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GUIDE 21 OF 27Podcast hosting: how to choose the best host for your show
What a podcast host does, how popular hosts compare on pricing and features, and how to pick the best podcast hosting for your show.
Your finished MP3 needs somewhere to live that can handle thousands of downloads and produce an RSS feed. That’s a podcast host (sometimes called a media host). It’s different from the web host that serves your website.
What a podcast host does
- Stores your audio files and delivers them quickly to listeners anywhere.
- Builds your RSS feed from the title, description and artwork you enter, and updates it whenever you publish.
- Reports downloads, ideally to an industry-standard measurement so numbers are comparable.
- Distributes your feed to apps, or helps you submit it.
- Often adds a simple show website, embeddable players, transcripts and ways to earn money.
Why not host MP3s on your own website?
You can: a podcast feed is just a text file with links to audio. But each listener downloads the whole file, so a 30 MB episode with 1,000 downloads uses 30 GB of bandwidth. Most website plans aren’t built for that, and a popular episode can get you throttled or billed. You also lose download statistics and automatic feed updates. Our file size calculator estimates the bandwidth for your show.
Free vs paid hosts
| Free plans | Paid plans | |
|---|---|---|
| Cost | None | Usually a monthly fee, sometimes by upload hours or downloads |
| Watch for | Ads inserted into your episodes, limits, unclear ownership of the feed | Download caps, overage charges |
| Good for | Trying podcasting, school projects | Shows you plan to keep for years |
Popular podcast hosts compared
Hosts differ most in how they charge, which decides which one is cheapest for your show. A weekly hour-long show and a monthly 20-minute show have very different needs. This table compares well-known hosts by pricing model and strengths; it’s independent, we have no affiliate deals, and plans change often, so confirm details on each host’s site.
| Host | Charges by | Free option | Known for |
|---|---|---|---|
| Buzzsprout | Hours uploaded per month | Yes, but episodes are removed after 90 days | Very beginner-friendly, clear statistics, built-in transcripts and chapters |
| Libsyn | Storage uploaded per month | No | One of the oldest hosts; stable, with an advertising marketplace |
| Podbean | Plan tier; unlimited storage on paid plans | Yes, with limited hours | Unlimited audio on paid plans, livestreaming, an ad marketplace and app |
| Transistor | Downloads per month | Free trial | Unlimited shows per account, private podcasts for teams and members |
| Captivate | Downloads per month | Free trial | Unlimited shows, marketing and growth tools, private podcasts |
| RSS.com | Plan tier with unlimited episodes | Free trial; discounts for some groups | Simple flat pricing, automatic distribution and transcripts |
| Spotify for Creators | Free | Yes, unlimited | No-cost hosting with video support and close Spotify integration; fewer advanced features than paid hosts |
| Acast | Plan tier | Yes, a starter plan | Advertising and monetization through its own marketplace |
Which is the best podcast hosting for you?
- A first show you want to try for free: a free plan with no time limit on episodes, such as Spotify for Creators, or a paid host’s free trial if you think you’ll stay.
- A weekly show with long episodes: avoid plans that charge by upload hours or storage; choose a download-based or unlimited plan.
- Several shows, or a company show: hosts that allow unlimited shows per account and team members, such as Transistor or Captivate.
- Private or members-only feeds: check for private podcast support and how many subscribers it includes.
- You want ad income without selling ads yourself: a host with an ad marketplace; see how to make money podcasting for typical rates and minimums.
- A small budget and a modest audience: work out your monthly upload hours and downloads with our file size calculator, then pick the cheapest plan that fits with room to grow.
Choosing a host: checklist
- Can you leave? Check that the host supports a permanent 301 redirect of your feed if you move. This is the most important question; without it, changing hosts can lose subscribers.
- Can you use your own domain for the feed or website?
- What are the limits on storage, upload hours per month and downloads?
- Are statistics measured to an industry standard?
- Does it support the features you want: seasons, private feeds, transcripts, chapters, video, dynamic ad insertion?
- Who owns the content? Read the terms; you should keep all rights.
Tip: keep your original WAV masters and show notes in your own backup, whatever host you use. Hosts close and change their terms; your archive shouldn’t depend on one company.
Switching podcast hosts later
You can move hosts without losing subscribers if you do it properly: import your episodes into the new host, then set a permanent 301 redirect from the old feed to the new one in the old host’s settings, and keep the old account open for a few weeks while apps catch up. Apple Podcasts, Spotify and other apps follow the redirect automatically. Check the new feed with our RSS feed checker.
Picked a host? Next, upload your episode and submit your feed.