Best Website Builder for Podcasts : 7 Builders w/ Audio Embed Options & More
Podcasts have become an integral part of today’s media landscape, and as of January 2023, Podcast Insights reported that there are over 1 million podcasts.
If you want to take the plunge and join the wonderful world of podcast creation, then fear not! Thanks to a wide array of website builders for podcasts, you can now easily start a podcast or move to a hosting platform that will better suit your needs.
But how do you know which website builder is truly the best for podcasts? We spent hours researching and testing to find out and are excited to share our results.
Best Website Builders for Podcasts
- Buzzsprout – Best for first time podcasters
- Podbean – Best for community
- Simplecast – Best for social sharing
- Squarespace – Best overall website builder for podcasts
- Weebly – Best for new web developers
- Wix – Best customizable website
- WordPress – Best website builder for coders
Squarespace’s hundreds of templates and large creative community, combined with top-of-the-line audio features, solidify its rank as the best overall website builder for podcasts.
If you’re ready to dive deep into the world of podcast website builders, take a look at our detailed list below!
Buzzsprout
One of the most widely known podcast hosting websites, Buzzsprout stepped onto the scene in 2009. It’s since helped over 100,000 people begin their own podcast journey and provides helpful tools to help you host, promote, and track the success of your podcast.
Pros:
- Manage multiple podcasts under one account
- Access to an unlimited number of team members
Cons:
- For some, Buzzsprout’s file conversion will downsample the audio files
- Limited amount of customization
Ease of Use
Buzzsprout is one of the simplest website builders for podcasts and is especially great for those just starting out.
After uploading the audio file, all you have to do is input the episode title and description. Then, you can choose to either publish the episode immediately or schedule it for later.
Design Flexibility
Creating a clean and professional-looking website is one of the benefits of using Buzzsprout. However, you’re very limited to the amount of customization you can do to your website.
However, you can create customizable podcast players to embed them into other websites that will fit your unique brand. This player comes with skip forward, backward, or 2x speed controls and buttons to share the episode to Facebook and Twitter.
Website Features
- Magic Mastering ™: This Buzzsprout-exclusive feature is billed as “an Instagram filter for your audio” and uses technology to optimize your audio files.
- Transcription: Make your podcast accessible by utilizing Buzzsprout’s transcription feature.
- Integrate: If you’re currently using other podcast-creating tools, don’t stress losing your material. Buzzsprout works with and alongside podcast tools such as Alitu and Hindenburg Systems to integrate them seamlessly.
- Video Soundbite: Capture the attention of your social media followers with short soundbites from your episodes. Choose your aspect ratio, colors, and style to customize the soundbites to your podcast’s brand.
Help and Support
If you join the Buzzsprout community, you gain access to a series of in-depth podcasting guides and a support team that exceeds in email and over-the-phone communication.
Value for Money
Buzzsprout offers four different monthly plans for podcasters to suit their needs and budgets. While they vary on the amount of upload content, all come with podcast statistics, websites, custom embed players, and 250 GB of bandwidth per month.
- Free: This plan is the website builder’s most basic and includes two hours of uploaded content per month, which will then be hosted for 90 days.
- $12 per month: This plan allows you to upload three hours per month and hosts your episodes indefinitely. You can also upload more content, if necessary, for only $4 per hour, and you can add Magic Mastering for an extra $6.
- $18 per month: With this plan, you can upload up to six hours of podcast content per month and add the Magic Mastering feature for $9 per month.
- $24 per month: With this fourth and final plan, Buzzsprout offers up to 12 hours of content per month, with each additional hour only costing $2.
In addition, you can add on episode transcription for $0.25/ minute, which not only helps the hearing impaired, but search engines find your podcast faster.
PodBean
PodBean is primarily a podcast hosting website but has a feature to easily create a basic website for those who don’t want to go through the hassle of creating a separate one. Its platform is made for podcasters of all skill levels, from newbies to seasoned communicators.
