Here, we’ll answer all the frequently asked questions about scoring your content with a tune or two. We also list our favourite podcast music libraries so you can pick something safe and legal to use on your show.

Quick Podcast Music Discounts

• PremiumBeat: Use PODCASTPB to get 10% off individual tracks
• Epidemic: Use TPH25OFF for 25% off the yearly Personal plan
• Shutterstock: Use PODCASTHOST to get 10% off sitewide
• Envato Elements: Use TPH50 to get 50% off the annual plan or TPH30 to get 30% off the monthly

Or, read on for our musical masterclass… (don’t worry, nobody is going to sing at you)

This post contains affiliate links to services we think you’ll find useful. We may earn a small commission should you choose to sign up to them, though never at any extra cost to yourself.

Do I NEED Podcast Music?

There’s no rule saying that you must have music in your podcast. Some great podcasts have no music at all. But having your own theme tune adds a layer of identity and professionalism to any show.

Adding music in itself won’t make your show sound professional or polished – this is all down to your content – but it can really enhance the sound of a well-recorded and engaging conversation.

When used carelessly, podcast music can also negatively affect your listener’s experience. A theme tune that’s a little too long, a music bed that’s a little too loud, or a transition piece where the tone is at odds with the content can be jarring. Podcast music done well should be barely noticeable to the listener’s conscious mind, save for those opening few seconds where they instantly recognise your episode opening.

Types of Podcast Music

First, let’s look at how music is typically used in podcasting and audio content.

Podcast Intro Music: Your Theme Tune

Your podcast intro music is also known as your theme tune. It’s the music that opens the show, and it’ll usually play towards the end of your episodes, too (where it would, unsurprisingly, be known as your podcast outro music).

Podcast intro music lets folks identify your show within a second or two of it starting. The likelihood is that your latest episode is in a playlist with a few other shows, so if the listener isn’t looking at their phone, they’ll still know that it’s you almost immediately.

With podcast intro music, you want to keep it short and sweet. Anything longer than about eight seconds without any talking can begin to grate on listeners. They’ll just hit the skip button or use an app like Overcast to auto-start a minute or two into every episode. Remember, this isn’t like TV, where at least some visuals occupy people during theme music.

Likewise, don’t force people to sit through a long theme tune at the end. Five to eight seconds is more than enough. You can still use a lot more of your music by fading it underneath your voice, both at the beginning and end of the episode. You just don’t want to force people to listen to a song and nothing else. If they wanted to do that, they’d just put on their favourite album.

Podcast Background Music (AKA Music Beds)

Background music is less common in podcasting. You’ll typically find it in audio drama or documentary podcasts, but not so much in most solo or interview shows.

Background music can also be known as a “music bed”, which plays underneath a vocal segment to add some ambience and mood. This type of music can also be used to fade up and transition between different content segments.

Going down this route means it’s going to take you a lot longer to edit and produce your podcast. Podcast listeners also don’t tend to expect this type of music, either. If done well, it can be a nice bonus for them. But will it impact your ability to release new episodes on a consistent and sustainable basis?

Stingers, Transitions, Idents, & Bumpers

Conversation crafts the narrative of your podcast, but you can punctuate moments with stingers or bridge two different segments with musical transitions. Bumpers might work well for ongoing segments like “Mailbag” or “The Question of the Week”.

Idents are more common on radio shows, where the listener needs to be reminded what station they’re tuned into, but podcasters can use them to play ongoing Calls to Action on episodes, for example, mentioning your social handles or asking the listener to rate and review.

What Music Can I LEGALLY Use in My Podcast? Stay Podsafe!

So, now that you have an idea about HOW you’ll use music in your podcast, let’s talk about what music you can legally use. This type of music is often referred to as “Podsafe”.

It’s your duty to make sure you have permission to use whatever music you play on your podcast. Generally, there are three ‘Podsafe’ options available to you.

