Best Audio Drama and Fiction Podcasts for 2025: Immerse Yourself

It’s 2025. They promised us flying cars. Instead, we have The Internet, which brings the destination (or a facsimile) directly to you. This isn’t the world we want, but it’s the world we have. It’s not safe to go into 2025 alone; bring a friend. Preferably a friend in the form of one of these audio drama podcasts. 

Curated by Lindsay Harris Friel, editor of the Fiction Podcast Weekly newsletter.

Listening to fiction podcasts turns tedious experiences into adventures. They can help you empathize with entirely different people and understand situations at the frontiers of your imagination. And they make your daily tasks fun.

These immersive stories showcase some of the finest acting and sound design outside of big-budget movies and TV shows.  Plus, in many cases, these shows illuminate topics for which Hollywood doesn’t have the cojones. Here are some of the best new audio drama podcasts you can put in your pocket for 2025.  And, I’ll also tell you about the enduring shows that have stayed at the top of the podcast charts for as long as there have been fiction podcasts.

Alpha 8 

What Happens? When a top-secret government research project captures and studies an alien life form, the alien reproduces the form and behavior of the lead researcher’s wife, and tries to blend into the family.  

Why Do You Need This? Don’t mistake this for fish-out-of-water comedy. In Alpha 8, you’re forced to examine human behavior and connection. The behaviors and people we take for granted are front and center, and being mistaken for someone else can have deadly consequences. 

For Fans Of: Extant, Moon, Westworld, and any sci-fi where technology forces people to examine their identity.

Ask Your Father

What Happens? Lem, an astronaut, and Mikey, an AI, embark on a deep space mission, only to find themselves trapped double their planned distance from Earth, without enough fuel to return. They can communicate with Earth via miniscule, faster-than-light drives, so Lem answers questions sent by his family back home.

Ask Your Father may seem like a heartwarming story of Dadstronaut and his sidekick Friendbot answering interesting questions. But, writer Sean Williams gradually turns up the pressure, forcing the characters into new arrangements that make the characters change to survive an intolerable universe. 

Why Do You Need This? Heartwarming, intriguing characters are forced into a situation that would drive most people to violence. They may break down, but instead of succumbing to hate, they find new coping methods. If you believe that community and support networks are essential to human survival, Ask Your Father is for you. 

For Fans Of: Gravity, Interstellar, and stories where the vastness of space pales in comparison to the resilience and flexibility of the human heart. 

A2Z

What Happens? Mad scientist Zzzucks wants the benefits of friendship, so he creates an AI to say nice things to him. But, Aileen, the AI, deduces that friendship is complicated, so she enlists the audience’s help to understand social skills. Can the audience help Aileen teach Zzzucks how to be a good friend, while preventing more cheesesplosions?

Why Do You Need This? Yes, A2Z is a kids’ and family podcast, and it’s hilarious. This show helps people understand why we want to connect with others and how to do that meaningfully.

It’s hard to make friends and participate in community, whether you’re a kid or an adult. If you spend a lot of time on social media and see rewards for negative behavior, knowing how to be a good friend is tough. Fortunately, A2Z has the intelligent, anxious, and hyperactive Zzzuck to follow his poor impulse control, and the patient Aileen to redirect him when needed. These two are played by audio comedy stars Tom Crowley and Gemma Arrowsmith, respectively, who embrace the absurdity of friendship with gusto.  Plus, A2Z innovates with its companion app to help the audience practice and reflect on the protagonist’s struggles with social skills. 

For Fans Of: Black Books, The Office, Abbott Elementary, Wooden Overcoats, or anything with a character who behaves badly, though the audience can sympathize without identifying with them.

Bitcherton

What Happens: This improvised comedy of manners uses all the tropes of Regency-era literature, balancing social norms against modern social thought. Everyone in the Bitcherton-verse knows the myriad expectations of respectable behavior. But they may be hiding a corpse in the library. No, really. Can the daughters get married before anyone finds out?

Why Do You Need This?  If A2Z is a podcast where the characters have good social intentions but poor methods, Bitcherton is the reverse. Etiquette is everything, especially when you’ve landed in a ditch. Do you and everyone you know need a laugh? Yes. Do you need a laugh that skewers social expectations? Double yes, definitely. Whether you’re sick of Austenmania, or you can’t get enough of “the ton,” Bitcherton should be in your reticule.

For Fans Of: Jane Austen, Bridgerton, Pride & Prejudice & Zombies, and Vivian Stanshall. And, if you know who Vivian Stanshall is, you must have bloody good manners. 

Camlann

What Happens? After an apocalyptic event, a group of survivors take refuge in a cabin in Wales. Soon, they discover contemporary technology and weapons are useless, and ancient mythic creatures are coming out to play. Meanwhile, Arthur’s round table conspires to control them.

