Podcasts without Spotify

60 min Average
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A casserole shaped like a microphone is placed on a plate. Illustration: Florian Biege

Listening to podcasts is fun and keeps you up to date! This technology has been around for about 20 years and was originally associated with Apple’s iPod and iTunes programme, which has since been incorporated into Apple Music. Nowadays, most of us listen to podcasts via major tech platforms such as Spotify, (which accounts for a third of all users, according to Edison Research's The UK Podcast Consumer Report 2025), Youtube Music, Amazon, Audible (from Amazon) or Apple.

Podcasting is based on the open RSS (Really Simple Syndication) standard. So you can listen to podcasts easily independent of Big Tech platforms. You'll also avoid a lot of advertising. This is because personalised adverts are 'sprinkled' into podcasts on many platforms via Dynamic Ad Insertion (DAI), whereas on many alternatives, this happens less frequently or not at all.

As the main course Spotify for Fair Music Streaming, and particularly in the dessert section, we served up the topic of podcasts for you to explore. In this recipe, you will learn how to enjoy your podcasts using open standards, such as RSS feeds, and an independent app.

Different ways to cook

Our digital switch recipes provide an easy, simple way to give Big Tech the push, but there are other options available. We have tried to make it easy by focusing on a single approach and a small number of options, but there are other alternatives that are just as good. After all, what we mean by ‘good’, ‘not so good’ and ‘bad’ is open to debate: DI.DAY is about easy ways to give Big Tech the push (without getting into purism or being preachy). Our decisions are based on advice from our advisory panel.

An overview of the alternatives is available on the next page:

Alternatives to Big Tech

Ingredients

1 mobile phone

1 list of your podcast subscriptions

1 reliable podcast app

Preparation

1 App installation

Choose one or more apps that suit your listening habits. Download them from F-Droid or the Apple Store:

For Android

We recommend the open-source app AntennaPod.

For Apple (iOS)

We recommend Podverse (also works for Android and Linux).

Public broadcast app

Podcasts, full broadcasts, radio plays (audio drama) and live radio from the BBC can be found on BBC Sounds. It combines the content of all national stations, including BBC Radio 4 (famous for audio drama and journalism), BBC Radio 1 (new music), and BBC Radio 5 Live (news and sports). You can use the BBC Sounds app on your phone or access it via your computer's web browser.

Öffi-Sounds

Anyone who mainly uses public service podcasts should take a look at the Antenna Pod version ‘Öffi-Sounds’ (available on F-Droid). It features content not only from BBC Sounds, but also from the ORF, the ARD and RTVE.

2 Save your podcast subscriptions

Save a list of your favourite podcasts. YouTube Music is the only platform that offers a way to export your subscriptions, albeit not an entirely straightforward one from a technical point of view.

Spotify, Amazon, Audible or Apple Music

Here's a good reason to switch: these podcast providers make it difficult, if not impossible, for you to transfer your podcast subscriptions to another provider. You're 'locked in' – trapped in their system! However, there is a solution: take a screenshot of your podcast subscriptions or write their names down on a list.

YouTube Music

You can export your podcast subscriptions as a CSV file via Google Takeout. To do this, deselect all the tick boxes and select only 'YouTube and YouTube Music'. Then select 'Include all YouTube files' and choose 'Subscriptions'. Next, click 'Next step' and have the file sent to you by email. You can then convert this file into an OPML file here.

If that’s too complicated, follow the same procedure as for Spotify and similar services.

3 Transfer podcast subscriptions to the new app

AntennaPod

Search for the podcasts from your list in the ‘Subscriptions’ menu using the search box. If you’re coming from YouTube Music, go to ‘Add podcast’ and then click ‘Import podcast list (OPML)’ at the bottom.

Podverse

You can use the ‘Search’ function in the ‘Podcasts’ menu to set up your subscriptions. Once you have saved your favourite podcasts as a subscription list, you can synchronise this list across the system (see below).

If you’re switching from YouTube Music: Go to the 'More' menu and select 'Import OPML file'.

4 Add new podcasts

New podcasts can be added in several ways. You can search for new podcasts directly on Antennapod or on two of the major open directories: Apple Podcasts (the industry standard directory, usable without an account) and the Podcast Index is an open, independent and entirely donation-funded search engine. It serves as a free database for developers worldwide working on modern podcast apps, but can also be used directly in a browser as a free search engine for podcasts.

Dessert

Listening via Nextcloud

If you use a Nextcloud instance, you can also synchronise your podcast subscriptions (or OPML files) across all your devices using the app Gpodder.

Enjoy your meal! You have just taken a big step towards a more independent digital existence.

Once you #DIDit – share our post about the digital switch and inspire others to take control of their own digital lives!

Topping

Video and audio feeds from the Fediverse: PeerTube is a decentralised alternative to YouTube. Many people don’t realise that they can easily integrate any channel into their podcatcher as a podcast feed. This Fedi.Tips guide shows you how to find the right link to stream video and audio content directly in apps such as AntennaPod or Apple Podcasts.

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