18 apps. 40+ features. Pricing, platforms, AI, Podcasting 2.0, privacy, and more — all in one place. Updated March 2026.
| Feature | The Podcast App iOS · Android | Spotify iOS · Android · Web | Apple Podcasts iOS · macOS · Web | Pocket Casts iOS · Android · Web | Overcast iOS only | Castro iOS only | Castbox iOS · Android | Podcast Addict Android only | iHeartRadio iOS · Android · Web | YouTube Music iOS · Android · Web | Amazon Music iOS · Android · Web | Podbean iOS · Android | Player FM iOS · Android · Web | Podcast Republic Android only | Fountain iOS · Android | AntennaPod Android only | Goodpods iOS · Android | Downcast iOS · macOS |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pricing | ||||||||||||||||||
| Free tier available | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ~ | ~ | ~ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✗ |
| Premium price | Free · Brain $4.99/mo | $11.99/mo | $2.99/mo | $3.99/mo | $9.99/yr | $2.99/mo | $5.99/mo | $1.49/mo | $9.99/mo | $10.99/mo | $9.99/mo | $9/mo | $4.99/mo | $1.99/mo | Free | Free / Open Source | Free | $2.99 one-time |
| Ads in free tier | ✗ | ✓ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ |
| Platforms | ||||||||||||||||||
| iOS | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✗ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✗ | ✓ | ✗ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Android | ✓ | ✓ | ✗ | ✓ | ✗ | ✗ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✗ |
| Web app | ✗ | ✓ | ~ | ✓ | ✗ | ✗ | ✓ | ✗ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✓ | ✗ |
| CarPlay | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ~ | ✗ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✓ |
| Android Auto | Coming soon | ✓ | ✗ | ✓ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✗ | ✓ | ✗ | ✓ | ✗ | ✗ |
| Core Playback | ||||||||||||||||||
| Offline downloads | ✓ | ~ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ~ | ~ | ~ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Variable speed | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Skip silence / smart speed | ✓ | ✗ | ✗ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✗ | ✓ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✓ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✓ |
| Sleep timer | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✗ | ✗ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Chapter support | ✓ | ~ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ~ | ✓ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ~ | ~ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✗ | ✓ |
| Queue management | ✓ | ✓ | ~ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ~ | ✓ |
| Volume boost / voice enhance | ✓ | ✗ | ✗ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✗ | ~ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ~ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ~ |
| Discovery | ||||||||||||||||||
| Search | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Curated recommendations | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ~ | ~ | ✓ | ~ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ~ | ~ | ~ | ✓ | ✗ |
| Category browsing | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ~ | ~ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✗ |
| Trending charts | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✗ | ✗ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✗ | ✓ | ✗ |
| AI Features | ||||||||||||||||||
| AI chat / cross-episode search | ✓ | ~ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ~ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ~ | ✗ |
| AI transcripts | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ~ | ✗ | ✗ | ✓ | ✗ | ~ | ✗ | ✗ | ~ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ |
| AI summaries | ✓ | ~ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ~ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ~ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ~ | ✗ |
| AI-generated chapters | ✓ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ |
| Synthesis Radio / AI audio | ✓ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ |
| Video | ||||||||||||||||||
| Video podcast support | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ~ | ~ | ✓ | ✓ | ✗ | ✓ | ~ | ✓ | ~ | ✓ | ~ | ~ | ✗ | ~ |
| YouTube integration | ✓ | ✓ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ~ | ✗ | ✓ | ✗ | ✗ | ~ | ~ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ |
| Import / Export | ||||||||||||||||||
| OPML import | ✓ | ✗ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✗ | ✓ |
| OPML export | ✓ | ✗ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✗ | ✓ |
| Cross-device sync | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ~ | ✓ | ✓ | ~ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ~ | ✓ | ~ |
| Privacy | ||||||||||||||||||
| No account required to start | ✓ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✗ | ✓ | ✗ | ✓ |
| Ad-free experience available | ✓ | ~ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ~ | ~ | ~ | ~ | ~ | ~ | ~ | ~ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| No tracking / minimal data | ✓ | ✗ | ~ | ~ | ~ | ~ | ✗ | ~ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ~ | ~ | ~ | ~ | ✓ | ~ | ~ |
| Podcasting 2.0 | ||||||||||||||||||
| Podping support | ✓ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ~ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✗ | ✗ |
| Chapters (Podcasting 2.0) | ✓ | ✗ | ~ | ~ | ~ | ~ | ✗ | ✓ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ~ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✗ | ~ |
| Transcripts (P2.0 namespace) | ✓ | ~ | ~ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✓ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✗ | ✗ |
| Funding / Value4Value | ✓ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ~ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ~ | ✗ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✗ | ✗ |
| Podroll | ✓ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ~ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ~ | ✓ | ~ | ✗ | ✗ |
In 2026 the gap between apps with real AI (cross-episode search, summaries, AI-generated audio) and apps without is enormous. The Podcast App and Spotify are the only players shipping meaningful AI — but Spotify limits features to Premium subscribers.
The open podcasting ecosystem — podping, Value4Value, podroll, enhanced chapters — is supported by The Podcast App, Fountain, AntennaPod, and Podcast Republic. Mainstream platforms like Spotify and Apple Podcasts largely ignore the standard.
Spotify, iHeartRadio, Castbox, and Amazon Music all have free tiers with ads. Pocket Casts and Castro are not truly free — core features require payment. The Podcast App is genuinely free: no ads, no feature locks, no credit card needed.
Download on iOS or Android. No account required. No ads. No subscription. Just podcasts — and the most powerful AI in any podcast app.
