You’ve probably heard someone say: “I was listening to this podcast yesterday…”
Maybe it was a two-hour conversation with a celebrity. Maybe it was a ten-minute daily news update. Maybe someone spent six episodes investigating a crime that happened 30 years ago.
All of those can be podcasts.
Podcasting has grown into a huge part of how people consume news, entertainment, education, and conversations. You can find podcasts about almost anything—business, sports, comedy, history, technology, relationships, true crime, money, movies, science, and thousands of incredibly specific subjects.
But if you’ve never listened to one before, the whole thing can seem a little confusing.
What exactly is a podcast? How does it work? And how is it different from radio or YouTube?
Let’s start with the basics.
What Is a Podcast?
A podcast is a digital program made up of episodes that people can usually listen to whenever they want.
Think of it a little like an on-demand radio show. Instead of turning on the radio at a particular time and hearing whatever happens to be playing, you choose a podcast and select the episode you want.
You can start it now.
Pause after ten minutes.
Continue tomorrow.
Or download an episode and listen while you’re offline.
Most podcasts are primarily audio, although video podcasting has become increasingly common.
A podcast can also be almost any length. One show might publish five-minute episodes every morning. Another might release three-hour interviews once a week.
There isn’t one format that every podcast has to follow. That’s part of what makes podcasting interesting.
How Does a Podcast Work?
The technical side can sound more complicated than it really is. A podcaster records an episode and uploads it to a podcast hosting service.
The hosting service stores the audio files and usually creates something called an RSS feed.
The RSS feed contains information about the podcast and its episodes. That can include the podcast name, description, artwork, episode titles, publication dates, descriptions, and links to the audio files.
The creator can then submit that RSS feed to podcast directories and listening services.
When a new episode is published, the feed updates. Podcast apps can detect the new episode and make it available to listeners.
This means a creator generally doesn’t need to manually upload the same audio file to every traditional podcast directory each week. The RSS feed does much of the work.
Where Can You Listen to Podcasts?
There are many ways to listen. Popular podcast destinations include Apple Podcasts and Spotify, while podcasts can also be found through services such as Amazon Music, Pocket Casts, and other podcast apps.
YouTube has also become an important part of podcasting, particularly as video podcasts have grown.
You don’t need to use every platform. Choose whichever app you prefer, search for a podcast, select an episode, and press Play.
Most podcast apps also let you follow shows. Following a podcast makes it easier to find new episodes when they’re released.
It’s similar to subscribing to a YouTube channel, although the exact features and terminology can vary between services.
Are Podcasts Free?
Many podcasts are completely free to listen to. Creators can make money through advertising, sponsorships, affiliate marketing, donations, products, services, and other methods while keeping normal episodes free.
Some podcasts also offer paid subscriptions.
For example, the main show might be free while paying subscribers receive bonus episodes, early access, ad-free listening, or other extras. Other creators may put certain content entirely behind a subscription.
So you can spend years listening to podcasts without paying anything, but paid podcast content exists too.
What Are the Different Types of Podcasts?
Podcasts come in several common formats.
One of the simplest is the solo podcast.
One person talks directly to the audience. This works well for educational content, commentary, news, personal stories, and expert advice.
Then there are interview podcasts.
The host brings in different guests and asks questions. These shows can cover everything from entrepreneurship to comedy.
Co-hosted podcasts have two or more regular hosts.
The chemistry between those people can become as important as the actual subject.
There are also narrative podcasts.
These tell stories using narration, interviews, music, sound design, research, and other production techniques.
True crime and investigative journalism have made this format particularly well known.
Some podcasts combine several formats.
There are no podcast police telling you what your show has to look like.
What Is a Video Podcast?
A video podcast includes a visual version of the conversation or program. You may have seen these online. Two people sit across a table with microphones and cameras recording them.
The full conversation is then published as a video while an audio version may also be distributed through podcast apps. Video can give creators more content to work with.
A single interview could become a full podcast episode, a YouTube video, several Shorts or Reels, and social media clips.
