Distribution and Podcast Apps FAQ

How long does it take podcast listening platforms to accept a new RSS feed and publish a podcast?

Each platform is a little different. Some will accept an RSS feed and publish a podcast within a few days while others can take up to 2 weeks. Not all listening platforms will notify you when your podcast has been published. Your best bet is to periodically search for your podcast on each platform until it's been published.

I submitted by podcast's RSS feed to Apple Podcasts but there's a problem. What should I do?

Review our Apple Podcasts Troubleshooting guide. The Apple Podcast Connect help center also includes detailed guides for each error message you might be seeing.

I've added a new episode in Castos. How long does it take to appear on podcast apps? 

Although this process is automatic, it's not immediate. It can take up to 24 hours to see new episodes, updated cover art, etc. updated on each platform. 

Will I have to resubmit the RSS feed every time I publish a new episode?

No. A connection is created between the podcast listening platform and your podcast once the RSS feed has been accepted and your podcast has been published. After that, each platform will recognize new episodes are available in your podcast's RSS feed and add them to your podcast.

Do I need an Apple ID and Apple Podcast Connect account to publish my podcast on Apple Podcasts?

Yes. Before submitting your podcast's RSS feed you'll need to create a free Apple Podcast Connect account. Apple has put together this step-by-step guide if you have any questions.

My latest episode is missing from directories

It can take several hours for all podcast directories to ingest your latest episode

1. If your latest episode is in some directories but not all directories, and the episode is not a video episode, it's likely that the directory hasn't crawled your RSS feed yet looking for changes to ingest. It should only be a matter of time before they do, usually within 24 hours of publishing. (Note: if your episode audio file is not an mp3 but an m4a, ogg, aac, or oga file, these are not supported by all directories so the episode may be ignored until you replace the episode file with an mp3 file)

2. If your latest episode is not on any directories after an hour since it's been published, check your RSS feed using Chrome or Firefox to verify that the latest episode is in the RSS feed (if an episode is not in your RSS feed, it's not available for podcast directories and apps to ingest).

   Your RSS feed will be XML so if it's easier, you can just use the "Find" browser option (usually control + f or command + f) and search for the title of the episode. If it's missing from your RSS feed, go back to your Castos dashboard and confirm that the status of the episode is published and not in a scheduled, draft, or archived status. If it's in an unpublished state, you will need to publish it. If it reflects that it's published, we recommend first resaving the episode (clears our app cache) and then doing a hard-refresh of the RSS feed in the browser (to clear your browser's cache).

   1. If the episode is still not in the RSS feed after resaving and the hard-refresh, reach out to us in support.
   2. If the episode is made available in your RSS feed after resaving the episode, it will now only be a matter of time for the episode to be ingested by directories. We would recommend you still reach out to us in support to tell us what happened so we can investigate why the episode didn't hit the RSS feed when it was supposed to. Include details like if the episode was scheduled, if it's an episode that was available to private subscribers first or anything else about your workflow to publish the episode.

I have a video podcast. Which podcast directories support video playback?

If your podcast includes video, it’s important to know where it will be properly supported. Some directories, like Apple Podcasts, Pocket Casts, and Podcast Addict (on Android), openly support video playback directly in their apps. Others—such as iHeartRadio, Deezer, and Amazon Music—will accept an RSS feed that includes video, but they’ll only play the audio portion. Pandora does not currently support video podcast submissions via RSS at all. And lastly, Spotify does not recognize or accept video episodes in an RSS feed from third-party hosting platforms.