How To Listen To Podcasts Without Using Data

Podcasts are everywhere, these days, and at that place are so many topics to choose from. In recent years the quality has risen dramatically, every bit the podcasting space has grown up. Many people still can't quite figure out how to listen to podcasts, though.

That's where nosotros come in! Hither nosotros look at the different means that yous can mind to a podcast, from smartphone to smart speaker, and everything in betwixt.

Read more than of our Listener'southward Guide to Podcasting.

How to Heed to a Podcast on your Smartphone

The about convenient manner to listen to a podcast, long term, is through your smartphone. Practically every device on the market has at least one style to listen, and nigh phones have many! And so, if y'all accept a smartphone in your pocket, you already have an ideal podcast listening platform right there.

iPhone Podcast Apps

If you've got an iPhone, and so you have a head-kickoff, considering iOS comes with a podcast app built-in. Just await effectually your apps for ane called Apple Podcasts (or swipe downwards and search for information technology). It's a bully app for the average listener, assuasive y'all to search the directory, find new shows and subscribe easily. Then, you simply accept to fire up the app each fourth dimension you desire to listen, and pick an episode for the day!

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Alternative apps on iOS include Overcast, Pocketcasts and Spotify, but you lot can see our full guide to Apple Podcast Apps hither.

Android Podcast Apps

Android users have their own podcasting app congenital-in – Google Podcasts – but it'due south far more than limited than Apple tree's offer, and I wouldn't recommend it right now.

Instead, download Pocketcasts, or Castbox and start listening right away. Or, if you lot already use Spotify for music, you tin can get your podcasts on there, as well.

Again, you tin can run into our full guide to Android Podcast Apps correct here.

Headphones for Podcast Listening

Of grade, if you're listening on your smartphone, you'll need a fix of headphones if you ever program to go out the house.

About new smartphones come with a decent ready of earbuds, so that'southward a good first. It's pretty handy having controls on the cable, besides, to outset and stop the show, equally you're listening. Then you won't miss anything when you pull your earbuds out to talk to the friend you bump into in the street.

To go even more than from your favourite shows, it can be worth upgrading to a better gear up of headphones than your standard earbuds. It doesn't need to toll a fortune to get a bang-up set, either. You tin can read most our favourite headphones here. Over-ear headphones are ideal if you'd similar to listen to some immersive audio drama, ASMR, or Binaural Beats.

How to Mind to Podcasts on Your Computer

Listening on your smartphone is definitely the most convenient, long term, considering of how mobile it is. But, technically, the easiest and nearly obvious way to listen to a podcast is to play it directly through your computer.

The downside is that y'all're stuck to your desk, just sometimes that's OK. This can also be a groovy mode to find new shows and become a taster before yous subscribe on your phone.

How does it work? Nearly every podcast has a play function directly on their episode pages. Navigate to the podcast page, look for the play button, and listen.

This is how the Podcraft website on our hosting platform looks. You tin can play direct from in that location, on your computer.

Similarly, you lot tin can play any evidence right within one of the directory apps on your computer. The nigh pop examples are iTunes and Spotify. If you have either app on your estimator, so navigate to the podcast section, browse effectually and hit play.

Fifty-fifty improve, if you lot use the Spotify app to listen on your phone, then the subscription carries right over to that platform. Seamless! Sadly, iTunes and Apple tree Podcasts don't tie up the aforementioned mode.

As long every bit you have speakers or headphones connected upwards, this method of listening to a podcast works a treat. You tin observe a great range of computer speakers on Amazon that'll suit only about any upkeep.

Of course, long term, the disadvantage is that you're stuck sitting in forepart of your computer, which tin be a bit of a chore when it's an hour-long show. Simply, if information technology's a short episode, or you can play the podcast through your PC speakers while doing something else around the business firm. In this instance, this method can be quick and reliable.

How to Listen to Podcasts in the Car

The motorcar is the nigh mutual identify to listen to a podcast, according to the latest podcast stats. Information technology makes sense – it was always a big radio listening infinite, and podcasting is the new radio.

But, how practice you listen to a podcast in the car?

The first pick is via Bluetooth connection. Most modern cars are gear up to connect to your phone so that you tin make hands-gratuitous calls. That same connexion tin besides play audio from your phone. And so, connect via Bluetooth as normal, and then play something from your podcast app. Does it play over the speakers? Great!

No Bluetooth? Go Quondam-School-Cablevision

If that doesn't work, then an even more common automobile characteristic is an 'aux in' or a 'line in' port. It looks just like a headphone jack and all you lot need is something like this iii.5mm to iii.5mm cable to connect your telephone to your car.

