Google Podcasts goes away after March — however there are alternate options

And one other one bites the mud — this time, it’s Google Podcasts, which is being discontinued in favor of YouTube Music.

Again in 2018, Google moved its Play Music service over to YouTube, and whereas some folks felt it was an enchancment, others weren’t so thrilled. I’ve to say that I depend myself among the many latter; I often hearken to fairly than watch my music, and I didn’t discover the YouTube Music interface any type of enchancment.

Now, because it tends to do, Google has determined to drop one more of its apps and as a substitute add these options to a different service. It despatched out an electronic mail to customers saying the transfer final September and has now despatched one other, providing instruments that assist you to both migrate your subscription to YouTube Music or export it to a file that may be uploaded to different apps. You received’t have the ability to use the Google Podcasts app after April 2nd, 2024, and you’ll now not have the ability to migrate or export your subscriptions after June.

I like — preferred — Google Podcasts. It was easy, simple to navigate, and, properly, snug. I even began utilizing it as a substitute of my previous trustworthy podcast app Stitcher — which I sadly can’t return to as a result of it was shut down on August twenty ninth, 2023, by proprietor SiriusXM. So now, I’m going to must search for one thing new.

What follows are my impressions of some of the extra well-liked podcast apps at the moment obtainable for Android telephones. To this point, of people who I’ve tried, Pocket Casts and AntennaPod stand out; Spotify’s options are additionally fairly good. In the event you’re not amenable to YouTube Music, then one in all these ought to go well with.

Once I started to analysis podcast apps, the one whose title at all times got here up as the primary to strive was Pocket Casts. (One among my colleagues right here at The Verge, when he heard I used to be writing this text, commented, “Pocket Casts yesterday, Pocket Casts right this moment, Pocket Casts ceaselessly.”) It has an fascinating historical past: it launched in 2010, was offered to NPR, together with different public media teams, in 2018, and was thereafter bought by Automattic (the proprietor of WordPress.com) in 2021. Its cell apps at the moment are open supply.

After putting in Pocket Casts, I might instantly see why it was such a favourite. The free model is slick and crammed with helpful options. The primary web page exhibits your subscribed podcasts as both an inventory or grid; in the event you’ve bought too many casts to right away view, you possibly can add filters for such choices as In Progress, Starred, or Launch Date. You’ll be able to advance your audio by 30 seconds or again it up by 10 seconds, create a queue of what to hearken to subsequent (very useful on lengthy drives), and in the event you’re in any respect curious, see stats on how lengthy you’ve listened for. You’ll be able to obtain episodes (both manually or routinely), put them in a playlist, set a sleep timer, mark episodes as performed, and archive them to get them out of the way in which.

Different issues price noting embody the flexibility to regulate playback velocity, increase the amount of voices, and get rid of pauses between phrases with out making it sound unnatural. It additionally syncs throughout platforms, so you possibly can hear on Android, Mac, iPad, iPhone, or Home windows and preserve your home.

In different phrases, it is a stable, well-thought-out podcast app with a number of choices — so sure, well worth the good phrase of mouth. And wait, there’s extra: it’s ad-free. The paid model, Pocket Casts Plus, provides the flexibility to arrange your podcasts in folders, entry to desktop apps, and 20GB of cloud storage, amongst different options, for $3.99 per thirty days or $39.99 per 12 months, with a one-month free trial. In the event you signal on as a patron, you get 100GB of storage and early entry to options for $9.99 a month or $99.99 a 12 months.

Castbox is an ad-supported app that has a busy fundamental web page that continuously advertises quite a lot of podcasts. You’ll be able to seek for your required podcasts by a search field on prime; from the outcomes, it’s simple so as to add the pod to your playlist. (As quickly as you do, you’ll get some “You could like” options that, so far as I might inform, had little to do with my choice.) I did discover I had inadvertently subscribed to a number of of the podcasts on the opening web page and that auto-download was routinely enabled. One other slight irritation: though Castbox has an electronic mail sign-in, there isn’t any technique to register utilizing your electronic mail — in the event you’re not already registered, you possibly can solely sign up by way of a Google, Fb, Twitter, or Line account.

There are 4 tabs on the backside of the web page. Uncover is the place you’ll find and add podcasts. Neighborhood is a social community for dialogue of varied podcasts, and from a short look, it’s best ignored except you take pleasure in the kind of commentary present in right this moment’s Twitter / X. Private is your settings.

Lastly, Library is the place you’ll discover your subscribed podcasts; from right here, you possibly can go to your downloads, new episodes, and favorites. There’s a affordable set of options: you possibly can go 10 seconds again or ahead, set a sleep timer, and choose an episode to be subsequent up. However be warned: in some instances, you’ll solely see the podcast’s cowl for a few seconds; after that, it will likely be lined by a Google advert.

If you wish to eliminate the advertisements, have limitless subscriptions (the free model is proscribed to 100), and set completely different playback results for various podcasts, amongst different options, it should value you both $19.99 a 12 months, $7.99 quarterly, or $3.99 a month.

