How to make a video podcast (even if you only record audio)

A few years ago a podcast was an MP3 file. Now a large share of people find shows on YouTube, Spotify plays video for hundreds of thousands of them, and Apple Podcasts has added its own video player. That doesn’t mean you need a studio. There are three ways to make a video podcast, and one of them needs no camera at all. This guide covers all three, the gear for a simple one- or two-person setup, how to edit and export, and where to publish so you keep your audio listeners too.

Why video podcasts matter now

• YouTube is a podcast app. In February 2025 YouTube said more than a billion people a month watch podcast content there, and US surveys have ranked it the most used podcast platform. Many new listeners search YouTube first.
• Spotify pushes video. By late 2025 Spotify reported nearly half a million video podcasts, watched by more than 390 million users, and its Partner Program pays eligible creators for video plays in supported countries.
• Apple added video. In February 2026 Apple announced a new video experience in Apple Podcasts using HLS streaming, delivered through participating hosting providers, so viewers can switch between watching and listening.

Video also helps people discover you. A ten-second clip of two people laughing travels further on social media than a waveform. But most podcast listening is still done with the screen off, during commutes, chores and workouts. So the goal is a show that works as video and as audio, not a video that only makes sense if you watch it.

Three ways to make a video podcast

You can mix them. Many shows publish the full episode on YouTube as video, keep the audio feed for podcast apps, and cut clips from the same recording. If you’re just starting, try the visuals-over-audio route for your first few episodes and move to cameras once the show itself is working.

Option 1: full video, the gear and setup

Sound still matters more than picture. Viewers forgive soft focus; they leave when they can’t hear you. Get your podcast setup and microphone right first, then add cameras.

Cameras

• A phone you already own is the best first camera. Use the rear camera, not the selfie one: it’s sharper and handles low light better. Mount it on a cheap tripod with a phone clamp, set it to 1080p at 30 frames per second, lock focus and exposure on your face, and turn on Do Not Disturb.
• A webcam is fine for solo shows recorded at a desk. Pick one that does 1080p and set exposure manually if its software allows.
• A mirrorless camera with a clean HDMI output gives the softest backgrounds, but check its recording limit and whether it overheats on long takes. Many need a dummy battery for hour-long recordings.

Record in 1080p. 4K looks great but quadruples file sizes and editing load, and almost nobody watches a podcast in 4K. The exception: a 4K recording of a wide two-shot lets you crop in to each person in the edit, which gives you “two cameras” from one.

Framing for one or two people

• Eye level: put the lens at eye height, or very slightly above. A laptop camera looking up your nose is the most common mistake.
• Head and shoulders: leave a little space above the head and frame from about mid-chest up. Sit slightly off-centre, facing the lens or your co-host.
• Mics in shot are fine. A broadcast-style dynamic mic on an arm, a fist’s width from your mouth, looks professional and sounds better than hiding a mic out of frame.
• Two people, three angles: one camera on each person, angled about 30 degrees from where the other sits, plus a wide shot of both. With only two cameras, use one wide and one roaming; with one camera, go wide in 4K and crop later.

Lighting

1. Face a window or put your main light (the “key light”) about 45 degrees to one side and a little above eye level. A large, soft light is more flattering than a small, bright one, so bounce a lamp off a wall or use a softbox or LED panel with a diffuser.
2. Fill the shadow side with a second, weaker light or a white surface such as a foam board.
3. Separate yourself from the background with a small lamp behind you, or a light on the wall. A dark figure against a dark wall looks flat.
4. Match colour temperatures. Don’t mix warm bulbs with blue daylight on the same face. Turn off overhead lights, which cast shadows under the eyes.

The room and background

The recording-location advice still applies: a small, soft room sounds best. On camera, add depth by sitting a metre or more away from the wall, and put two or three meaningful objects behind you (books, a plant, something about your topic). Keep it tidy and keep it the same every episode so the show is recognisable in a thumbnail.

Recording the video

• Record audio separately. Feed the microphones into an interface or recorder and record the audio in Audacity or a recorder, even if the cameras also record sound. The camera audio is your sync reference and backup.
• Clap at the start. One sharp clap in view of every camera gives you a spike in the audio and a frame to line everything up.
• Remote guests: browser recording studios record each person’s video and audio locally and upload it, which avoids the blur and glitches of a recorded video call. See how to record a podcast remotely.
• Check space and battery. An hour of 1080p from a phone can use several gigabytes. Plug cameras into power where you can.

A simple two-person kit

Option 2: audio-only shows, visuals without a camera

If you’d rather not be on camera, you don’t have to film anything. Video platforms need a picture, not necessarily your face, and plenty of popular narrative, educational and solo shows publish this way. The visual’s job is to make the episode easy to recognise and pleasant to leave open, while the audio does the work.

