the audio ones, so a video show needs to be video throughout.
RSS.com is worth a look if you would rather not commit to a paid plan to get started: it offers a free tier with unlimited episodes and storage, and handles your feed and distribution to the major apps from the start. It also builds a website for your show and includes analytics and several monetization options.
For video shows, you can upload a video episode and RSS.com delivers it as an HLS video stream alongside your audio, so listeners on apps that support it can switch between watching and listening. It also has a separate audio-to-video tool that turns an audio episode into a video for YouTube, which is a different thing from publishing a video episode.
Transistor suits anyone running more than one show, since a single account can host unlimited podcasts — a common choice for podcast networks and for companies publishing several series. It generates your feed, distributes to the major apps, provides detailed analytics, and can create a website for each show. It also supports private podcasts, which is useful for internal or subscriber-only shows.
Transistor is the most straightforward of these options for video, because it includes HLS video in the RSS feed itself rather than sending it only to particular directories — and HLS is one of the two formats Pocket Casts plays. Video is a newer, higher-tier feature and was still in beta as this page was written, so check its current status if video matters to your show.
To be listed on this page, a host needs to:
- Work reliably with Pocket Casts.
- Generate a valid podcast RSS feed.
- Be actively maintained.
Who makes what: Pocket Casts, WordPress.com and Jetpack are all made by Automattic. WordPress.com and Jetpack are on this page because they meet the criteria above, and those same criteria were applied to every other option listed here.
You do not have to use a host from this list. If your show is already hosted elsewhere, or you would rather use a different service, that is completely fine — Pocket Casts works with any valid public podcast feed.
If you already run a WordPress site, you may not need a separate podcast host at all. With the Jetpack plugin (version 16.1 or later), your existing site becomes your podcast host: you publish each episode as a post, and Jetpack generates and serves your podcast RSS feed from those posts. Your episode files stay in your site’s own media library, on whatever web host your site already uses — so you can publish a podcast from a WordPress site on any host, without moving your files anywhere.
Pocket Casts reads a Jetpack-generated feed exactly like any other podcast feed, so you submit it the same way. Podcasting is set up under Jetpack > Podcast in your site dashboard, and works on the free version of the plugin; paid Jetpack plans add the Podcast Episode block, an episodes dashboard, and podcast stats. See the Jetpack Podcast documentation for setup steps and the show details you will need, such as cover art and a show description, or Jetpack’s introduction to the feature for a walkthrough of publishing an episode.
When your show is published and you have an RSS feed URL, here is how to get it into Pocket Casts:
- Submit your feed URL using the Pocket Casts Submission Form, and check the public podcast checkbox so your show can appear in search. Full details and troubleshooting are in Submitting Podcasts.
- Give it a little time. New submissions and feed changes are not picked up instantly — see Podcast Parsing for expected timings.
- Get a share link for your show so you can point listeners straight to it — see Linking to my show.
- Add a Pocket Casts badge to your website using the assets on our Podcast Producers page.
No. There is no way to upload audio or video files, or to create a show, inside Pocket Casts, because we do not host podcasts. You publish your episodes elsewhere, and then submit your feed to us so the show appears in our apps.
Pocket Casts plays video episodes, but you publish them the same way as audio ones: through a host that includes the video in your RSS feed, as either a standard video file (usually MP4) or an HLS stream. We cannot host or convert your video for you, and a show that publishes its video only on YouTube will appear in Pocket Casts as audio only.
No. If your site runs WordPress, the Jetpack plugin can generate a podcast feed from your existing site on your current web host — see Already have a WordPress site? above. Otherwise, a podcast host runs alongside your website rather than replacing it; your show and your site can live in different places.
No. Submitting a podcast to Pocket Casts is free. Your host may charge for storing and serving your episodes, but that is separate from being listed in Pocket Casts.
No. Pocket Casts works with any host that produces a valid, publicly accessible RSS feed. The list above is a starting point, not a requirement.
Problems with uploading episodes, billing, or feed settings need to be taken up with your host directly, since we have no access to their systems. If your feed is working but your show is not appearing correctly in Pocket Casts, get in touch with us and include your full feed URL so we can take a closer look.
Note: We cannot provide support for third-party podcast hosts, and listing a host on this page is not an endorsement of its pricing, features, or terms of service. If a host listed here is not working well with Pocket Casts, please let us know.