1. Royalty-Free Music for Podcasters

With Royalty-Free music, you buy the license for a piece of podcast music (as opposed to paying ongoing royalties, hence the name!). This entitles you to use the music as and when you wish, for the duration of the license.

Most one-off music purchases give you a lifetime license, and a lot of the newer ‘subscription’ services give you a license, as long as you have an active subscription. That doesn’t mean you need to go back and remove music from old episodes when you’re no longer paying a subscription – it just means that you shouldn’t be adding tracks to new episodes after that point.

Terms and conditions will vary, however. Be sure to familiarise yourself with this information when you choose a particular platform.

2. Creative Commons Music for Podcasters

There are various types of Creative Commons licenses. Most entitle you to use a piece of music for free and without permission, so long as you credit the composer.

Some Creative Commons licenses permit commercial use, whilst others don’t. It’s usually pretty clear which is which, though. Again, read any license carefully to make sure you’re covered.

3. Public Domain Music for Podcasters

Music becomes free of copyright and enters the public domain after a certain number of years. Usually, this follows the artist or copyright holder’s death. The law and time period differ from country to country, but 70 years after death is a ballpark figure.

That said, there’s a further grey area here. There’s a big difference between the song itself (which may be in the public domain) and its recording or performance. If a musician today performed and recorded an ancient public domain song, they’d be the copyright holder of that rendition, and you wouldn’t be allowed to use it without their permission. Err on the side of caution when thinking of using music you believe to be in the public domain.

Can I Use Copyrighted Music on My Podcast?

In short, no. You might hear someone claiming that you can use copyrighted music for “up to 7 seconds” or read some debates around what constitutes “fair use” of music. “Fair use” is a defence you can try to use if you get in trouble for alleged copyright violation. But why even take the risk of needing a defence when plenty of legal options are available?

Using copyrighted music in your show risks being kicked off Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or YouTube, which would massively damage the reach of any podcast.

Here’s a deeper dive into using copyrighted music in a podcast.

In summary, ask yourself, “Will my listeners unsubscribe because they don’t get to hear 10 seconds of Bohemian Rhapsody at the start?”

If the answer is “yes,” then it’s definitely time to revisit the content planning stages!

If you want to learn more about how the law applies to podcast music, check out this interview with Gordon Firemark on Podcraft. He’s a media lawyer who discusses copyright and fair use in great detail.

Best Podcast Music Libraries

Alright, time for some resources. Need a tune for true crime? A ditty for drama? Or a cappella for comedy? You’ll find every type of podcast music imaginable on these great podcast music platforms.

Epidemic Sound

Limited offer: We’ve teamed up with Epidemic Sound to bring you an exclusive discount. Sign up to Epidemic Sound’s yearly Personal plan using coupon code TPH25OFF for a massive 25% off!

If you want diversity and quality, Epidemic Sound’s catalogue is bursting with more than 50,000 tracks created by real artists. On top of that, they have over 200,000 unique sound effects and variations to flick through.

Backed by AI-powered soundmatching tools, seamless plugin partnerships with CapCut and Adobe, and an ever-evolving catalogue, Epidemic Sound is more than just music. Their world-class Music Curation team is constantly hunting for fresh sounds, and they even offer podcast-specific playlists, if you’re really stuck for ideas. 

Monthly Personal plans start from $17.99, while Commercial plans begin at $59.99 per month. Check out the free trial below, and don’t forget to use the TPH25OFF coupon code for a huge 25% off the yearly Personal plan!

Try Epidemic

Shutterstock

Use coupon code PODCASTHOST to get 10% off sitewide on Shutterstock.

Shutterstock takes a strict approach to quality control in their library, and they say that most who submit music don’t get accepted. This highly exclusive approach to curation makes their library of tracks stand out. 

Shutterstock’s new unlimited subscription includes both Music and SFX. 30,000 tracks and 8,000 Metaverse-ready immersive SFX – starting at $16.60/mo USD.

