From PodNews:
Pocket Casts is free on your phone; but with Pocket Casts Plus, you’ll get access to additional features, including watch apps, themes and icons, and additional content.
You’ll also get access to the Pocket Casts desktop and web app - perfect for listening at work (or managing the shows you follow).
More information can be found here.
Credit Card/Paypal is required for the subscription. You can cancel the subscription straight after signup.
I love it too, but damn thats expensive (after the year) dont want to get used to features I wont keep.
Wish they had a one off paid version
They did. I bought it for $3.99 in 2016.
They've since made that the free version and introduced the subscription version.
Yep, same. Fully baited.
@Supercool: Same here.
I will say, the pro version is fantastic to use as an audiobook player if your audiobook was pulled from a 3rd party site.
Free, the perfect price point for number 6.
Cheers mate. Great app, I never felt the need to have Plus, maybe a year of using it for free will change my mind.
Worked like a charm!
Long time Pocketcasts user here, easily the most used app on my phone. Thankfully I'm grandfathered in to the free lifetime subscription, including their desktop web app.
Unfortunately, the rest of us who bought the mobile app were not offered the chance to pay the difference for the lifetime upgrade.
What i don't get is why they drew the line with the web subscribes. I also read that they recently changed the name of your grandfather plan, so they could still phase it out eventually.
They got bought out by Automattic who is blowing up everything lately. Don't expect previous grandfathers to last.
I'm always wary of "lifetime" offers. There's always get out clauses and there's absolutely no guarantee the company will always be around to support it, especially if the lifetime plans are financially unviable long term. Unless I can quickly recoup my investment within a few short years, it's generally not worth the risk.
@dontpanic: Most "lifetime" offers end up boiling down to be the lifetime of the plan, which is another way of saying until we don't want to anymore.
isn't the watch app free? i've never subscribed for plus, and have it on my watch.
Just what I've been looking for, thanks! Been using Wear Casts and it works but it's not the most refined.
Fyi you can cancel the subscription now without losing it.
Great tip, thanks for that.
Cancelled and went back to see if it stacks - doesn't. But love the app ever since Google Podcast got taken away.
you can backup your podcasts to an OPML file, log into your account and delete it, then sign up again and import the podcasts back in.
Not showing as free any more, only showing 50% off for $33. Anyone else?
Still showing free. Have you subscribed previously? May be an account issue..
Ah all good. You have to go through the PodNews link in OPs post.
Works for me and I've been a free user for almost 10 years.
Thanks!
Seems like a decent no risk way to trial it, not that there's anything in the paid plan that I actually think I need.
Noob question.
How is this app better than say spotify or Apple Podcasts?
For starters, does Spotify and Apple podcast allows you to set skip a custom time for the beginning and ending of each podcast? Most podcasts have a set number of ads at these positions.
Pocket cast also let you set custom playback speed per podcast.
Podcast Addict has those features too.
for Android free/open source AntennaPod allows
- Allows skip x Secs at atrt/end of podcasts (set individually)
- Allows playback speed changes
- Has proxy server ability
what annoys me is that Podcast servers inject local ads into start/middle/end of podcasts for Australia. Yet if I use a proxy (or a VPN) to somewhere Like Turkey, that doesn't happen.
I miss the custom per podcast speed and default skips but on iPhone just say “Hey Siri…”
“skip ahead/back X mins” or “play this at .5/1/1.5/2 speed”
I used Pocketcasts for years but switched to Overcast because of the relatively high subscription cost with little benefit (for me at least).
Overcast has been a disaster for the last few months.
Wants my credit card or Apple Pay, assuming for the next year. Any way around this?
Edit - never mind - didn’t read the post properly! “ Credit Card/Paypal is required for the subscription. You can cancel the subscription straight after signup.”
Yeh not showing as free for me and I've never used it before.
Try clicking the link again in a new tab or Private window. It is still showing as free.
Yeh that worked, thanks mate.
