What podcast charts actually measure, and why they mislead
15 Aug 2026 • Ben Bowler
Podcast charts don't rank what's most listened to. Here's what Apple and Spotify actually measure, and better ways to find shows worth your time.
Blog
7 serialized podcasts worth starting from episode 1
14 Aug 2026 • Ben Bowler
Seven serialized podcast series worth listening to from episode 1, Serial to Slow Burn, with what to expect and where to start.
How to listen to a podcast series in chronological order
13 Aug 2026 • Ben Bowler
Podcast apps default to newest-first, which is wrong for stories. Here's how to listen to a series in chronological order across any app.
Jump to Video: watch any podcast you're listening to
12 Aug 2026 • Ben Bowler
Audio-first is great until the host shows something on camera. Jump to Video links each show to its YouTube version so you can see it, then keep listening.
The complete guide to podcast audio quality (2026)
9 Aug 2026 • Ben Bowler
Everything that determines how a podcast sounds — Bluetooth codecs, DSP, earbud choice, streaming vs downloaded — and what actually matters for spoken word.
AntennaPod: the open-source podcast app, reviewed
8 Aug 2026 • Ben Bowler
AntennaPod is a free, open-source, Android-first podcast app maintained by volunteers for over a decade. Here's what it does, why it matters, and where it sits.
Why the 3x podcast listening arms race misses the point
7 Aug 2026 • Ben Bowler
3x podcast listening is a vanity metric — it distorts voices, hurts retention, and doesn't solve the actual problem. The useful lever is silence removal + triage.
7 economics podcasts for people without an economics degree
6 Aug 2026 • Ben Bowler
Seven economics podcasts that make you smarter about how money and the world actually work — Planet Money, EconTalk, Freakonomics, Acquired, and more.
The complete guide to podcast interviews (2026)
5 Aug 2026 • Ben Bowler
How to judge a podcast interview in the first five minutes, the three styles of great interview show, and the exemplars to build your rotation around.
How to catch up on a podcast you've fallen behind on
5 Aug 2026 • Ben Bowler
The 350-unplayed-episode problem is a triage problem, not a listening problem. A working framework: serial vs episodic, checkpoint episodes, when to give up honourably.
7 podcasts for when you can't fully concentrate
4 Aug 2026 • Ben Bowler
Seven podcasts that reward half-attention — clear-voiced hosts, episodic structure, no serial arc. The right shape for cooking, driving, or a long walk when you can't fully focus.
What Podcasting 2.0 Means for You (in Plain English)
3 Aug 2026 • Ben Bowler
Podcasting 2.0 is not a slogan — it's a shipping set of open tags that already give listeners transcripts, chapters, host info, and value-for-value support. Here's what actually works today.
More from Podtastic
- Save Open Podcasting: why open RSS feeds matter and what platform exclusives take away.
- Independent podcast apps: a directory of apps that play any open feed.
- Podcast app comparisons: how Podtastic compares with the app you use today.