Choosing which podcast provider to go with is a big decision. If you’re looking for a hosting platform that can help you manage your podcast files and grow your audience, check out these top podcast hosting platforms!
Blubrry
- Cost: $10 per month and goes up to $100 per month
- Storage Limits: 100 MB up to 1000 MB
- Download Limits: Unlimited
- Best Used For: Small publishers
Blubrry is an excellent choice for new podcasters because it offers podcast hosting, podcast statistics, and a free (optional) WordPress website with each account. Its PowerPress plugin through WordPress allows you to create, upload, and publish your podcast within minutes and submit it to major outlets like Apple Podcasts and Google Podcasts.
Blubrry is ideal for small publishers because of its small storage limits, simple interface, and fast speed for uploading and publishing episodes. Blubrry’s powerful podcasting analytics can tell you accurate download totals, trending hourly data, geographic locations of your audience, and traffic sources to determine your podcast’s overall performance. Best of all, you can find monetization options like ad insertion and social sharing features that allow your podcast to get in front of more people!
BuzzSprout
- Cost: Free, $12, $18, $24
- Storage Limits: Unlimited storage with paid plans
- Download Limits: 250 GB per month
- Best Used For: Small publishers
BuzzSprout is a great option for anyone looking to save a few dollars upfront! This platform has both free and paid options, and the only thing that changes for the paid options is how many hours of content you can upload per month. Known for its simplicity and speed, BuzzSprout is a good podcast provider for new podcasters because it has an easy-to-use dashboard and powerful features that give you everything you need to run a good podcast. All you have to do is upload your media file, and BuzzSprout will submit your uploaded episodes to top podcast directories like Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google Podcasts, Stitcher, and more!
The platform also has ad capabilities that allow you to have up-to-date and relevant ads during the beginning or end of existing podcast episodes. With BuzzSprout’s Affiliate Marketplace, you can partner with other brands, and each podcast can receive up to 15% of ad money from the total purchase. BuzzSprout also offers chapter markers giving listeners the ability to go back and listen to a particular part of the podcast. And if you’re looking for more ways to improve your podcast, BuzzSprout has a podcast transcripting service, which comes with an additional cost of $.25/minute.
Castos
- Cost: $19 per month and goes up to $499 per month
- Storage Limits: Unlimited
- Download Limits: Unlimited
- Best Used For: Large publishers
Castos is a hosting platform that’s perfect for larger publishers who offer both public and private podcasts. Castos is ideal for large publishers because you’ll never run out of storage or bandwidth, and you get more features with this platform to help grow your audience. On top of that, the service offers both a Seriously Simple Podcasting WordPress plugin that allows you to upload episodes to your website, create multiple feeds, and look through listener analytics. There’s also an integrated YouTube republishing option that converts audio files into videos for your channel!
With Castos, you can create a customizable podcast webpage that can act as your show’s home base, get a full transcript of each episode, and even view podcast analytics directly on the platform to help you learn more about your audience and see which episodes are performing well. And if you’re producing a lot of content, Castos offers a podcast editing service for $200/episode that can ease the work of production for podcasters.
Libsyn
- Cost: $5 per month and goes up to $40 per month
- Storage Limits: 50 MB up to 800 MB
- Download Limits: Unlimited
- Best Used For: Small publishers and large publishers
If you’re looking for a reliable, highly-respected podcast host, Libsyn is a perfect choice. The hosting platform launched in 2004 and is considered to be one of the first podcast hosting platforms created. It offers monetization tools that allow you to manage premium subscriptions and advertising, while still making the process of uploading individual episode simple. Users get unlimited download limits, the ability to publish podcasts nearly anywhere, monetization options, detailed analytics, and the ability to create a custom smartphone app for your podcast!
Best of all, you can connect to your audience anywhere through Libsyn’s compatible RSS feed and OnPublish feature, which publishes your podcast to audiences on Spotify, Pandora, Apple, and more. For an additional cost, Libsyn allows you to create a custom iOS and Android app for your podcast and will work with you through the app build process. And to keep your website up-to-date, you can simply embed the mobile-friendly Libsyn player so listeners who come to your site will never miss an episode!
Podbean
- Cost: Free, $9 per month and goes up to $99 per month
- Storage Limits: Unlimited
- Download Limits: Unlimited
- Best Used For: Small publishers, businesses, and large publishers
For publishers that post often, Podbean is going to be the best bet! This platform is a great springboard for small publishers because of its numerous features, but large publishers and major corporations can take advantage of the enterprise platform that makes creating and sharing a business podcast easy. What helps make Podbean a great solution is its direct video upload features, live stream capabilities, and integrated monetization tools that can help you earn money through sponsorships on your podcast.
Podbean gives you all the tools you need to manage a podcast like unlimited hosting and easy publishing features. This platform can also help you get your podcast in front of new listeners through its podcast distribution process, which publishes your show on every major podcasting platform. Additionally, Podbean offers analytics that can be used to share with potential advertisers or partners. You can analyze downloads and trends, listener geographies, and user retention to determine how your podcast is performing.
Want to start a podcast? Looking to grow your current podcast? Hurrdat Media offers podcast production, hosting, advertising, and more! Learn more about our podcast services and join our media network today!