By far the best podcasting app
I’m confused what benefit this gives vs free
More colours
thx, watch app at last!
but isn't that always free? i've never subscribed and have it…
ytdlnis + sponsorblock + vlc media player
Does this combo (or similar setup) work on android?
yes it's what I use, btw sponsorblock is integrated into ydlnis, so you get that revanced adfree experience for pods
https://apt.izzysoft.de/fdroid/index/apk/com.deniscerri.ytdl or wherever you get your foss
But this setup is only good for podcasts available on YouTube, and I found that users don't bother submitting ads segments to sponsorblock for podcasts without video.
@thangcuoi: I mainly listen to super popular podcasts that are on YouTube so this doesn't impact me, but I understand that it would be unhelpful in other situations. Having the ad reads skipped is not something can achieve elsewhere as far as I know.
I would appreciate any other technical solution ideas for ad blocking in podcasts, it's essential imo. I guess Patreon etc 😆
Unsubscribing to turn off auto-renewal seems to be impossible, the sub was outside of Google Play but when I click unsub in the app it tells me how to do it in Google Play.
I'm now on the website on the computer, but the subscription isn't anywhere in the settings, I'm sure it's possible but I'm having a frustratingly difficult time finding it, even if it was something simple I missed earlier on.
Fortunately I used Revolut for the payment method just in case.
I used to use this app for a long time, but I switched to AntennaPod which is FOSS, so it'll always be free for it's features.
I found the unsubscribe, was on the desktop website after clicking my profile image. The first unsubscribe confirmation is a mislead, you need to confirm again.
1-Year is still on my account untill Sep-2025.
Not sure why you got down vote. It was the correct answer.
If you subscribed through the website, you have to unsubscribe via their website. I attempted to unsubscribe via the Android app and it took me to the help page with that answer.
Antenna Pod any good in comparison to Pocket Casts (free) - I only listen to a few casts and wouldnt mind switching
AntennaPod is at least as good, I never noticed I switched and never missed Pocket Casts.
Nice offer! I still find Castro to be the best podcast app though
Great app, but when they shot the annual sub through the roof (what was it, a 40% increase?) I'm surprised it didn't become unsustainable and lose all its subscribers. Paid 50% off last year holding my nose, and couldn't justify the cost of going full price, so this is a sweet deal. Thanks, OP.
Anyone knows how to skip ads and sponsors?
I one answer I keep coming across is to set the app to run through a VPN in a country where the advertisers have no interest in. Too much trouble. Would be better if there is a Sponsorblock adjacent solution.
Pateron
How does Pocket Casts compare to Podurama?
Been using Podurama for awhile now and it seems decent.
Podurama has lifetime subscription
https://podurama.com/premium-offer
$49.99 for lifetime access to Web + Mobile app.
Android: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.podurama.p…
It has a higher ranked score than the PocketCast app
You can also grab it from Stacksocial for $39.99 and there's a 20% off coupon "TAKE20" bringing it down to $31.99
https://www.stacksocial.com/sales/podurama-premium-plan-life…
Is this an ad? Because it looks like an ad
No I was curious why people are paying $65/yr for something that you can pay once.
I initially just included the lifetime sub direct from the developers to help support them, but then i realize ozbargainers usually want a bargain so I added the SS link.
Active development is either very slow or non existent with Podurama. No Devs responding in their own Discord that I can see.
I see 1 month free trial, not 1 year
I see the same .. on the desktop version
then i checked on my phone and can see its free for the year . Check on your device if you were looking on the desktop
Edit: nop , sorry my bad. I later checked again and it does show for me on desktop. think i was checking the wrong link!
Great app.
Thanks Op, signed up,
Thanks OP, will test it out as an Overcast user!
Love the app been using so long
Thanks! Just signed up and cancelled. Am yet to notice any difference in the plus version, other than the ability to add folders (which I have no use for).
Thank you! Love Pocket cast!