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9 Best Free and Low Cost Podcast Hosting Sites for Beginners

9 Best Free and Low Cost Podcast Hosting Sites for Beginners

If you're looking for the best free and low cost podcast hosting sites, then you're in the right place.

But first, what is a podcast host and why do you need one?

A good way to think of them is as the go-between from you to your audience. They store all your podcast episodes and make them available to the various podcast directories (iTunes, Google, Spotify, etc) so that your listeners can stream or download them.

This hosting and distribution is their primary role, but many podcast hosts also provide tools to help you with podcast creation, editing, promotion and monetisation, as well as giving you the data you need to track how things are going.

Below I share the nine podcast hosting platforms most frequently recommended by online business owners.

Most of them provide either a basic free plan, or a 14-day free trial, so you can test out whether they are right for you without having to fork out any cash.

That said, it may be worth considering investing in a paid plan from the outset, since most of the free plans have drawbacks or very limited features meaning that you will quickly outgrow them.

 

Anchor for a completely free platform

Anchor was launched in 2016 and has quickly grown to become a favourite all-in-one platform that allows you to create, distribute and monetise your podcast, with unlimited storage and downloads.

It is completely free to use, and despite what some people might lead you to believe, they don't own your podcast, or add advertising to your episodes without your permission.

Instead, they make their money by taking a cut of any monetisation that you agree to (through sponsorship deals or listener donations). You are also signing up to a non-exclusive license that allows them to use, edit and reproduce your content. This license is transferable to others, which means that although you own your content, you may not control how and where it is used in the future.

Some feedback has suggested that Anchor make it hard to move to other hosts, so proceed with caution if you decide that their free offer is too appealing. There have also been occassions when free podcast sites have closed down, taking your podcast with them, so it might be better to play it safe and use a paid service.

 

Blubrry optimised to work with PowerPress plugin

Blubrry works with any platform, but has been specifically optimised to work alongside their free PowerPress podcast plugin for WordPress so that you can manage everything within your website. Both the plugin and basic statistics are free, but they have no free hosting plans. Their website isn't the easiest to understand or navigate!

Their Small plan is $12/mo and gives you 100MB/mo of storage. This is equivalent to uploading approx 2 to 4 hours of audio per month (depending on quality). The plan also comes with unlimited downloads, a free Wordpress website and media player.

To get 250MB/m of storage (approx. 4 to 8 hours of audio), along with the option to host video files, you'll need their Medium plan at $20/mo. Their Pro stats come free with any hosting plan.

 

BuzzSprout for fair pricing and a modern, easy to use site

BuzzSprout has helped over 100,000 people start their own podcast and offers a wide variety of features, including help to get listed in a long line of podcast directories and to monetise your podcast.

Their free plan includes a maximum of 2 hours of uploads per month, but episodes are only hosted for 90 days. In addition, the podcast website provided with the free plan includes adverts, so this feels like a good way to try out podcasting for a couple of months, but you'd quickly want to move to a paid plan to ensure that your old episodes stay live.

Beyond the free plan, all BuzzSprout plans offer indefinite hosting, advanced stats, unlimited users, a podcast website (with no ads), a media player for your website, easy transcriptions, chapter markers and video soundbites, and 250GB/mo of downloads (more than enough until you hit the big time and you can then upgrade). Plans start at $12/mo for 3hrs/mo of episodes, going up to $18/mo for 6hrs and $24/mo for 12hrs.

 

Castos and the Seriously Simple Podcasting plugin

Castos is one of the hosts that has no free plan but instead offers a 14-day free trial. All their plans offer unlimited podcasts, storage and download bandwidth, and the ability to manage your podcast from within your WordPress site using the Seriously Simple Podcasting plugin.

Their Starter plan is $19/mo or $190/yr and comes with a podcast webpage, listener analytics and private podcasting. Upgrade to Growth for $49/mo or $490/yr to automatically republish your podcast episodes to YouTube, or to Pro for $99/mo or $990/yr to access advanced analytics and video file hosting.

Castos also offer a podcast editing service starting at $75 per episode, and provide discounts to non-profits and religious organisations.

