Before you start a podcast you need to find the best podcast hosting site for you.
This can be frustrating and time-consuming. There are many different podcast
hosting platforms out there and new services are always entering the market. A
poor-quality podcast hosting service may hinder your progress. But a high-quality
podcast hosting service can help you manage your files for podcasts, promote
your episodes, and grow your audience.
What is podcast hosting?
A podcast hosting platform is a specialized service that stores podcast media files
and delivers them to an audience. Podcast hosting services typically provide
features such as website hosting, podcast analysis, and embedded media players.
Hosting and distributing them from your website’s servers will slow down your
website users. Also, if you have a large audience streaming or downloading at the
same time, your site may crash. This is why you need a podcast hosting platform.
Now comes the big question: what is the best podcast hosting sites? So, let’s find
out.
Podbean: Podbean is one of the best podcast hosting platforms available. This top
podcast site allows you to submit your podcast episodes to directories like Apple
Podcasts (formerly iTunes), Google Podcasts, and Spotify. You can use Podbean to
upload podcasts too. The free plan offers 500 MB of storage which works for
about 5 hours of audio files. Premium plans start at 14 $ per month and provide
unlimited storage and bandwidth only for audio podcast files.
BuzzSprout: A great podcast hosting service for beginners. Buzzsprout is one of
the best podcast hosting sites and it makes it easy to manage your podcast files.
This intuitive and straightforward analytics dashboard provides invaluable insights
to help you improve your podcast and marketing strategy. For example, you can
discover which apps people use to listen to your podcasts and which countries
your listeners are in. A standout feature is the option to add episode chapter
markers that help listeners see details about your episodes at a glance. Also, this
podcast hosting service makes it easy to publish your episodes on podcast
channels like Spotify, Google Podcasts, and Alexa. Buzzsprout even provides a
podcast transcription service. You can use this free podcast hosting site to upload
content for two hours per month and your files will be hosted for 90 days before
deletion. Paid plans start at 12 $ and come with unlimited storage. Also, payment plans host your files indefinitely which allows you to create a library of
episodes.
Blubrry: A top podcast site for WordPress users. Blubrry is a popular podcast site
that makes it easy to share your episodes with big-name podcast distributors like
Google Podcast and Apple Podcast. Blubrry’s three main offers are podcast
hosting service, podcast statistics, and their Power press plug-in. The Power
press plug-in makes it easy to manage your podcast directly from any WordPress
website. This plugin makes Blue brick one of the best podcast hosting websites
on the market. Blubrry also provides social media features to help you promote
your podcast to new audiences. All plans come with unlimited bandwidth and
podcast statistics – and the statistics provided are comprehensive and insightful.
Pricing is based on the amount you need. It costs 12 $per month for 100 MB, 20 $
per month for 250 MB, 40 $ for 500 MB, and 80 $ for 1000 MB.
Transistors: One of the best podcast sites with incredible built-in podcast analysis.
It provides podcasters with plenty of tools to grow their audience. This includes
the ability to distribute your podcast across major platforms and create a branded
website using custom domain names. Its dashboard displays several statistics,
such as average downloads per episode, number of subscribers, and total
downloads over time. Additionally, podcast hosting sites allow you to host
unlimited shows and manage multiple users in a single account. Pricing is mostly
based on the number of users and downloads per month. It costs 19 $ and
10,000 downloads for 2 users, 49 $ and 50,000 downloads for 5 users and 99 $
and 150,000 downloads for 10 users.
Castos: One of the best podcast hosting sites for WordPress users. This podcast
hosting service automatically publishes your episodes on all major distribution
channels like Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, and over. Also, it offers video
podcast hosting and you can use the service to republish your episodes on
YouTube. You will need to upgrade to a Growth Plan at $ 49 per month. To gain
access to video file hosting and advanced analytics, you’ll need to sign up for a Pro
plan, which costs 99 $per month.
Libsyn: A top podcast site for monetization and branding. Libsyn is one of the
most popular podcast platforms for monetizing your episodes, featuring features like double opt-in ads and premium payouts. Live Sign provides a fast and
experienced customer service team. This podcast hosting platform even offers a
service that lets you create a customized podcast app for iOS or Android devices.
All plans come with unlimited bandwidth. Pricing largely depends on the monthly
storage you need. For just 5-5 per month, you can get 50MB of storage. Plans to
increase your storage can go up to 15 $, 20 $, and 40 $ per month.
Simplecast: One of the best podcast services in the industry, empowering top
brands. Simplecast is a popular podcast hosting platform that powers a lot of big-
name brands like Nike, Kickstarter, Facebook, and Shopify. Another standout
feature is the ability to add multiple team members to one account, making
collaboration easier. All plans come with unlimited storage. Simplecast costs 15 $
for 20,000 downloads per month, 35 $ for 50,000 downloads per month and 85 $
for 120,000 downloads per month.
Audioboom: A low-cost podcast hosting platform for individual podcasters.
Audioboom is a podcast hosting site that provides a suite of quality tools. The
service allows you to distribute your episodes across platforms such as Apple
Podcast, iHeartRadio, Spotify, and Google Podcast. A standout feature on social
media accounts is the ability to collaborate with a co-host or invite others to help
you run your podcast. Once your podcast has grown to over 10,000 per episode,
AudioBoom will help you monetize your content with dynamic advertising and
sponsorship opportunities. Plans start at 9.99 per month and include unlimited
uploads and up to 10,000 plays per month. If you’ve already received more than
10,000 plays per episode, you’ll need to reach out to AudioBoom to get a custom
price quote.
SoundCloud: A top podcast hosting platform with a huge base of listeners.
SoundCloud is not just a podcast hosting service. It is also a popular streaming
platform used by more than 175 million unique listeners every month. It is so
popular that 12 minutes of content is uploaded to the platform every minute.
SoundCloud’s embeddable audio player lets you share and display your podcast
episodes on your website and social media. A unique feature is the time
comments. This allows listeners to attach their comments to specific parts of the
audio clip. This free podcast hosting site allows you to upload up to three hours of
audio, access statistics, and use an embeddable audio player. However, most
features are only available in payment plans, starting at 12$ per month.