As a last resort, some people use radio devices to basically broadcast your phone's output on a detail frequency, then you can tune into that on your car radio. Or, remember those tape deck connectors for the really old schoolhouse?

How to Listen to Podcasts on Alexa or a Smart Speaker

Y'all can't take missed the smart speaker craze, powered by some of the biggest companies in the earth. Google has the Google Abode, Amazon has the Repeat and more are beingness announced every month.

Any Bluetooth speaker volition allow you to play from your smartphone, then both the Dwelling house and the Repeat can play that manner. But, the Echo, in item, is great in that it ties in with TuneIn Radio and with Spotify.

Tell your Echo, "Alexa, play The Tim Ferriss Bear witness on TuneIn" or "Alexa, play Podcraft on Spotify" and the Repeat will automatically play the latest episode. It's so easy!

Read how I'thousand using the Echo here, and here's a deeper dive on how to listen to a podcast on Alexa.

Subscribing is where the power of podcasting really kicks in. When you subscribe, shows start automatically coming to you. Next time you lot load up your app, the latest episodes are all in that location, ready to listen to. It's amazing!

If y'all're listening on your estimator, then the easiest mode to subscribe is through the iTunes app, or the Spotify app. Both are available for Mac or PC.

If you're on your smartphone, then simply apply your mobile listening app (our favourites here)! The Apple Podcasts app on iPhone allows you to subscribe, super easy, and the other types of phones have similar apps.

How to Find Podcasts to Listen To

There are over a one thousand thousand podcasts out in that location today. So where practise y'all even start when you're looking for something new?

We ran a survey recently about podcast discovery. Nosotros wanted to find out more most how people found new podcasts to listen to.

It turns out, the nigh common way of browsing for new content is to search your listening app of option.

Nosotros've already talked nigh which apps you might desire to use to heed to podcasts. Some of them accept charts or featured sections, simply the easiest way to find podcasts to listen to is to type in a keyword or ii. For example "how to build muscle", "larn Spanish", or "gardening".

Y'all can also find podcasts to heed to past asking others – people who you know have similar tastes or interests. This might be friends you know in real life or people in online communities.

Or, you can utilise a little-known online search tool called "Google" to find your next podcasting binge. A lot of your results here are likely to come in the class of roundups and recommendations. This can exist cracking for downloading a few episodes of established podcasts with decent-sized back catalogues.

How to Lookout a Podcast

Podcasts are primarily sound, only i of the well-nigh popular places for podcast consumption these days is YouTube. An increasing number of podcasters are uploading visual versions of their episodes onto this video platform.

So you tin picket a podcast if it's also being published somewhere like YouTube or Vimeo. Some shows film their episodes as they record them, but for others, their video will but exist a static epitome (usually their cover art) with the episode sound playing.

You can also watch a podcast if the host live-streams their episodes on platforms such as Facebook or Twitch. Here's a deeper swoop on how to watch a podcast if you adopt video over audio.

How to Delete Podcasts

Virtually podcast listening happens within smartphone-based listening apps. These apps are designed to delete podcast episodes once you've listened to them, only they also make it easy to delete them without having hit play.

You can also hands delete entire podcast series if you decide you don't actually like them. With episodes and full podcasts alike, information technology'due south unremarkably but a case of swiping left on them and a 'delete' icon volition popular upward.

If you download podcast episodes on your estimator though, then you'll need to detect the files and delete them manually. This is a lot less common in 2022 though. Employ a dedicated listening app and y'all'll never to see or handle the actual files themselves.

Here'southward a deeper dive on how to delete podcasts.

Two Great Tools To Assist You Find Podcasts

At that place are a couple of novel tools out at that place designed to solve the problem of how to find podcasts to listen to. They're both created by Rephonic.

The Podcast Audition Graph lets yous look up any podcast to see the other shows its listeners also bask.
Observe New Podcasts lets you lot enter a list of podcasts yous enjoy, and spits out some recommendations based on them.

Podcast Roundups

We also have our own podcast directory, which is designed for busy people looking for their next top listen. That means nosotros curate the top 5 to 10 podcasts in a variety of categories, and so you can find the all-time comedy podcasts or the best sports podcasts. Check out Best Space Podcasts, Best Podcasts for Kids, All-time Fiction Podcasts, Best Movie Podcasts, and All-time Wellness Podcasts, depending on what sort of stuff y'all're after!

Finally, now that you know how like shooting fish in a barrel it is to listen to podcasts, you might exist shocked at how like shooting fish in a barrel it is to actually make your own. Bookmark our free step-by-step guide, below, and come back to it in one case you've been inspired by your new favourite listens…

Still wondering, what is a podcast?