Why Do You Need This? What would you do if every electronic device you rely on now was useless, and you had to live without all the comforts of the 21st (or even the 20th) century? Everyone wants to see a unicorn, but what if one appeared in your garden and attacked your family? Where would you find your reserves of strength, and how can you use them? Camlann’s story, acting, and music will hook you, and Tin Can Audio’s sound design will surround you with a new reality. 

For Fans Of: Obviously, sword and sorcery fantasy enthusiasts will enjoy this. Fans of The Green Knight who cherished the hero’s internal struggle will be rewarded. Perry’s internal and external conflicts will resonate with anyone experiencing gender pressure.

The Devil’s Chair

What Happens? An Irish comedian throws off the shackles of her abusive childhood to go to America in search of fame and fortune. When a desperately needed gig becomes inhospitable due to a friendly younger comedian, all her inner demons rise to grab the situation.

Why Do You Need This? Faustian bargain tales are everywhere, but The Devil’s Chair differs because the character is her own demon. The consequences of not accepting the Faustian bargain aren’t “aging naturally” but “Will I become my abusive past?”

This mini-series provides a painful catharsis, but for any artist or performer (women especially), what the protagonist learns is painful yet necessary. Writer-performer Méabh de Brún will pull your emotions to all the extremes. At one point, while listening, I had to drop everything, stop, turn it off, and catch my breath. The Devil’s Chair is a two-part miniseries in Realm’s showcase podcast, Undertow. Finding it may take more than three clicks, but don’t miss this hidden gem. 

For Fans Of: All versions of Faust, anything by Martin McDonagh or Stephen King, The Twilight Zone, and Rememory. 

Havana Syndrome

What Happens? It’s Thanksgiving. Your sister announces she’s quit her job as a CIA operative and disappears in search of a mysterious sound. What do you do? Well, after the mysterious agents question your parents, and your folks tell them to come back with a warrant, you do whatever you can to find your sister and keep her safe. Unfortunately, the situation she’s gotten herself into involves Cuba, whose complicated history has tangled with America’s for much longer than most people would like to remember.

Why Do You Need This? There are many podcasts with “Havana Syndrome” in the title. But, Havana Syndrome, An Audio Drama combines news footage with a family narrative to sweep you up in an espionage thriller. Not only will you better understand current events, but also you’ll care more deeply about them. Dimitri and Guadalupe’s mourning over their sister’s disappearance is heartbreaking. The dramatization of experiencing Havana Syndrome is as riveting as any horror story you’ve experienced. And, this podcast has clues to an alternate reality game. Can you find and decode them? (If so, can you help me out? It’s not easy.) 

For Fans Of: Stormfire Productions says this is a good fit for fans of The Diplomat, The X-Files, and Where In The World is Carmen Sandiego. I’d add that it’s as tense as The Americans. If you enjoy anything involving the complexity of Cuban-American family life, Havana Syndrome is for you. 

How Copy

What Happens? Three people from different walks of life have vanished in seemingly unconnected situations. A police detective learns that all three people each owned a black box with a voice recorder, labeled, “How Copy.” 

Why Do You Need This?  When tragedy strikes, do you persevere or disappear? How Copy’s voice files from the disappeared characters are gripping, and Detective Nowak’s investigation is challenging enough to make you want to kick doors down for him. Why Not Theatre Company and writer Tanja Mastilo skillfully weave subtexts in the narrative to craft a compelling story about self-doubt and resistance.

The podcast is a prequel (or is it a sequel?) to Why Not’s stage production, Enter Copy, which “in a different setting, explores the same themes of escapism, trauma and technology.”

For Fans Of: True crime podcasts, or any version of Law & Order (especially those who wish it were more like The X-Files). 

Silvertongues

What Happens? Young people living on a Pacific island try to recover missing memories of their past. The residents of a remote island try to get rid of them. Meanwhile, someone is abducting people in a location surrounded by ancient statues. This story isn’t told in a typical sequence (though it is logical). Is there a problem with memory or space and time? Don’t let me spoil it for you. 

Why Do You Need This? Everyone needs a tropical island and absurdist humor, and Silvertongues delivers. The impulsive bush pilot with her DIY pre-Soviet plane, and the Australian enforcer who truly loves snakes, are just two examples of how wild Silvertongues’ ride is.  More than that, the mysterious abduction scenes will chill you because of their simplicity and ease.

For Fans Of: You may think I’m gonna say this is good for fans of Lost, and I won’t disagree. But, if you ever wished that David Lynch had made Twin Peaks take place in a Pacific island chain, this is your show. 

White Vault: Goshawk

What Happens? Wildlife photographers in a winter camping situation somewhere between Maine and Canada find two women on the run from kidnappers. The line between civilization and wilderness is hard to maintain in the hostile storm environment. Meanwhile, in Berlin, a vehicular attack on climate activists throws a mysterious global family concern into peril. 