100% of Shutterstock’s tracks are copyright-clear and can be used forever once licensed, and finding the right music for your projects is easy. Their library is optimised for painless search, thanks to precise filters that let you browse by genre, mood, popularity, freshness, and more. The in-house music team adds dozens of tracks weekly, so you’ve always got new music at your fingertips. 

With a robust selection of pricing plans, bundles, and licenses, good deals exist for every budget and need. In addition to traditional pay-per-song licensing, customers can sign up for a subscription that offers unlimited downloads.

Try Shutterstock

PremiumBeat by Shutterstock

PremiumBeat’s royalty-free music tracks are 100% exclusive and copyright clear. PremiumBeat collections span multiple styles giving you the feel of big production houses. They have a ton of sound effects available in their library, too, if you’re working on something a bit more highly-produced!

PremiumBeat’s Unlimited Music Subscription gives you (would you believe it!?) unlimited downloads of over 40,000 songs and 16,000 sound effects for just $9.99 per month.

Get 10% off individual tracks on PremiumBeat using coupon code PODCASTPB 

Try PremiumBeat

AudioHero

AudioHero is an online library of more than 300,000 royalty-free music tracks and sound effects available to you for download. We have teamed up with them to bring you some exclusive discounts, too.

• Get 50% off their annual plan each year using the coupon code TPH50
• Get 30% off their monthly plan each month using the coupon code TPH30

Try AudioHero

Envato Elements

Envato Elements is the subscription service from long-time royalty-free asset marketplace, Envato. They’re behind some of the biggest creative marketplaces on the web, of which Audiojungle is the audio showpiece.

Envato’s elements subscription gives you access to their full royalty-free music library, boasting nearly 100,000 tunes. Add to that 575,000 sound effects and there’s no doubt you’ll find everything you need. To help with that, Elements offers all the standard categories and search filters, allowing you to narrow down your search super-fast. And one thing that stands out is their vocal sample library, which might interest podcasters who are looking to produce more sophisticated theme tunes to really suit their brand.

Envato costs more than other libraries if you buy it monthly ($33). But buying an annual subscription drops the price to around the same as the competition (equivalent to $15 per month).

Envato’s huge advantage, justifying that cost for many, are the other resources you get alongside the music. Photos, stock video, YouTube templates, graphics templates, you name a creative asset, Envato’s got it. So, if you do other things around your podcast – like video or image-heavy social – then this could really work for you.

Try Envato Elements

Podcast Music & Sound Effects With Videvo

Royalty-free platform Videvo offers free stock music and SFX, ideal for starting a podcast with little or no money. It has thousands of tracks that you can browse by genre or mood.

Music With Voice-Over: Music Radio Creative

Music Radio Creative goes beyond simply helping you choose music for your podcast. They will also work with you to design tailor-made intros, outros, transitions, stingers, and jingles. They collaborate with some of the best voice-over talents in the world to craft your message into these segments.

Their client list boasts some of the top podcasters around, like Pat Flynn, Cliff Ravenscraft, and John-Lee Dumas. They are very much the premium option, which automatically makes you think they’d be really expensive. But you can actually get something great for between £200 and £300. Using MRC won’t break the bank.

Complete Custom: Freelance Composers

If you’d like something truly unique scored, you can commission a freelance musician. This might mean approaching someone you already know or hiring someone on a freelancer marketplace. This is potentially the most costly option, but it would almost guarantee you find the perfect podcast music.

Where Can I Find Free Podcast Music?

It is possible to get podcast music for free. But, being free, that music is going to be used on a lot of other podcasts.

If you listen to more than a few dozen shows, you’ll start to hear the same music pop up again and again. This doesn’t help your audio branding or make you sound very professional.

But if you’re on a budget or purely podcasting from a hobbyist or creative outlet perspective, then, by all means, go down the free route though. You can always upgrade later on if you feel the need.