But video also creates more work.You need to think about cameras, lighting, storage, editing, backgrounds, and how everyone looks on screen.
Audio-only podcasting remains perfectly valid. You don’t need cameras simply because other podcasters have them.
Podcast vs. Radio: What’s the Difference?
Podcasts and radio have plenty in common. Both can feature hosts, interviews, news, stories, comedy, advertisements, and music where the appropriate rights exist.
The biggest difference is how the listener gets the content. Traditional radio is broadcast according to a schedule.
If a program starts at 8 a.m., you generally need to tune in around that time to hear it live. Podcasts are primarily on demand.
An episode released Tuesday morning can still be waiting for you Friday night. Podcasts are also less limited by geography.
A traditional FM station generally broadcasts to a particular geographic area. A podcast published online can potentially reach listeners around the world.
Modern radio stations also stream online and publish programs as podcasts, so the two formats increasingly overlap.
How Do Podcasters Make Money?
Podcast advertising is probably the monetization method most listeners recognize.
You hear:
“This episode is brought to you by…”
A company has paid for exposure to the podcast’s audience. But advertising isn’t the only way podcasters make money.
Creators may use affiliate links, paid memberships, premium episodes, listener donations, merchandise, live events, courses, books, consulting, or other products and services.
Some podcasters use their shows mainly to grow another business.
Imagine a marketing consultant with a podcast about small-business marketing.
The podcast itself might not make much money from ads. But if listeners eventually hire the host for consulting, the show can still be extremely valuable. The podcast builds trust and demonstrates expertise.
What Equipment Do You Need to Start a Podcast?
You can spend thousands of dollars building a podcast studio. You don’t have to. A beginner can start with a computer, headphones, recording software, and a decent USB microphone. The room matters too.
Recording with an inexpensive microphone in a quiet bedroom with soft furniture can sometimes produce better results than using an expensive microphone in a huge empty room.
You can improve your setup later. Buy better microphones. Add an audio interface. Install acoustic treatment. Add cameras. Get better lighting. But don’t make equipment an excuse for never starting.
Listeners care much more about whether your podcast is interesting and understandable.
How Do You Start a Podcast?
Start with the idea.
What is your show about?
Then get more specific.
“Business” is incredibly broad.
“Stories from people who built businesses with less than $1,000” is much clearer.
Think about who the podcast is for and why they would listen.
Then choose your format.
Will you host alone?
Interview guests?
Have a co-host?
Tell researched stories?
Once you’ve decided, choose your equipment, recording software, and podcast hosting service.
Create your podcast name and cover art.
Record your first few episodes.
Edit them.
Write titles and descriptions.
Then publish the podcast and submit its RSS feed to the major directories that make sense for your audience.
After that comes the difficult part:
Keep going.
Why Are Podcasts So Popular?
Convenience is a big reason. You can listen while doing something else.
- Driving.
- Walking.
- Cooking.
- Cleaning.
- Working out.
Podcasts don’t always demand your eyes the way video does. There’s also depth.
A television interview might give someone five minutes. A podcast can give them two hours. That allows conversations to go somewhere.
Listeners can hear the context, stories, mistakes, disagreements, and little details that disappear when everything has to fit into a short segment.
And because anyone can start a podcast, listeners aren’t limited to subjects traditional media companies think are big enough to cover.
There’s probably a podcast for whatever you’re interested in.
Final Thoughts
A podcast is an on-demand digital show made up of individual episodes, usually distributed online through podcast apps and platforms.
Most traditional podcasts use an RSS feed to send new episodes from a podcast host to listening services.
Podcasts can be short or long. They can be audio or video. They can have one host, five hosts, or a different guest every week.
They can teach, entertain, investigate, tell stories, report news, or simply let interesting people have long conversations.
And starting one doesn’t require a professional radio studio. That’s one of the things that made podcasting so powerful. Almost anyone can create a show. Almost anyone in the world can potentially listen.
A podcast is simply a way to package ideas, stories, and conversations into episodes people can enjoy whenever they’re ready to press Play.