Why Do You Need This? The White Vault has terrified audio drama and fiction podcast enthusiasts for nearly ten years. The latest season, Goshawk, is no less captivating. When people ask for podcast recommendations on Reddit, often they say they’re looking for “something like The White Vault.” Fool and Scholar has set a precedent for excellence not only in story, but also in sound design and music. Conflict between humans and nature currently makes daily life intolerable. If Paige Williams’ New Yorker article, “Life Among The Bears in Tahoe”, made you anxious, you ain’t seen nothin’ yet. 

For Fans Of: The Revenant, Never Cry Wolf, Life Below Zero. 

World Gone Wrong

What Happens: Not only is the world coming to an end, but also, your bestie/roommate also had to move halfway across the country. What do you do? Obviously, you start a podcast. Somebody’s got to help people out. Crumbling infrastructure, werewolves, zombies, body snatchers, and family dynamics are just some of the problems Malik and Jamie try to solve with their chat podcast. 

Why Do You Need This? It doesn’t matter if your daily problems are natural, un-natural, or supernatural. What matters is how you choose to respond to them. World Gone Wrong’s hosts, Malik and Jamie, showcase flexibility and fortitude in response to the unexpected. We could all benefit from their example. If reality has got you down, World Gone Wrong wants to ride along with you. 

For Fans Of: Welcome to Night Vale, and people who wonder, “What would happen if Hotel Transylvania was mashed up with WKRP in Cincinnati?” (I know you’re out there.)

Enduring Audio Drama and Fiction Podcasts: The Ancestors

Almost any time someone writes a roundup of the best audio drama and fiction podcasts, these shows appear. Many of them influence podcast creators today. Some of the shows that continue to set standards are…

• The Bright Sessions. If you ever want to eavesdrop on someone else’s therapy session, stop by Doctor Bright’s office. She provides talk therapy for teens who happen to have supernatural abilities. Why is Dr. Bright uniquely qualified to sort out the psyches of people who need to “stay strange?” Keep listening to find out.
• Campfire Radio Theatre has brewed a heady cocktail of horror stories since 2011. New episodes of this anthology series are published a few times a year, each showing months of craft and skill. Get the good headphones and invest in some sock garters because John Ballentine can scare your socks off.
• Edict Zero. In response to the cataclysmic events on New Year’s Day of the year 2415, the Federal Investigative Services assembled a task force at their headquarters in Capitol City to find the responsible party, eliminate danger, and deliver justice. This cyberpunk thriller is for people who like Big, Immersive Epics.
• Limetown. A young journalist researches the sudden disappearance of hundreds of people from a company’s living community called Limetown. What happened to them? Could it happen to you?
• Welcome to Night Vale. If a surreal town in a quiet desert had a public radio station, this would be the late-night transmission. Come for the soothing voices, unconventional weather reports, and conspiracy-theory-fueled travel advisories. Stay for a saga where your nightmares come to life, and they mean well.
• We’re Alive. What started as a story of survival during a zombie outbreak spawned multiple seasons from different perspectives, re-invigorating the undead archetype. After 14 years, Wayland Productions still produces new visions for this particular strain of chomping flu. In We’re Alive: Scouts Honor, pre-teen Adventure Scouts stranded on Catalina Island confront “the infected.”
• Wooden Overcoats. Picture it: Piffling, a small Channel island, present day. Rudyard Funn and his sister Antigone operate their ancient family business, the island’s sole funeral home. When a kind, energetic, and resourceful funeral director, Eric Chapman, sets up shop across the square, Rudyard takes umbrage. Always funny, often thought-provoking, and occasionally tear-jerking, Wooden Overcoats continues traditions of great British comic storytelling.

Nearly every audio drama or fiction podcaster today can tell you they listened to some, if not all, of these shows when they first started. Find out what all the fuss is about.

The Best Audio Drama and Fiction Podcasts Turn Your Chores Into Adventures.

Some say they don’t have time to listen to podcasts, let alone audio drama and fiction. In The 25 Hour Day, Tom Webster posited that podcast listening is “a way to grab five minutes to yourself, away from a screen, in those little pockets of time that we all know we have.” What if tedious tasks could become opportunities for escape? It’d be like getting more time for yourself: an extra hour in your day.

Independent audio drama and fiction podcasts give you a world of ideas you won’t find elsewhere. These shows ask tough questions, spark audiences’ imagination, and help you experience the world differently. To experience curiosity and excitement, make it a point to follow and dig into more independent audio drama and fiction podcasts.

Whether you’re a curious listener looking to dip into the world of fiction podcasts, or, an experienced audio drama creator looking to stay up-to-date with the medium, the Fiction Podcast Weekly is the newsletter that has you covered. It’s free, and it drops into your inbox every Friday!