how to podcast.
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A little help finding your next step

What are you working on?

A few good places to start.

Start hereWhat is a podcast?A plain-English definition: episodes, the RSS feed, subscriptions and how a podcast differs from a video or a radio show.Start hereA short history of podcastingFrom RSS enclosures in 2000 to iTunes support in 2005, the long quiet years, Serial and the video-podcast era.Start hereSeven reasons to create your own podcastWhy people start shows: expertise, community, a voice, teaching, business, creative practice and long-lived archives.PlanHow to podcast: the four PsThe whole process in four stages: plan, produce, publish and promote. Start here if you want the map before the steps.

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Publish

GUIDE 15 OF 17

Uploading your podcast and submitting the feed

Upload an episode, check the RSS feed, add artwork, and submit the show to Apple Podcasts, Spotify and other apps.

Updated

With an episode exported and a host chosen, publishing takes three steps: set up the show, upload the episode, and submit the feed to podcast apps. You only submit once; after that, new episodes appear automatically.

1. Set up your show

Your host asks for the show-level details that go at the top of your RSS feed:

  • Title: your show’s name, without keyword stuffing.
  • Description: who it’s for and what they’ll get, in a few sentences.
  • Category and subcategory, chosen from the standard podcast list.
  • Language, and whether the show is explicit.
  • Author and an owner email, which apps may use to verify you own the feed.
  • Artwork (below).

Cover artwork

Apple’s podcast requirements ask for square artwork between 1400 × 1400 and 3000 × 3000 pixels, as a JPEG or PNG in the RGB colour space. Using 3000 × 3000 pixels satisfies every major app. Keep the design bold and readable at thumbnail size: the show name in large type and one strong image.

2. Upload an episode

  1. Upload the MP3 you exported from Audacity.
  2. Give it a clear title. Put the episode number in the episode-number field rather than the title if your host has one.
  3. Paste your show notes into the description.
  4. Set the episode type (full, trailer or bonus), season if you use them, and the explicit flag.
  5. Publish now or schedule it. Your host adds the episode to your feed.

Launch with a trailer or two or three episodes. New listeners who like the first episode want another one straight away.

3. Check your feed

Find your RSS feed address in your host’s settings; it usually ends in .xml or /rss. Before submitting, make sure it includes your artwork, category, language, explicit flag and at least one episode with an audio enclosure. Paste the feed into our RSS feed checker to test the tags apps rely on.

4. Submit your feed to podcast apps

DirectoryHow to submit
Apple PodcastsSign in to Apple Podcasts Connect with an Apple Account, add a show by its RSS feed URL, and submit it for review. Review can take a few days.
SpotifyClaim your show in Spotify for Creators by adding your RSS feed and verifying the owner email.
YouTubeIn YouTube Studio, you can add a podcast by RSS feed in supported regions, or upload video episodes directly.
Other appsMany apps (Pocket Casts, Overcast, Castro and others) find shows through open podcast directories. Submitting to Apple and the open Podcast Index covers most of them.

Many hosts can submit to these directories for you with a few clicks. Either way, keep a note of each directory login: you’ll need them to update details or move hosts.

After you publish

  • Search for your show in each app and subscribe to it yourself, to confirm new episodes arrive.
  • Share the app links, not the raw feed URL, with listeners.
  • Never delete and resubmit a feed to fix a mistake; edit it at your host instead.

Next: writing show notes.