 

Libsyn for a tried-and-tested hosting platform

Libsyn have been around for a long time, which make them reliable, but perhaps more dated in look and feel than other hosting sites. They also offer a range of monetisation options.

They don't have a free plan, but their cheapest plan (the Classic 50) is only $5/mo and gives you 50MB/mo of storage (approx. 1 to 2 hours of audio). It offers unlimited downloads, a mini podcast website, and a media player, but no stats.

Moving on from this, their Classic 250 plan is $15/mo and gives you 250MB/mo of storage (4 to 8 hours of audio). This includes audio, video and pdf hosting, a podcast website and basic stats. To get advanced stats, you would need to move on to their Advanced plans which start at $20/mo for 400MB/mo of storage. Using your own domain name for your podcast website costs an additional $2/mo on all plans.

 

PodBean for ease-of-use and live audio streaming

PodBean offers a free plan that limits you to a total of 5hrs of storage (500MB) and 100GB of downloads, so again is a good option for you to test out podcasting, but you will likely outgrow it quite quickly. This plan includes a media player, podcast site, free themes and basic stats.

For $14/mo or $108/yr you can get their Unlimited Audio plan that gives unlimited storage and bandwidth, pro themes, comprehensive stats, custom design, monetisation options and the ability to use your own domain. To add video podcasts, you'll need Unlimited Plus for $39/mo or $348/yr, which comes complete with full custom designs and additional monetisation options.

You can only remove the PodBean branding when you get to their Business plan which is $129/mo or $1,188/yr.

 

Simplecast for modern unlimited hosting

Simplecast also offer a 14-day free trial, but no free plan. Their Basic plan is $15/mo or $162/yr and includes unlimited uploads and storage, and a maximum of 20,000 downloads per month. You also get basic analytics, a podcast website, custom domain, a media player and can host multiple shows.

To increase to 4 team members and a limit of 50,000 downloads per month, you'll need their Essential plan at $35/mo or $378/yr. This also provides additional media players and analytics. The Growth plan is $85/mo or $918/yr for 9 team members and 120k downloads/mo which makes these feel more suitable for small businesses than solo online business owners.

 

Spreaker for live streaming and multiple podcasts

Spreaker has a Free Speech plan that provides a total of 5hr of storage (similar to PodBean) and unlimited downloads. It includes a media player, basic distribution and stats, and a 15-minute limit on live audio streaming.

Their On-Air Talent plan is $7/mo or $72/yr and includes 100 hours of total storage (they are the only host in this list to limit the overall storage rather than the monthly upload). This plan has advanced distribution, monetisation and a 45-minute live audio limit.

Higher plans are available with limited access podcasts, full distribution and advanced stats. These include Broadcaster for $20/mo or $216/yr for 500hrs of storage and max 3-hour live audios, and Anchorman at $50/mo or $540/yr for 1,500hrs of storage and 5-hour live audios.

 

Transistor for multiple podcasts and users

Transistor is the third host to offer a 14-day free trial rather than a free plan. Their Starter plan is $19/mo or $190/yr and offers unlimited podcasts, advanced analytics, 3 users, a podcast website, media player with Transistor branding, and a limit of 10,000 downloads/mo.

Professional increases the download limit to 50,000/mo and allows 6 users. It costs $49/mo or $490/yr and includes 1 private podcast with 500 subscribers. To remove the Transistor branding from the media player, you need their Business plan at $99/mo or $990/yr. This includes 150k downloads/mo, 11 users and 3 private podcasts with 1k subscribers each.

 

Help me narrow it down!

 

Download the Angel Rated guide to Podcast Hosting Sites

So, there you have it. The 9 best podcast hosting sites as recommended by online business owners. Download the Angel Rated Podcast Hosting Sites Pricing Guide here so that you have all the information in one place when you need it.

9 best free and low cost podcast hosting sites for beginners

 

 

Now it's your turn: be an Angel Review and share your experience

If you've used any of these podcast hosting sites, then we'd love to read your review of them (the good, the bad and the ugly!). Click through to the relevant product using the links above and hit Write a Review.

Or to see all the options in one place, head on over to this search where you can sort and filter all the tools listed above to find the one that's just right for you.

And if you're using something that's not listed on Angel Rated, then we'd love to hear from you so that we can get it added.

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