Full Free Podcast Music Packs: The Podcast Host

First, check out our collection of free podcast music packs. These small collections of packs are normally only available to Alitu subscribers. However, recently, we released a selection of them for use by anyone as long as you include a small credit on your website and in your show.

Each pack includes intro music, outro music and transition ‘stings’, as well as a loop or two, all on the same theme. So you can use them throughout your show and create a really polished, consistent brand.

Single Free Podcast Music Tracks: Incompetech

Incompetech is an extensive library of free-to-use music created by composer Kevin MacLeod. A lot of his work is scored for film and documentary. These can really work well on fictional pieces if you’re an audio drama or docu-pod creator.

There are a whole load of tracks on there that would certainly fit as the theme tune for a spoken word podcast, though. You can use their music for free so long as you credit the site on your episodes and show notes. If you don’t want to list credits, you can buy a standard license for any particular track.

Podcast Music Case Studies

As I said at the beginning, there are no “rules” when it comes to podcast music. It’s all about what works best for the type of show you’re doing. Let’s take a look at three of ours, each taking a very different approach.

Pocket-Sized Podcasting: No Music

Pocket-Sized Podcasting is a “one quick tip each day” show that teaches you how to podcast. Episodes are, on average, only a minute long. We felt that having music on these short episodes would be overkill, so we chose not to include any at all.

PodCraft: Intro & Outro Music

PodCraft is a much longer-form “how-to podcast” series where we go in-depth on a particular topic. Episodes can be 45 minutes to an hour long. PodCraft has a short intro and outro track that long-time listeners will know the minute they hear it.

Hostile Worlds: Music Throughout

Hostile Worlds is a fully soundscaped audio drama and documentary-style hybrid. There are few moments in the show that don’t include music. Beds tend to run underneath each conversation or monologue, while music is also used to transition between scenes.

Final Thought on Music: “Does This Enhance My Listener’s Experience?”

As we’ve learned in this guide, there are loads of ways you can use podcast music and no shortage of places to get it. Just like anything else in podcasting, there are no hard “rules” about any of this. If you’re ever in doubt, always come back to your audience. Here are some handy resources on that front to bookmark for future reading:

• Your Podcast Avatar
• Your Podcast USP
• How to Survey Your Audience

And, Once You’ve Picked Your Podcast Music…

Our ‘Podcast Maker’ tool, Alitu, can streamline your show’s recording, editing, production, and publishing.

Alitu is designed to help people who have never recorded or mixed audio before to create great-sounding content quickly and simply. It’s also the perfect tool for busy, time-poor podcasters.

You can record directly into Alitu (either solo, or with a remote guest), easily chop out any mistakes, add in your fancy new podcast music (Alitu has its own free podcast music library, too!), and it’ll help you create a nice fade-out effect, automated for all future episodes.

Once your episode is mixed, you can publish it directly to Apple, Spotify, and all other podcast-listening apps from within your Alitu dashboard. Give it a shot for free, and see for yourself!

Where do you start? Where should you look? How do you know who to approach? And how do you go about contacting them? We’ll run through all these questions in this handy guide to finding podcast guests…

Starting With Your Niche

First, are there any other podcasts covering the same subject as you? Do any of them do interviews? If so, look and listen to see if any of these guests would be a good fit for you and your audience.

If someone has agreed to be a podcast guest before, then there’s a good chance they’d be willing to do so again.

When going down this route, be mindful of not recreating the same interview your proposed guest has done elsewhere. Even if you’re after the same stories and key takeaways, try to approach your questions from a different angle. This will keep things interesting and fun for you, your guest, and your audience.

For more help, check out Great Podcast Interview Questions and How to Prepare for a Podcast Interview.

Ask Bloggers & YouTubers

Who’s creating content on your subject (or a similar one) in blog form, or on YouTube? If someone talks about the same things as you, there’s a decent chance they’d be more than happy to come on your show.

Not only can this provide you with valuable, relevant content, but it can also help boost your audience numbers. Your interviewee will probably share the episode with their own community, who may be interested in your other episodes.

