My quest for the best podcast app

The Problem

I listen to 10-20 hours of audio content per week. So, it’s only reasonable that I invest time in finding a good app that makes the listening experience better and helps me be more productive.

I have long been a user of Pocket Casts (with its Plus plan). The main selling point of Pocket Casts for me was its folders and bookmarks. Overall it is a very decent app, but it lacks some features, such as the ability to search for a keyword in all the episodes of subscribed shows. You can only search show by show, and given that I am subscribed to over 230 shows, that’s just not feasible. It provides a transcript feature that is based on the Podcasting 2.0 Transcript tag, meaning it relies on the creators manually providing a transcript, which most creators do not. So the vast majority of podcasts currently don’t have transcripts available on Pocket Casts; automatic generation of transcripts is not available.

Here is a list of features I wanted in my ideal podcast app:

• Organize subscribed shows into categories (e.g., using folders or tags).
• Search for episode keywords within a specific show.
  • I assumed this was a standard feature, but Apple Podcasts proved me wrong.
• Search for episode keywords across all subscribed shows.
• Clip-sharing with others, even if they don’t use the same app.
• Import podcasts easily from another player (e.g., via OPML).
  • Again, I was surprised that Apple Podcasts lacks standard OPML import/export functionality.
• Support for multiple queues or playlists, beyond just a single “up next” list.
• Bookmarks for marking interesting points in an episode, ideally with notes/comments.
• Episode transcripts (either via Podcasting 2.0 tag or auto-generated).
• Detailed listening statistics (e.g., listening time per week, most listened-to shows per month).
• (Price is, of course, always a factor, but given how much value I get from podcasts—and since most apps offer free tiers with optional premium features—this was a secondary consideration.)

Clearly, this is a demanding list, and not every feature is a must-have. I also haven’t listed the very basic features that virtually every podcast app includes, like custom playback speed or adding shows via RSS URL. Below, I will discuss the relative importance (weight) I assigned to each desired feature.

Testing Setup

So, in early 2025, about a month before my Pocket Casts Plus yearly subscription was due to renew, I went on a hunt for the best podcast-listening app out there for iOS. To my surprise, there aren’t that many contenders.

On Reddit (across different subreddits), there seems to be a strong consensus that Podcast Addict is the best podcast app overall. Unfortunately, it is Android-only, so it wasn’t an option for me. Beyond that, opinions (on Reddit and elsewhere) are very mixed. I had to test the apps myself to find out.

I selected various apps based on online recommendations and App Store searches. I initially downloaded and briefly evaluated (at least) the following apps:

• Pocket Casts (My baseline app)
• Overcast
• Castro
• Downcast
• Snipd
• Apple Podcasts
• Spotify
• Audible
• Amazon Music
• RSSRadio
• Fountain
• Podurama
• Podcat
• Podimo
• Castbox
• Podbean
• Podger
• Kasey Podcast
• Luminary
• Podcast Republic

Testing Details

Some apps from the initial list were quickly eliminated due to obvious omissions of key features (a lack of folders/tags was often the easiest deal-breaker to spot). After this first pass, I shortlisted the following apps for more detailed testing:

• Pocket Casts
• Overcast
• Apple Podcasts
• RSSRadio
• Fountain
• Podurama

I used each of these six apps as my primary podcast player for at least a week. I imported all my (230+) podcast subscriptions via OPML into each app, where supported. (As mentioned, Apple Podcasts lacks OPML import, so I manually added only my most frequently listened-to shows, not the full 230+ list).

An obvious winner didn’t immediately emerge. Each app had significant strengths and weaknesses relative to my criteria. It became clear I likely wouldn’t find one perfect app with every feature exactly as I wanted. Therefore, I decided to perform a quantitative comparison.

For each desired feature, I rated its implementation in each app on a scale of 0-10 (where 0 means absent or unusable, and 10 means perfectly implemented for my needs). I also assigned a weight to each feature (0.0-1.0 scale) based on its importance to me. For more details on why I gave a specific score, hover/tap on the numbers in the table below.

Feature	Feature importance (weight) (0.0-1.0)	Pocket Casts (0-10)	Fountain (0-10)	Apple Podcasts (0-10)	Podurama (0-10)	RSS Radio (0-10)	Overcast (0-10)
Folders/Organization	0.8 High importance	8 Allows fully custom order of folders.	8 Has tags. Does not allow custom order.	0	9 Has tags. Allows limited custom order.	8 Has tags.	0
Playlists / Multiple Queues	0.5 Medium importance	0	8	0	10 Provides this feature better than rivals.	5 Kinda has this feature. Adding to queue automatically adds to a playlist corresponding to the primary category of the show.	10 Provides this feature better than rivals.
Clip-sharing	0.5 Medium importance	8 Some hiccups and performance issues	10 Provides this feature better than rivals.	0	0	0	5 Max 1.5 minutes.
Bookmarks	0.7 High importance	10	3 No bookmarks. Workaround with clips (all your clips are saved in app).	0	10	0	0
Transcripts	0.4 Medium importance	0	9 Premium-only	10 Provides this feature better than rivals.	0	0	0
Search within one show	1.0 High importance	10	5 Only episode titles (not description)	0	10	10	10
Search within all subscribed shows	0.8 High importance	0	4 Only episode titles. Search also does not show older episodes for some reason	10	0	4 Feature available but search is painfully slow if you have a large number of subscribed podcasts	10
Listening stats	0.2 Low importance	3 Only basic (not by show)	0	0	3 Only basic (not by show)	3 Only basic (not by show)	10 Premium-only feature. Seems very detailed.
Premium price (annual value) Checked from Germany. A higher score indicates better value, meaning a lower price or more free features.	0.2 Low importance	2 45€	3 36€	10 Free	3 35€	9 3€	7 18€
Total weighted score	-	28.4	29.9	14.0	30.4	24.5	28.9
Total unweighted score	-	41	50	30	45	39	52

“Total unweighted score” is the simple sum of the scores for each feature (maximum possible is 90 based on 9 features listed). “Total weighted score” is the more important metric for my decision; it’s calculated by multiplying each feature’s score by its assigned importance weight, and then summing these products.