Once you have a look at its web site, it’s apparent that PodBean is extra of an app for podcasters than for podcast listeners; nonetheless, it has a helpful cell app. The app comes loaded with quite a lot of pattern podcasts, three of that are already checked for you (and are simply unchecked). The free model does present advertisements on the prime of the house web page, however there aren’t any advertisements on the principle web page of every podcast.

There are additionally numerous good options. For instance, you possibly can change the language of the interface, auto-delete performed downloads and auto-download episodes from particular podcasts and, in the event you abruptly understand you’re working out of house (the free app permits for 5 hours complete), clear your storage.

If you wish to change your private home web page to the “Following” web page, you will get a Podbean Limitless Audio subscription for $108 yearly or $14 a month. That additionally removes the show advertisements and offers you limitless space for storing.

Like Castbox and PodBean, the primary web page you come throughout in Podcast Addict is fairly busy, with altering advertisements on prime and quite a lot of urged podcasts beneath. You’ll be able to seek for your favourite podcasts and select from the ensuing record (properly, you might be instantly requested whether or not you need to stream or obtain your episodes). You can too faucet on a range for extra data and subscribe from there.

Podcast Addict provides a variety of personalization options proper out of the field. For instance, the settings for every podcast assist you to not solely preserve it up to date but additionally edit the podcast URL, edit the podcast title, override the podcast art work, or prioritize it in your podcast lists. You’ll be able to even set an alarm. This app is, in different phrases, tailored for anybody who needs to essentially futz round with their podcast subscriptions — and whereas it does embody advertisements, these are largely out of the way in which, confined to the underside of the web page.

To eliminate the advertisements, you may make a one-time cost of $6.99. There may be additionally a Premium model for 99 cents a month or $9.99 a 12 months that provides a playlist widget and allows you to choose your opening display, amongst different options.

AntennaPod is an open-source, volunteer-built app. In consequence, it’s simple, merely formatted, and provides some fascinating options. A pop-in aspect menu enables you to add a podcast to your record, see your queue, take a look at latest episodes, and see all of your subscriptions, amongst others.

When you’ve arrange your subscriptions, the homepage has picks to proceed listening to any podcasts you’ve already began, enables you to see any new episodes, or use “Get stunned” to entry a random episode. You can too obtain the most recent subscribed episodes or handle your downloads.

Faucet on the duvet for any of your subscribed podcasts to go to the podcast web page. There, you possibly can select to both stream or obtain the most recent episode. Three buttons on the prime allow you to get extra details about the location and filter the episodes by numerous strategies (performed or not performed, downloaded or not downloaded, paused or not paused, and others). There are additionally numerous fascinating settings, corresponding to the flexibility to alter your username for particular podcasts (in case you’re notably nervous about listening to it), tagging, playback velocity, and the flexibility to routinely skip introductions and ending credit. And you will get stats for time performed, episodes in your machine, and house used.

In different phrases, whereas Pocket Casts is a recognized favourite amongst many listeners, AntennaPod may be price a shot.

Whereas all the opposite apps listed below are devoted podcast apps, it could have been remiss to not point out Spotify — particularly since, about the identical time that Google introduced it was sunsetting Podcasts, Spotify introduced it was including new podcast-specific options, together with extra transcript capabilities, chapters to permit listeners to flick through a forged extra simply, and extra content material on the podcast pages. (After all, most of this is determined by how a podcast is coded by its creators.)

Whereas I’ve used Spotify for music listening, I’ve not used it for podcasts till now. A button on prime of the house web page on the Android app takes you to Podcasts & Reveals, the place there’s a collection of urged casts. There’s a search button on the underside; faucet that, and you may both flick through urged podcasts or do a search. As soon as you discover the podcast you need, you comply with (Spotify’s model of subscribing) to it.

Every podcast web page means that you can add particular episodes to your playlist, obtain that episode, get notifications of recent episodes, and different options. The settings for every allow you to determine whether or not to routinely obtain an episode or mark all of the previous episodes as performed. On every podcast’s Now Enjoying web page, you possibly can again up 10 seconds, go ahead 30 seconds, change the velocity, or trim silent sections. And, as with Pocket Casts, Spotify syncs throughout platforms.

In brief, Spotify has a reasonably spectacular set of podcast options — nevertheless, you continue to must specify Podcasts & Reveals if you wish to choose them out from all of the music in your Spotify library.

Spotify’s Premium plan provides offline music listening (you possibly can obtain podcasts on the free plan), removes advertisements, and will increase the sound high quality. It prices $10.99 a month for people, $5.99 a month for college students, $14.99 a month for 2 accounts, and $16.99 for as much as six accounts, together with Spotify Children.

After all, in the event you really feel that utilizing a single app for podcasts, music, and different media is a bonus, chances are you’ll need to wait and see if YouTube Music will really be just right for you — except you already use Spotify. However in case you are extra attuned to utilizing a person podcast app and need to keep away from each advertisements and cost, then Pocket Casts or AntennaPod could also be price a strive.

Replace January twenty second, 2024, 5:05PM ET: This text was initially revealed on September twenty ninth, 2023, and has been up to date to provide extra details about Google’s sunsetting of its Podcasts app.