The interviewee could also see many of your listeners checking out their blogs or videos. Everybody wins here.

Mine Traditional Media to Find Podcast Guests

Are there people in television, radio, newspapers, or magazines who are relevant to your topic? Probably. And you’d be surprised at how many of them would be happy to chat on your podcast if you asked them.

Reporters, writers, and folks working in the media usually have several projects on the go. Their business is all about reaching an audience. Why wouldn’t they want to connect with yours?

Find Someone Who’s Selling Something

Has someone recently written a book relevant to your subject? If so, they’d probably jump at the chance to come on your podcast and talk about it in front of your listeners. Your audience is also their target audience.

As with any product-selling guest, make sure you create an engaging interview that’s valuable and relevant to your listeners. They don’t have to go ahead and buy the interviewee’s product. Avoid the whole conversation from being one big sales pitch. This can not only ruin an episode but put a black mark against your podcast in general.

It can be useful to explain to the interviewee beforehand that you’ll be chatting through several points. Let them know that you’ll ask them about their product towards the end of the conversation. This is where you’ll give them a chance to talk about it. Then, point folks to where they can go to buy it.

You could even look into setting up an affiliate link or code. This way, you have the opportunity to earn a commission on any items sold. By far, the most important issue though, is to create good content.

Related Article

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Ask Other Podcast Guests

When you finish the interview, ask if they know anyone else who’d be a good fit for coming on the show. You can either do this immediately after the interview is over. Or, you can do it later on by email, perhaps when you tell them their episode is live.

I think it’s best to do it whilst you’re still on the call with them. This way, you’ve just spent some time chatting, and you’ll get an immediate response.

When you approach other potential podcast guests, you have the added credibility of mentioning the interviewee who thought of them. “I was speaking to [guest] recently on my podcast. She recommended I get in touch with you to see if you’d like to come on the show too?”

Immediately you’ve established some common ground, and most people will be very receptive. If the chat with your initial guest went well, you could get a direct introduction to their contact.

Ask Your Audience to Help You Find Podcast Guests

Your listeners can recommend potential podcast guests they’d like to hear on the show. Some might actually be great potential guests themselves. Encourage people to get in touch with you. Include it in your call to action at the end of each episode.

Also, make it easy for people to get in touch with you. It’s a good idea to send everyone to a page such as yourwebsite.com/contact, where people can select their preferred way of dropping you a line.

You can even create a form specifically for potential interviewees to submit a request to be on your podcast. This also helps filter the more generic requests that podcasters get. Some lazy PR companies use a scatter-gun approach to find shows for their clients to be interviewed on.

As an example, here’s our interviewee request form for Podcraft.

Related Article

How to Get Booked as a Guest on a Podcast

Guesting on another podcast is a great way to grow your own show. How do you make it happen?  Find out more »

Getting In Touch With Potential Podcast Guests

Social media can be an easy and convenient way to reach potential podcast guests. But I still think email is the most effective method here.

The important thing is to respect people’s time and get to the point quickly with your invitation – though still in a friendly manner. Imagine your potential interviewee checks their phone whilst walking down the street and spots your 700-word email. Do you think they’ll read it properly?

Here’s a rough format you might want to follow…

Hi [name], how are you?

I’m [name] from the [podcast], and I’d love to get you on the show for a chat sometime about [subject]. I think it would be really beneficial for our audience who are [interest in topic].

(Optional, let them know where you found them or know them from. “I recently read your book, and I really enjoyed it”, or “I just watched your video on [topic], and…” – that sort of thing.)

If you’re up for it, here’s my calendar link where you can book a slot that works for you.

Having a calendar link or booking tool is invaluable for this process. There are plenty of options out there, but we tend to recommend Book Like a Boss. A service like this removes all the back and forth that could cause a potential interviewee to drop off the radar.