While this isn’t the most rigorous quantitative analysis possible, it served its purpose well by providing a structured comparison based on my priorities (high value-to-time-invested ratio). The scores and weights are subjective; I experimented with adjusting them slightly based on my perceptions, but the overall ranking didn’t change significantly.

Based on the weighted scores, Podurama comes out on top for my specific needs:

1. Podurama (30.4)
2. Fountain (29.9)
3. Overcast (28.9)
4. Pocket Casts (28.4)
5. RSS Radio (24.5)
6. Apple Podcasts (14.0)

However, the scores for the top four apps are very close to each other, indicating that the decision wasn’t clear-cut and involved trade-offs.

Podurama

Main Positives:

• Offers a ton of options and settings: highly customizable launch screen, ability to set different settings per show, bulk editing of episodes, etc.
• Provides multiple ways to learn about an episode before listening (AI-generated insights, chapters, snippets). The “Popular” episodes section within shows can sometimes aid discovery.
• Includes a web app (I haven’t used it extensively, but its availability is a plus for some users).

Main Negatives:

• No clip-sharing functionality.
• Does not support searching within episodes across all subscribed shows.

Podurama is big on machine learning; it offers various “AI features” such as podcast summaries, AI-generated chapters, and episode trailers/snippets. However, I personally don’t find such features so useful.

Fountain

This was probably the least-known app among my shortlist.

Main Positives:

• The clip-sharing feature is outstanding (rated 10/10). It’s easy to use and share, even with people not using Fountain.
• Transcripts are generally very good. Seem to be using an advanced ML model.

Main Negatives:

• Transcript text cannot be copied (a drawback for quoting or saving snippets).
• Search within a show is limited to episode titles only; it does not search descriptions or show notes. This is a considerable deficit for my search-heavy workflow.
• No dedicated bookmarking feature. While creating clips serves as a workaround (saved clips act like bookmarks), it’s slower and less convenient than a dedicated bookmark button (hence the 3/10 score).
• Occasional performance issues (freezing/slowing during search), though infrequent enough not to be a deal-breaker.
• Timestamps in show notes are not clickable. This is a major nuisance, as many podcasts use show note timestamps for navigation instead of formal chapter markers.
• Lacks customization for the order of shows/episodes on the main screen (shows are sorted alphabetically, episodes by recency), rendering the launch screen less useful for prioritizing content.
• Incomplete show notes observed for some episodes (text gets truncated).
• Lacks advanced playback features like silence skipping (“Smart Speed” in Overcast) and volume boost.
• Sometimes fails to pause playback via headphone controls.
• No OPML export option, making it difficult to switch away from Fountain in the future.
• No web app.

Brief Notes on the Remaining Runners-Up

Based on my criteria:

• Pocket Casts: Its primary strength remains its intuitive show organization via folders. The smooth drag-and-drop interface allows full customization of show order within folders. Its bookmarking is excellent (10/10). However, its lack of global search and auto-generated transcripts were major drawbacks for me.
• Overcast: Stands out for its minimalistic design, high performance, excellent global search (10/10), and valuable playback features like Smart Speed and Voice Boost (reflected partly in the Price/Value score, as these are free). Its lack of folder organization (0/10) and basic bookmarking were key weaknesses for me. Its playlist implementation is strong (10/10).
• Apple Podcasts: It is, well, Apple Podcasts. It is a first-party app that comes pre-installed on Apple devices. If you like Apple’s approach to doing things (privacy, etc.), this app might be for you. It offers excellent global search (10/10) and widely available transcripts (10/10). However, it severely lacks organizational features (no folders - 0/10), offers no OPML import/export, and has minimal queue/playlist management (0/10).

Conclusion

After this extensive testing, I have switched to Podurama as my primary podcast app. However, the fact that this detailed analysis was necessary, and the closeness of the scores, highlight that there is no perfect podcast app, at least for my specific needs.

I’ve actually settled on a multi-app system, keeping several apps on my phone to leverage the strengths of each:

• Podurama: My main app for daily listening, chosen for its excellent organization (folders - 9/10), good bookmarking (10/10), and customization options.
• Fountain: Used specifically when I want to create and share audio clips with others.
• Overcast: Kept primarily for its powerful keyword search across all episodes of my subscribed shows (10/10), a feature Podurama lacks. Its Smart Speed is also beneficial.
• Apple Podcasts: Used mainly for its high-quality transcript feature (10/10) or for browsing Apple’s unique podcast charts and recommendations.

This fragmented approach isn’t ideal, but it’s the best way I’ve found to access the features I value most. Maybe an app will improve to combine all these strengths one day. Maybe they won’t, so I might even consider building my own podcast app at some point to finally get everything I want in one place.