Based on expert recommendations, Podbean, Buzzsprout, Captivate.fm, Transistor.fm, Simplecast, Spreaker, Castos, and Libsyn are among the most popular podcast hosting and distribution platforms/services in the United States.
1. Podbean
- Headquartered in New York City, New York, Podbean was founded in 2007 and hosts over 470,000 podcasters. It has recorded 11,000,000 episodes and over 7.3 billion downloads. Podbean’s free plan offers a total of five hours in storage space and 110GB bandwidth monthly.
- Its $9/month, $29/month, and $99/month annual plans offer unmetered bandwidth and unlimited storage space. All paid plans feature monetization features including an ads’ marketplace, premium sales, and a patron program. The two latter plans allow video podcasts.
2. Buzzsprout
- Headquartered in Jacksonville, Florida, Buzzsprout has been in operation since 2009 and powers over 100,000 podcasters. It offers a free plan with two hours worth of uploads per month hosted for 90 days. Buzzsprout’s $12/month, $18/month, and $24/month plans allow three, six, and 12 hours of content, respectively, hosted indefinitely.
- All paid plans on Buzzsprout come with 250GB bandwidth, a podcast website, podcast statistics, “custom embedded players,” and access to podcast directories.
3. Libsyn
- headquartered in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, Libsyn was introduced in 2004 and hosts over 62,000 podcasts and has delivered over “111 million downloads.” It is the “podcast launch partner” for Spotify, Radio.com, and Pandora. Libsyn does not offer a free plan or free trials.
- Its $5/month, $15/month, $20/month, and $40/month plans offer 50MB, 250MB, 400MB, and 800MB monthly storage, respectively. Podcasters can also subscribe to $75/month and $150/month plans 1,500MB and 3,000MB monthly storage, respectively.
4. Captivate.fm
- Captivate.fm was introduced in November 2018, and had achieved over 20,000 users as of January 2020. Harvard University, Entrepreneur, Santander, and YouPreneur are among its key clients. Captivate.fm offers a free trial for seven days.
- Its $19/month, $49/month, $99/month plans offer 12,000, 60,000, and 150,000 downloads per month, respectively. All plans come with unlimited podcasts, advanced analytics, a podcast website, built-in “podcast player calls to action,” and unlimited team access, among others.
5. Castos
- headquartered in Tinley Park, Illinois, Castos was founded in 2017 and has recorded more than 10,000 installs and thousands of customers. Castos does not offer a free plan or a free trial.
- Castos’ $19/month, $49/month, and $99/month plans all offer unlimited podcasts, unlimited upload limits, and unlimited download limits, among other features. The top-range bundle come with “video republishing to YouTube,” advanced analytics, audiogram integration, and “video file hosting.”
6. Transistor.fm
- Headquartered in Chicago, Illinois, Transistor.fm was launched in 2018 and has hosted over 4,000 podcasters since. Basecamp, ProfitWell, VH1, Laravel, and Ionic are among its key clients. Transistor.fm offers 14 days free trial.
- Its $19/month, $49/month, and $99/month bundles offer 10,000, 50,000, and 150,000 monthly downloads, respectively. All plans feature unlimited podcasts, live customer care, advanced analytics, and a podcast website.
7. Simplecast
- Headquartered in New York City, New York, Simplecast was founded in 2015 and has worked with companies such as Politico, Facebook, Harvard University, TechCrunch, and Shopify, among other notable brands. Simplecast offers a 14-day free trial.
- Its $15/month, $35/month, and $85/month plans offer 20,000, 50,000, and 120,000 monthly downloads, respectively. The premium plan comes with nine-member access, detailed location analytics, advanced device analytics, network analytics, and technology analytics, among other features.
8. Spreaker
- Headquartered in Brooklyn, New York, Spreaker was founded in 2010 and claims to have hosted thousands of podcasters. Spreaker’s free plan offers five hours of audio storage, 15-minute sessions of live podcasting, basic statistics, and basic distribution.
- Its $6/month, $18/month, and $45/month annual plans all offer custom RSS feeds, “multiple podcasts hosting,” and programmatic monetization. The top-tier bundle features full statistics and custom player colors.
Research Strategy
To provide a list of the most popular podcast hosting and distribution platforms/services, the research team identified the ones that have been most recommended by expert reviews. All platforms listed above have been featured in multiple (over four) reviews from resources such as Adam Enfroy Ventures, Podcast Insights, WebsiteToolTester, The Podcast Host, Discover Pods, and KyLeads.