Remember also to have an email signature set up with a clear link to your show’s website. That way, any potential podcast guests can click through, where they might check out who else has been on your show. They might even have a listen to some of your episodes.

Approaching “Famous” People as Potential Podcast Guests

Every topic and niche has its “celebrities”. If you’re podcasting in quite a busy space, it can be hard to reach these folks. If someone is so popular that they get 100+ emails daily, they’ve probably outsourced reading them to an assistant. You may be seen as “just another podcast interview request” and deleted without a response.

If there’s someone whom you’d absolutely love to have on the show, then you could record your message to them as audio or video. This has a lot more chance of actually getting through their filters. It shows that you’re not just sending out throwaway copy-and-paste emails. Be professional if you do it.

This is also an instance where you could use social media more effectively. For example, you could tag someone in a video you’ve recorded for them on Instagram. It depends on your preference and whether you and your potential guest use these platforms.

Finding Podcast Guests via ChatGPT

AI tools are taking the world by storm in 2023, and one of the biggest is ChatGPT.

ChatGPT can help podcasters in many different ways, from coming up with ideas and topics, to drafting shownotes, and even, finding podcast guests. With the right prompts, you can set yourself up with a list of interesting people to reach out to.

ChatGPT also offered me tips for those unconventional suggestions:

• A Scottish folk musician who incorporates Pictish history and mythology into their music.
• A local tour guide who leads tours of Pictish sites and has extensive knowledge of their history and culture.
• A member of a Scottish reenactment group who specializes in recreating Pictish clothing and weaponry.

Related Article

Seven of the Best ChatGPT Prompts for Podcasters

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Dedicated Tools & Services to Find Podcast Guests

Looking for folks who’re guaranteed to guest on your podcast? Then you might want to use one of these great matchmaking services.

PodMatch

At the time of writing, PodMatch has generated over 56,000 Interviews among its 11k+ members. That is a lot of talking minutes, and a whole lot of potential interviewees for your show!

Continuing the dating app analogy theme, they say they use the same(ish) technology for their automated podcast guest and host matching, so you should be able to find a whole bunch of people that are a great fit for your pod.

PodcastGuests.com

PodcastGuests.com is a tool that’ll help you find more interesting, qualified interview guests for your podcast. It’s a mailing list at the heart of it, but with a member-based website that adds some extra features.

On the newsletters, you can post interview requests through which people can apply to come on your show. Or, on the website, you can browse their existing database of guests and get in touch with them directly. Every newsletter also includes a few listed experts, so you can contact a few new people every week if they’re suitable for your show.

If you upgrade to the premium service, you can also list yourself as one of those ‘subject experts’ and get invited to more shows. The free newsletter is a great way to find better guests more easily and appear on more shows yourself.

Podchaser Connect

A newer way of finding podcast guests is to use Podchaser, a platform that’s often referred to as “the IMDb of podcasting”.

Podchaser has a range of excellent features for podcast listeners and podcasters alike. The platform enables you to create your profile, and then link that profile to all the shows and episodes you’ve ever been involved in.

Their Podchaser Connect feature is marketed as “a new platform for strategically connecting experts and podcasts to create amazing content and grow audiences.”

Alongside its custom profiles, you’ll find data-driven matching between podcasters and potential guests, along with detailed analytics and reporting.

MatchMaker.fm

MatchMaker market themselves as “like Tinder, but for podcasters”.

You can use it either to find podcast guests, or to put yourself forward to be a guest on other shows.

It’s totally free, and you can connect via your LinkedIn or Facebook accounts!

Related Article

How to Be a Great Podcast Interviewee

Here are some podcast interviewee tips to help you be “The Best of the Guests”! Find out more »

Summary: How to Find Podcast Guests

Hopefully, that’s given you a few avenues to explore when finding the right guests for your show and your audience.

The starting point should always be your content when identifying potential podcast guests. What value will this person bring to your audience? What unique insights will you get from them?

