Will changing hosting providers grow your podcast?
Thank you for joining me for The Audacity to Podcast. I'm Daniel J. Lewis.
I see podcasters often think that their podcast might grow faster if they switch podcast hosting
providers, like from Blubrry to Captivate or vice versa. But is this true? Short answer,
No. Now, of course, I'm going to give you more details about that. And you might want the links
and resources that I mentioned in the notes for this episode, which are a simple tap or swipe away
or at TheAudacitytoPodcast.com/hostinggrow. Before I go much further, though,
I do just want to disclose that I am not currently paid by anyone to support anything.
The links and some of these products and providers I mentioned in this episode are affiliate links, but I earn only if you purchase through my affiliate links.
I don't get paid for simply mentioning something, but whatever the case, I recommend things I truly believe in regardless of earnings.
So with that in mind, go to the notes if you want the links over at the website or inside your podcast app using that fancy new format I'll talk about in a future episode.
So the growth of your podcast isn't directly affected by where your podcast is hosted or
what is generating your podcast RSS feed.
Yes, this actually means you could have a successful show hosted on the bottom of the
barrel, otherwise known as SoundCloud.
This is because hosting is merely a service and mostly invisible in its basic core functionality.
There are considerations like whether the provider has the infrastructure to support a popular podcast.
But if we started with the base of, let's say, only 100 downloads per episode for a weekly podcast,
no one hosting provider is going to make that grow more than another hosting provider simply by using that provider.
In fact, no hosting provider will make it grow at all because it's not in the hosting provider and the service that they provide.
Where is it? Well, that's further in this episode. So here we go. Number one, podcast stats may be
measured differently. One thing that might cause some confusion is that different hosting providers
measure and report stats slightly differently. Although we have the IAB podcast measurement
guidelines and certification in podcasting, that still leaves room for variation. And nowadays,
actually, I've backed off and I don't think the IAB podcast measurement guidelines are really
mandatory for a hosting provider to even support unless you do advertising. But I went into that
in a lot more depth in episode 386. I've got the link to that in the notes for this episode.
If you'd like to go back and listen to that older episode, I still stand by that. I still think
it's nice if you have an advertiser, it's nice to have some kind of standard,
but it's not necessary. And because they are just guidelines, then you'll end up with different
results in certain cases. And you might see that difference in your podcast stats if you move from
one hosting provider to another and then look at the same benchmark points. And sometimes you might
see significant deltas depending on the providers, but that doesn't mean that the providers are
actually responsible for the size of your audience or that you lost audience simply by switching
providers as long as you made that switch properly. And a good provider will help ensure that you do
make that switch properly. Because they're not measuring bigger audiences, they're measuring the
same audience differently. Also, it's nearly impossible to effectively compare one hosting
provider's stats to another because your episode reach is not a constant that you can rely on for
analysis across different platforms. It's not like you know that every episode you will ever release
always gets the exact same number of downloads so that you can then see if I switch over to this
provider, are those downloads different? You can't see that right now because it does vary. I'm seeing
the stats vary for my own show where they were going up a little bit and now they're taking a
little bit of a dip and we'll see where things kind of even out now that the Audacity podcast is back
on a more consistent basis.
But that doesn't mean it's the fault of the analytics
or anything like that.
It's just measured differently,
or in my case, it could also be consumption is different
since I resurrected, almost did a podcast.
Even if you're thinking about the advertiser side of this,
thinking, oh, if I move over to this hosting provider,
I'll have much bigger numbers
and therefore a bigger paycheck.
No.
If one hosting provider reports you have,
let's say 20,000 downloads per episode,
while another one reports 10,000,
podcast sponsors will not value your show
if they're not getting the return on investment that they expect.
So it really does not help your show.
In fact, it will probably hurt your show
if you're trying to monetize it with sponsors
if you're using inflated numbers.
Just don't do that.
Try to use a hosting provider that has reputable stats
and just stick with those stats.
Don't worry about, oh, a different hosting provider might measure slightly bigger or slightly smaller.
Yes, there's some variation.
Just don't worry about it.
It's going to be a little bit different.
And also just from episode to episode, even on your current hosting provider, the stats will be a little bit different.
It's not a big deal.
And moving hosting providers is not going to magically make you have a bigger audience,
even if the numbers might seem different because they measure the numbers differently.
Number two, included podcasting tools may be different with different hosting providers.
Each podcast hosting provider offers their own set of features and methods for using the podcasting
tools they provide. But you have to actually use the tools. This is where hosting providers can be
significantly different. One provider will offer a certain suite of tools while another provider
offers a different suite of tools. Sometimes these tools overlap, sometimes they don't.
But because each feature from a hosting provider is simply a tool, your success depends on your
knowledge and your ability for you to use the tools they give you. Do you notice how many times
I said you and your in that? On top of that, some podcasts benefit more from certain tools
than others if they use those tools. For example, Captivate offers a guest scheduling feature.
That's pretty cool. You don't have to pay for that separately then because it's built right into
your podcast hosting provider. But if you never have guests on your podcast, then this particular
feature won't make any difference for your podcast. But even if you do need this tool and you actually
use it, it won't directly affect your podcast's growth. But it does make some things cost less
time, money, and knowledge for you, freeing your resources for you to invest in other places.
Or another example is what I call the networking feature in Podgagement. Now, Podgagement is not
a podcast hosting provider, but this feature nicely illustrates this point, as you'll see.
The networking feature exposes podcasts that share crossover audience with yours, helping you discover networking opportunities to cross-promote, cross-guest, collaborate, or even simply do some competitive research.