Solidifying itself as one of the oldest and most well-established podcast hosts, it boasts over 470,000 podcasts, 11.1 million episodes, and 7.3 billion downloads (as of July 2023.)
Pros:
- PodBean’s Live Stream feature helps you engage and interact with your listeners in real-time
- Established podcast community
Cons:
- Limited amount of customization
Ease of Use:
One of the ways in which PodBean appeals to newbies is through its audio recorder app, which allows creators to record audio right from their phones and upload episodes directly to your website.
Design Flexibility
Podbean doesn’t offer much in terms of design flexibility but is perfect for those who want a no-hassle website. You can, however, choose a theme and edit elements such as header and background images, audio player color, font style and size, and episode count-per-page.
Website Features:
- SEO Meta Tags plugin: Add basic tags so search engines can easily find your podcast
- Video Podcast Support: If you want to integrate video to your podcast appearance in order to build your personal brand, Podbean supports video files and sharing
Help and Support
A wide selection of free webinars and written resources are available to help you if you come across any challenges when using PodBean.
Value for Money
You can choose from PodBean’s Basic, Unlimited Audio, Unlimited Plus, and Business plans, which vary in storage and bandwidth, service, and monetization functions.
Its Basic Plan is free and comes with five hours of storage space, a 100GB monthly bandwidth, and your own podcast site. However, if you want to create your own domain, then you’ll have to upgrade to the Unlimited Audio Plan, which offers unlimited storage space and unmetered bandwidth.
Simplecast
Bold and professional, Simplecast joined the world of podcasting and was recently acquired by SiriusXM, which also owns Pandora and backs SoundCloud. This primarily remains a podcast hosting website, but recent features have allowed podcasters to create their very own websites through Simplecast.
Pros:
- Embeddable web player
- Advanced episode analytics
- Customizable show website and domain with the basic plan
Cons:
- A little pricier with basic plans starting at $15/ month (or $13.50 if paid annually)
Ease of Use:
Choosing Simplecast means you can combine the website’s powerful podcast hosting features with the ease of having your website in the same place.
Design Flexibility
Much like PodBean, Simplecast gives you a more hands-off approach to creating a podcast website.
Website Features:
- RSS Feed: Allow your subscribers to receive updates in real-time
- Analytics: Gain insight into your listener’s location and technology data
Help and Support
If you’re struggling with navigating this website builder, then don’t worry! Simplecast’s help center features a collection of helpful articles. Topics include, but are not limited to, how to import, publish, and manage your podcast and how to track and understand your podcast’s analytics and statistics.
Value for Money
Simplecast is one of the pricier options, with the basic plan only starting at $13.50 if paid annually. However, the powerful analytic tools and RSS feed are features that can sway serious podcasters.
Squarespace
With gorgeous website templates and advanced tools, Squarespace is one of the most versatile website builders out there and is the choice for a multitude of podcasters. This all-in-one content management system is known for its extensive feature index, which includes image managers and audio collections that allow you to easily share your podcasts and highlight them with an integrated player, useful for any podcaster.
Pros:
- Customizable domain
- Easily link to your Facebook, Foursquare, Instagram, SoundCloud, and iTunes Store accounts
- Advanced analytics across plans
Cons:
- Not able to support multiple languages
Ease of Use:
Squarespace allows you to create stunning websites, and its ever-evolving features allow you to constantly update and customize them.
Design Flexibility:
Squarespace creates customizable, professional-looking websites. You can choose one of the website builder’s many templates and easily add photos, audio, contact, pages, and more thanks to its drag-and-drop feature.
Website Features:
- Library of features that range from commerce and analytics tools to those that will help you track analytics and enhance your knowledge of SEO.
- Template Switching: Unlike Wix, Squarespace allows you to install multiple templates on a website and work within them individually, so you create a website you’re proud of.