Never take the cynical approach of going after guests purely because they have a big following on social media. Sure, this can be a nice bonus. But the size of their following doesn’t necessarily equate to extra listens for your episode, especially if the interview you do with them doesn’t stand out enough for them to share it.

So some pointers going forward:

• Firstly, make sure you prepare for your interviews and ask good questions.
• Secondly, there are various ways you can encourage guests to share their episodes once they go live.

Let Alitu Take Care of Your Podcast Editing

Alitu is a tool that takes your recording, polishes it up, adds your music, and publishes the episode, all automatically.

Learn more about Alitu

And, if you’re looking for the easiest way to record, edit, produce, and publish your podcast, then be sure to check out Alitu. Alitu is our ‘Podcast Maker’ tool that makes podcasting as simple as humanly possible, even if you’ve never worked with audio before in your life. Try it free for 7 days!

• TLDR – Just choose 44100Hz. Set it and forget it!
• Sample rates in audio determine audio quality and file size
• They are similar to pixels in a photograph
• Read on to find out more…

You’ve probably come across the number 44100 in podcasting and audio production circles. This number is a sample rate. Sample rates are measured in ‘hertz’ or ‘Hz’, which means cycles per second.

Audio is displayed visually in your podcast production software as a waveform. If you zoom right in on a waveform, each “sample” in your audio is displayed as a dot.

The higher the sample rate number, the more times the audio has been sampled. This determines audio quality and also file size.

If you think of your audio file as a photograph, the sample rate is essentially just like the amount of pixels that make up an image.

Take a look at each screenshot, which shows the amount of time the audio was sampled within 0.00050th of a second. 8000Hz was only sampled 5 times in that time period. 44100Hz was 23 times. 48000Hz was 25 times, whilst 96000Hz was way up at 50 times.

Choosing a Podcast Sample Rate

You’ll have the option to select a Sample Rate prior to hitting record in your DAW (editing software) or digital recorder.

For example, in Audacity, if you look down in the bottom left hand corner you’ll see the heading Project Rate (Hz) and a drop-down menu underneath it. By default, the number will be set at 44100, and I’d recommend just keeping it set at that too.

The sample rate of 44100Hz is standard for music and CDs and is the ideal rate to record all your podcast audio at.

Sound designers in game, film, and television will mainly work in 48000Hz, though some work as high as 96000Hz.

In Audacity, the lowest sample rate you can record at is 8000Hz (way too low), and the highest is 384000Hz (way too high).

What About Bit Depth?

Each audio sample – those little dots in your waveform – has a ‘bit depth’, which determines the quality of the sound.

You will usually be asked to select a bit depth prior to recording a piece of audio. The most common bit depths are 16, 24, and 32.

The higher the number, the higher the quality, and the more the recording is able to accurately capture a noise with substantial difference in volume from its quietest parts to its loudest parts.

For this reason bit depth is much more important for musicians than it is to podcasters.

With spoken word podcast content there is no need to record any higher than 16 bit. Using 24 or 32 will only increase the size of your source material WAV files, and any improvement in quality will be inaudible to all but the most trained  ears.

Deeper Dive: How to Convert a WAV to an MP3

What About Bit Rates?

Another load of numbers you might come across are bit rates, you’ll see these as 96kbps, 128kbps etc.

These aren’t directly relevant to sample rates and bit depth, so don’t worry. A bit rate is something you’ll be asked to select when you mix your audio down to MP3 form. If you’d like to learn more about this, check out What Bitrate Should I Use For a Podcast?

Thanks, But All These Numbers Hurt My Head…

Maybe you a complete “non-techy” person who really doesn’t want to have anything to do with this stuff?

If that’s the case, you might want to check out our “podcast making” tool Alitu, which practically builds your episode for you.

Alitu is really simple to use, and will take care of the processing, editing, and publishing of your podcast, without the need for any actual editing software.