Now, you can use Podgagement to do that on your podcast. It's only $19 a month for that and a whole suite of other features.
But you can do that yourself.
All you have to do is check the currently 2,843,960 other shows in Apple Podcasts yourself.
And that's a number as of July 12th, 2025.
Then keep track of where your show is recommended and then repeat that every day.
In the wise words of the philosopher Sweet Brown,
Ain't nobody got time for that.
If you actually learn and use a tool like Podgagement or many of the tools podcast hosting providers
offer, it can be huge for growing your podcast.
But the mere passive existence of these features won't get you a single new listener.
You have to use the tools.
Number three, look at podcast hosting providers as toolboxes.
With all this stuff in mind that I've shared, don't look at podcast hosting providers as
magical solution to grow your podcast. Instead, evaluate each as a collection of different tools
and decide which tools are most important for you to learn and use. Some tools can help you grow
your podcast better than other tools can, but you have to use them. I recently wanted to convert some
unused space in my house to an extra food pantry. I got all the tools and supplies I needed,
But the pantry never built itself.
The tools and supplies just sat there, not becoming a pantry.
The audacity of it.
It wasn't until I set aside the time to use those tools and the supplies
that then I built the pantry.
And then I was able to enjoy the result.
Back to podcasting.
It's not your hosting provider's job to grow your podcast.
It's yours.
So if you decide that you do want different tools for your podcast and a hosting provider
will provide those tools that you actually want to learn and will use, then number four,
here are my 2025 recommendations for podcast hosting providers.
I recommend different providers based on your particular needs.
So the following list is not a conclusive rating and ranking of all of the podcast hosting providers out there, but these are the top ones that I find myself recommending regularly and really admiring what they've built. Each of these providers do have Podcasting 2.0 support as well, which now I consider that the litmus test for a good podcast hosting provider. They must support Podcasting 2.0 and be committed to adding support as new features are released.
So yes, of the following, I am an affiliate for all of these.
And if you sign up through my link in the notes, then I will get a commission from those.
But that's the only money I get from any of these.
And it's only if you sign up only through my links.
I genuinely recommend each of these providers regardless of their earnings.
And they've not paid me simply to mention them.
I don't currently get paid to endorse anything.
I kind of like it that way.
So with that disclosure, again, said, here's the list.
Blubrry for the best WordPress-focused workflow,
because this allows you to manage everything about your podcast publishing without leaving WordPress.
So if you really love WordPress and you want to do everything in WordPress,
Blubrry is definitely your go-to solution there.
Or Buzzsprout for the easiest to use without sacrifice.
They provide great audio processing, transcription, monetization, and AI-powered features and more.
Or Captivate for everything else.
They offer dynamic content insertion, multi-podcast support at no extra cost,
transcription, monetization, AI-powered features, guest scheduling, and more.
I used to be on the advisory board for Captivate because I love them so much.
Ever since they were acquired by Global, I'm not on the advisory board anymore,
but I still highly recommend Captivate.
And I still highly recommend these other companies too,
regardless of relationship or earnings from each of them.
Blubrry, Buzzsprout, and Captivate,
the BBC of podcast hosting.
Oh, I hope I don't get sued for saying that.
But for each of these providers, as you can see,
I think they offer a unique set of tools
that is ideal for certain podcasters.
If you don't like WordPress at all, then Blubrry is probably not the best solution for you.
If you want the powerhouse of tools, then Captivate might be the solution for you.
Or if you're getting started with this or just don't want the system to be complicated,
but you don't want to sacrifice control and features to have something dumbed down,
so you still want something great but much easier to use and simpler to just publish,
then Buzzsprout is great for you.
And each of these have their strengths and weaknesses.
So it's up to you to decide which one provides the tools you want.
But before you switch whatever hosting provider you currently use,
look at the tools you already have
and seriously try them to see if they might be the tools you need
so you can grow your own podcast.
To tease about an upcoming episode about the thing I'm doing differently with my notes,
this is something that I was looking at switching podcast hosting providers so that I could do
in-app podcast notes differently.
I changed my mind and decided to stick with what I was using, but to leverage more of the tools
in a slightly different and better way, also involving some custom coding work on my side.
I'll talk more about that in a future episode.
So if you want these recommendations and some of these other notes and links that I mentioned,
they're simple tap or swipe away inside of your podcast app or at TheAudacitytoPodcast.com/hostinggrow.
Now over to the community corner.
Thanks to Randy Black for the 101 sats and 47 sats.
I think I know what you're saying there.
And also thanks to Lindsay Phillips for interviewing me on her show, Leverage Your Podcast, talking
Podgagement and how to engage your audience. Follow my social media accounts pretty much
everywhere. It's at the Daniel J. Lewis to see when that episode is available so you can go listen to
it and give her some love for the really fun conversation. It was great to talk with her and
I look forward to sharing that episode with you when it's available. And if you love the Audacity
to Podcast and value the education and inspiration that I provide to you, then would you consider
giving back by trying Podgagement. Podgagement helps you to track all of your ratings and reviews
across nearly 200 places or track your global ranking for your podcast across nearly 34,000
charts. Or it has that awesome networking feature so you can discover networking opportunities for
your podcast. It also gives you opportunities to collect voicemails and written feedback from your
audience or make attractive images to help you promote your podcast. See, this is all a suite
of tools that you can use so that you can grow your podcast.
And now that I've given you, not your hosting provider,
some of the guts and taught you, not your hosting provider,
some of the tools,
it's time for you to start and grow your own podcast
for passion and profit.
I'm Daniel J. Lewis from theaudacitytopodcast.com.
Thanks for listening.