• A still cover image. The simplest version: your show artwork, or an episode-specific image with the title, for the whole episode. This is what YouTube creates automatically if you add your podcast to YouTube by RSS feed, where that option is available.
• An audiogram. A waveform or progress bar that moves with the voice, over your artwork, often with captions. It shows that something is happening without pretending to be footage.
• An animated cover and chapter visuals. One still image can feel flat over a 40-minute episode, so some audio-first shows use image to video AI to bring that cover or a few photos to life with slow camera moves for the intro or chapter breaks, while the voices stay exactly as recorded. A history show might animate an old map for each new chapter; a cooking show, a photo of the dish. Keep the motion slow and loop-friendly, and change the image at each chapter so viewers scrubbing the timeline can see where the topic shifts.
• Slides or screen recordings. For teaching shows, put the key points, diagrams or the software you’re discussing on screen as you mention them.

A few rules keep this honest and safe. Only animate photos you own or have permission to use, ask guests before you animate their picture, and don’t generate realistic footage of real people saying or doing things they didn’t. If a visual is AI-generated, say so in the description; YouTube asks creators to disclose realistic altered or synthetic content. Make sure any music under the visuals is licensed for video as well as audio; see free podcast intro music.

Option 3: clips only

You can keep your show audio-only and still use video to find listeners. After each episode, pick three to five moments of 30 to 60 seconds that make sense on their own: a strong opinion, a surprising fact, a funny exchange. Cut them vertically (9:16) for Shorts, Reels and TikTok, add burned-in captions because most people scroll with the sound off, and end with the show name and where to listen. If you filmed nothing, use the audiogram or animated-cover approach above. More on using clips to grow is in how to grow a podcast audience.

Editing a video podcast

1. Sync everything. Bring the clean audio and every camera file into a video editor and line them up on the clap. Free editors such as DaVinci Resolve, Shotcut or iMovie handle this; many have an automatic “sync by audio” option.
2. Edit for the conversation first. Cut mistakes and long tangents once, on the audio and picture together, so both versions stay identical. If you prefer to edit sound in Audacity, finish the audio there first and then cut the video to match it.
3. Switch angles with purpose. Show whoever is talking, cut to the listener for a reaction, and go wide for laughter and crosstalk. Don’t switch every two seconds.
4. Make it work without the picture. Avoid “as you can see” moments. If you show something, describe it out loud, because many people will only hear the episode.
5. Add the basics: a short title card or cold open, lower-third name captions for guests, and chapter markers. Keep the intro under 30 seconds; viewers drop off fast on long animated openers.

Export settings

Video files are much larger than MP3s. If you’re thinking about serving video through your RSS feed, use the podcast file size calculator to compare an audio episode’s size and bandwidth with your host’s limits.

Publishing: YouTube, Spotify, Apple and RSS

Video podcasts are less standardised than audio ones. The audio RSS feed reaches every app; video goes to each platform in its own way.

Support changes quickly, so check your podcast host’s current video options before you choose one. For most small shows the practical setup is: the audio feed to every app, as in uploading and submitting your podcast, plus video uploaded directly to YouTube and, if your host doesn’t send it, to Spotify.

Make the YouTube version findable

• Titles are for search, not inside jokes: say what the episode is about, and put a guest’s name in if people will look for them.
• Thumbnails need faces or one big idea, with no more than three or four large words. They’re seen at a tiny size, like your cover art.
• Add chapters by listing timestamps in the description, starting at 0:00. They come straight from your show notes.
• Upload captions or correct the automatic ones, especially names and jargon.

Questions people ask

Do I need video to start a podcast?

No. An audio show reaches every podcast app, and you can add video later. Many successful shows are audio only, or publish a still image on YouTube.

What’s the cheapest way to make a video podcast?

Use the phones you already have as cameras, face a window for light, record clean audio with a USB microphone, and edit in a free editor such as DaVinci Resolve or Shotcut. Or skip cameras and publish your audio over artwork.

Should I put video in my RSS feed?

Usually not as your main feed. Audio-only apps and listeners on mobile data don’t want gigabyte-sized episodes. Keep the main feed audio, and send video to YouTube, Spotify and Apple in the ways each one supports.

How long should a video podcast be?

The same rules apply as for audio: as long as the content stays good. See how long a podcast should be. On video, a tight first two minutes matters even more, because viewers decide fast.

Can I use AI-generated visuals?

Yes, for backgrounds, covers and scene-setting, as long as you have the rights to any images you start from, you don’t fake real people, and you follow each platform’s disclosure rules for realistic synthetic content.

Next: plan how you’ll grow your audience with clips, or go back to uploading and submitting your podcast.