OPML: how to actually own your podcast subscriptions
If you've spent five years building a podcast subscription list on Apple Podcasts, or Spotify, or Overcast, it feels like the app holds that list. Try a different app and the first thing you're doing is re-adding 60 shows one at a time, so you don't try a different app.
That's the point. And the technical answer is that the list has always been portable. There's a small standard called OPML that every proper podcast app is expected to read and write, and if your current app supports it (most do, and the walled-garden ones deliberately don't), moving to a new app is one file drag away.
This post walks through what OPML is, which apps let you export it, which don't, and how to actually move your subscriptions between apps without losing anything.
TL;DR
- OPML is a plain text file that lists your podcast subscriptions. Any app that can read it can import your subs in one step.
- Most podcast apps support OPML export and import, including Apple Podcasts (via the macOS app), Overcast, Pocket Casts, AntennaPod, Podverse, and Podtastic.
- Spotify does not export OPML. That's a portability choice, and a big part of why the Save Open Podcasting campaign exists.
- Back up your OPML regularly. Even inside an app you love, a file on disk is a better long-term insurance policy than trusting any one service to survive.
What OPML actually is
OPML stands for Outline Processor Markup Language. It's an XML format that was originally designed to move blog subscription lists between RSS readers in the mid-2000s. Podcast apps borrowed it because a podcast subscription is functionally the same thing: a name plus a link to an RSS feed, sometimes with a category label.
An OPML file looks roughly like this if you open it in a text editor:
<opml version="2.0">
<head>
<title>My Podcast Subscriptions</title>
</head>
<body>
<outline text="The Vergecast" xmlUrl="https://feeds.megaphone.fm/vergecast" />
<outline text="Decoder with Nilay Patel" xmlUrl="https://feeds.megaphone.fm/decoder" />
<outline text="Accidental Tech Podcast" xmlUrl="https://atp.fm/rss" />
</body>
</opml>
That's it. It's a plain list of names and feed URLs. Any podcast app that speaks RSS can read it and rebuild your library in seconds.
Because it's just text, you can open it in any text editor and back it up like any other file. Nothing about your subscription list needs to live inside one specific app.
Why OPML matters right now
Two reasons.
One: podcast platforms have quietly become sticky in a way that isn't good for listeners. If moving apps means re-adding sixty subscriptions by hand, most people won't do it. So the platform you're on gets to keep making choices you wouldn't otherwise agree with (ads in the feed, algorithmic ordering, features quietly removed), and you'll stay anyway because the exit cost is a Saturday afternoon.
An OPML export removes that friction. If your app supports it, you can be in a new app in under two minutes, subscribed to everything you were before, exactly. The bargaining position that gives you as a listener matters, even if you never actually leave.
Two: it's your list, not the platform's. Podcast subscriptions aren't a service the platform grants you access to. They're a set of URLs. You should be able to export them and take them elsewhere, in the same way you can export your contacts or your calendar. Any app that treats your subscription list as their proprietary data is treating you badly. OPML is the mechanism that turns that intuition into an actual file you can hold in your hand.
How to export OPML from each app
Here's the state of play as of 2026. If your app isn't on this list, check its settings for an "Export subscriptions" or "OPML" option, and if there isn't one, that's telling you something.
- Apple Podcasts (macOS): File → Library → Export... produces an OPML file. iOS Apple Podcasts does not offer this on-device, so the macOS app is the only Apple-owned route.
- Overcast: Settings → Export OPML on iOS and web.
- Pocket Casts: Settings → General → Export OPML.
- AntennaPod (Android): Settings → Import/Export → OPML Export.
- Podverse: Menu → My Library → Podcasts → three-dot menu → Download OPML. Cross-platform, so this works from iOS, Android, Web, or Linux.
- Podtastic: Settings → Podcasts → Export OPML on both iOS and Android.
- Castro, Downcast, Castamatic, Podcast Addict, Podcast Republic, Podurama: all support OPML export, usually under Settings or a subscription-management menu.
There's one big exception, and it's the one you'd expect.
Which platforms fight this
Spotify does not offer OPML export. This is an intentional choice. Spotify's podcast subscriptions live in the Spotify account, and Spotify has decided that account doesn't come with a portability feature.
The workaround is manual. Open your followed-shows list and re-subscribe show by show in the new app. Because most podcasts on Spotify also have public RSS feeds (Spotify indexes existing feeds; it doesn't usually create shows exclusively on-platform), you can usually find each show elsewhere. Some Spotify Originals are the exception: shows that only publish inside Spotify have no open feed at all, and if you leave the platform, they're gone.
YouTube Music and Amazon Music are in a similar shape: no official OPML export. You can rebuild the list in a new app, but you're doing it by hand.
The Save Open Podcasting campaign exists partly because of this. A subscription list you can't take with you isn't really yours, and a podcast that only exists inside one platform isn't really a podcast in the open sense. If you care about the ecosystem staying open, you can read more about the campaign here and see the independent apps that back it.
How to import OPML into a new app
Once you have an OPML file, importing it into a new app is straightforward.
- Get the OPML file onto the device where the new app is installed. AirDrop, email, iCloud/Google Drive, or a plain USB transfer all work.
- Open the new app and find its OPML import option (usually Settings → Import subscriptions, or similar).
- Pick the file. The app will subscribe to every feed in it and rebuild your library.
You don't lose ratings, notes, or clip highlights (those are app-specific and not part of OPML), but the actual subscription list moves cleanly. In practice, the whole switch takes a minute or two.
If you want a "safe test" first, try Podverse or another cross-platform app alongside your main one. Import your OPML, use both for a week, and see if the new app fits. Nothing about the import breaks your existing app, and you can leave either side any time.
The one thing to do this week
Export an OPML file from your main podcast app right now, and save it somewhere you'd find it in a year (iCloud, a Dropbox folder, an email to yourself). That's your insurance policy.
If your subscription list is worth years of building, it's worth the two minutes to make sure it survives whatever happens to the app you're using. And once you have a portable file, the question "should I try a different podcast app?" changes from "would that be worth a Saturday?" to "would that be worth two minutes?"
Two-minute questions get better answers.
Frequently Asked Questions
How do I open an OPML file to check what's in it?
Any text editor will open it. On Mac, TextEdit works. On Windows, Notepad. On Linux, whatever you use for plain text. Because OPML is XML, it's human-readable. You'll see one entry per subscribed show, with the name and the RSS feed URL.
Does OPML include my played/unplayed status or my playback position?
No. OPML is just the subscription list. Played status, playback position, ratings, and notes are stored inside each app and don't move with an OPML file. If your app has a separate account-based sync (like Podverse Premium or Pocket Casts sync), that data can move within the same app across your devices, but not between different apps.
Do all podcast apps really support OPML?
The ones that treat portability as a feature do, and that includes most independent podcast apps (Podtastic, Podverse, AntennaPod, Overcast, Pocket Casts, Castro, Podcast Addict, and many more). The ones that don't tend to be the very large platforms that would prefer you didn't leave. See the section above for which is which.
Can I edit an OPML file by hand?
Yes. It's plain XML. To drop a show before importing, delete its <outline> line. To reorder shows, move the lines around. You can also combine multiple OPML files by copying entries between them. Save it as .opml and any importing app will read it.
What happens if I import an OPML with shows I'm already subscribed to?
Well-behaved apps deduplicate, so a re-subscribe to an already-followed show does nothing. Import errors on OPML are rare. The format is simple enough that most apps handle it cleanly.
Listen smarter with Podtastic
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- Smart Topics — key topics surfaced across your favourite shows so you can jump straight to what matters
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