Help and Support
A 24-hour help center with personalized support via email, live chat, or webinar is a perk of this popular website builder.
Value for Money
You can pay annually or monthly for one of Squarespace’s many plans. For most podcasters, the personal plan, which is either $12 per month if paid annually or $16 per month if paid monthly, will be sufficient enough for all your needs. This plan includes unlimited bandwidth and storage, SEO features, basic website metrics, and 27/7 customer support.
However, you can upgrade your account to a basic commerce page for $26 per month (if paid annually), which comes with a free custom domain, a professional Google email, and complete customization with CSS and JavaScript. In addition to those basic features, you’ll also receive advanced marketing and commerce tools that can help you monetize your podcast.
Weebly
Weebly offers step-by-step guidance to first-time website builders and provides easy-to-use and maintain features for your podcast website.
Pros:
- Easy to use
- Extensive app center
- Drag-and-drop web editor
Cons:
- Limited design flexibility
Ease of Use:
Weebly is one of the most simple website builders and is made specifically for those who don’t have any experience in managing or building a website.
Design Flexibility:
Design flexibility in one arena in which Weebly struggles to match other website builders.
Website Features:
- Video Backgrounds: If building your personal brand through your podcast is important, this feature can help create a truly multimedia experience for your listeners.
- Custom Headers: Use images, slideshows, or videos to create a fully-customizable header for your website.
Help and Support:
Weebly’s support center features hundreds of articles that cover everything from domains and emails to email marketing to tutorials on building your first website. Additionally, you can find more information and gain knowledge through the Weebly Community where you can get feedback on your websites and ask questions.
Value for Money:
Weebly offers a Free plan which comes with SSL Security, SEO tools, and the ability to show your Instagram feed. However, upgrading to the Professional Plan, which costs $12 per month if paid annually, provides additional benefits such as advanced site statistics, a free domain, and phone support for any problems that may arise.
Wix
Don’t let the simplicity of website creation through Wix fool you. This powerful and flexible website builder is perfect for those who don’t have a lot of coding knowledge, and with over 500 professionally designed templates, you can create a professional-looking podcast website in mere hours.
Pros:
- Extensive template library
- Seamlessly upgrade to premium plans
- Wix ADI harnesses the power of artificial design to create stunning websites
Cons:
- Since there are so many options to customize, it can be overwhelming at first
- Once you choose a template, you’re stuck with it
Ease of Use:
Wix is the perfect website builder for those who have little to no experience in design or coding. You can easily move photo, text, and audio elements around to create the perfect look for your podcast website.
Design Flexibility
Wix is one of the most popular and user-friendly website builders and boasts many features to fit your design flexibility.
Website Features:
- Wix Music: Can also upload mono and M4A files
- SoundCloud App: Easily integrate your SoundCloud-based podcast episodes to your website with this stunning player
- Customizable Music Player: A fully-customizable music player allows you to easily share your podcast
Help and Support
The Wix Help Center boasts a wide array of articles concerning topics such as editor issues, SEO page settings, and the Wix Mobile App. With premium plans, you also have access to priority support from incredible customer service members.
Value for Money
Wix’s free plan comes with advanced features such as access to hundreds of templates, increased storage, customized favicon, and free hosting.
However, if you want to take your website to the next level, you can upgrade to unlimited, pro, and VIP plans which come with
WordPress
While most people think of WordPress as a blog website, it also contains amazing features that make it a prime candidate for podcast website builders. While advanced knowledge of HTML, CSS, and JavaScript isn’t required to use this web builder, having a basic understanding of them is extremely helpful.
Pros:
- Established community of online publishers to help you along the way
- Easily embed a wide array of media
Cons:
- Need coding knowledge to truly customize the website
Ease of Use:
WordPress offers a few templates under the free plan that look professional and clean; however, for more nuanced customization, knowledge of coding is necessary.
Design Flexibility
The templates are captivating and clean, however not having any coding experience will limit the number of changes you can make to the design of your page.
Website Features:
- Built-in social sharing: You can automatically schedule your podcasts to share to Twitter, Facebook, and other sharing sites
- Statistics: Better understand and track your audience through location data
- SEO: Through add-on plugins such as Yoast SEO, you can create posts that are optimized for keywords, keyphrases, synonyms, and related keywords
Help and Support:
When you come across any roadblocks, 24-hour support is available via email and through the website’s many community forums. If you choose to purchase one of WordPress’ premium plans, a team of Happiness Engineers can help you in real-time through a live chat feature.
Value for Money:
The most basic WordPress plan is free and comes with all the basic tools to build a personalized podcast website. However, upgrading to one of the site’s premium plans can enhance your website with features such as adding a custom domain, advanced design tools, and custom plugins.
How to Choose a Podcast Website Builder
Now that we’ve presented you with our top seven podcast website builders, it’s up to you to decide which one will best suit your needs. It’s important to weigh the pros and cons, while also factoring in other important details.
Ease of Use
Depending on your experience level in digital and technical design, ease of use is one of the most important factors you should consider when searching for a podcast website builder. By finding one that’s easy to use, you can spend more time creating and editing your podcast and less on designing your website.
Templates and Design
Stunning templates and advanced design features will take your podcast website to the next level. With extensive template libraries that make customizing them a breeze, website builders such as Wix and Squarespace are at the head of the game.
Apps and Plugins
Adding apps and plugins to your podcast website not only creates a more user-friendly and engaging experience but can lead to more listeners and a more identifiable brand.
Domain Name
Having a unique domain name is important for branding and SEO purposes. Most website builders allow you to create your own; however, that option is only included in premium plans.
Marketing Tools
Having access to a wide array of marketing tools can help you reach a wider audience and better interact with your social media channels’ fans and followers. Some helpful features include tools that allow you to display live feeds from your social media channels and integrate your website with MailChimp.
SEO
SEO is a vital feature to have when publishing any content online and will increase the chance your podcast can be found online.
Value for Money
When spending as much time on creating your podcast and publishing it to the web, you want to make sure you’re getting the best value for your money.
Help and Support
While most website builders offer email or phone support, what sets apart one website builder from the next is the level of support you receive.
7 Best Podcast Website Builders: Roundup
Website builders play an integral role in the success of any content creator, and these seven will take yours to the next level.
It’s important to note that the best podcast website builders are the ones that not only create stunning websites that reflect your podcast’s brand but help you understand your audience and connect you to a community of other podcast lovers. This is why we recommend Squarespace as the best choice to create websites for podcasts. Before we move onto the FAQ section, let’s recap our top seven one last time:
- Buzzsprout – Best for first time podcasters
- Podbean – Best for community
- Simplecast – Best for social sharing
- Squarespace – Best overall website builder for podcasts
- Weebly – Best for new web developers
- Wix – Best customizable website
- WordPress – Best website builder for coders
FAQs
Now that you have a better understanding of not only the website builders tailored specifically for podcasts but how to determine the best ones for your needs, you may have some lingering questions.
Which podcast website builder is the most user friendly?
Although we voted Squarespace as our best overall website builder, Wix offers comparable features, and templates are slightly more user friendly due to its many options to customize the website.
Which podcast website builder looks the best on mobile?
Making sure your website is not only readable but maintains the same aesthetic appearance on mobile devices is essential in today’s digital world. Here, Wix also rises to the challenge through their mobile-optimized templates. Through Wix, you’re also able to make small edits to the mobile version of your website.
How do I start a podcast?
Creating a podcast is a fun and easy way to share your ideas ranging from politics and history to pop culture and true crime. Here are five easy steps to help you launch your podcast:
- Pick a topic for your podcast.
- Choose a name and create a logo.
- Record!
- Publish your podcast episode to your chosen website builder.
- Submit your podcast to popular directories such as Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, and TuneIn.