So whether you’re a complete beginner, or an experienced podcaster looking to drastically cut down on your production time, Alitu could be the answer you’re looking for!

This is your one-stop shop for quickly finding out what something means. If it’s not listed here, let us know and we’ll add it in for you.

And if you’re looking to get clued up on all things podcasting, be sure to check out these free guides:

• What is a Podcast?
• How to Listen to a Podcast
• How to Subscribe to a Podcast
• How to Start a Podcast

Alright then, podcast terms, podcast lingo, podcast jargon… whatever you want to call it. Let’s start!

Bit Depth (recording/production)

You’ll usually select a bit depth, prior to recording a piece of audio. The most common bit depths are 16, 24, and 32. Each audio sample (see ‘Sample Rates’ – these appear as little dots in your waveform) has a ‘bit depth’ which determines the quality of the sound.

If this sounds complicated, the good news is that you really don’t need to know anything about it. For spoken word content, recording at 16 bit is absolutely fine. Just set it, and forget it!

Bit Rates (recording/production)

Kbps (kilobits per second) is your file’s bitrate. Each second of an audio file has a certain amount of kilobits of data. The bitrate tells you how many are in each second. A ‘bit’ is a measurement of data on a computer, and 1000 bits make up a single kilobit.

Kbps is only really relevant when you convert from WAV to MP3. At that point, you choose which bit rate to select. As you may have guessed, the higher the bit rate, the higher the file size. So, it’s important to find a balance.

Podcast Terms Deeper Dive: For more info on this, check out What Bitrate Should I Use For a Podcast?

Clipping (recording/production)

Your waveform exists inside its own rectangular shaped box or window. That window has a floor and a ceiling. The loudest parts of your waveform display as spikes. During recording, if these spikes touch the floor or ceiling of the window, and can’t go any further, the audio has ‘clipped’. The most common solution to this during recording is to reduce your gain. That basically just means your input volume recording levels. We’ll cover that in more detail further on!

Compression (recording/production)

Applying ‘compression’ to an audio file means that your DAW is going to bring the loudest parts and the quietest parts of your audio closer together. This can help you to achieve a much more consistent volume level throughout your episode.

You’ll usually find compression options inside your DAWs ‘Effects’ menu. Some recorders and mixers also allow you to run compression as you record, as opposed to applying it during the post-production phase.

Podcast Terms Deeper Dive: For an in-depth look at compression, check out how to use the Audacity compressor.

Condenser Microphone (equipment)

The two most common types of microphone nowadays are condenser and dynamic. A condenser microphone needs its own power source. It uses either a battery, or what’s known as “Phantom Power.” This comes through a mixer, interface, or recorder.

Traditionally, condenser microphones are more sensitive, and used to accurately capture the vocal performances of singers and actors in a studio environment.

Podcast Terms Deeper Dive: Have a look at our best podcast microphones guide if you’re in the market for a condenser mic.

DAW (recording/production)

This stands for Digital Audio Workstation. It simply means the editing software you’ll use to mix your shows together. A commonly used DAW in the world of podcasting is Audacity, which is absolutely free. We have a full video course teaching Audacity inside Podcraft Academy.

An increasingly popular DAW is Reaper, which is powerful and heavily customisable. You can get Reaper for a one-off payment of $60. My personal favourite is Adobe Audition.  However, there’s a monthly cost of around $25 to use this DAW, which puts many people off.

Directories (podcast distribution)

A podcast directory is like a shop where listeners can find your show. By far the most popular directory is Apple/iTunes. After that, there’s Spotify, Google Podcasts, and many more.

You don’t upload your show to podcast directories, you use a media host for that. When you sign up to a media host, the host assigns you a special URL called an RSS feed. You submit your RSS feed to a podcast directory. Then, others can use that platform to download and subscribe to the show.

Dynamic Microphone (equipment)

The two most common types of microphone nowadays are condenser and dynamic.

A dynamic microphone doesn’t require its own power supply in the way a condenser mic does. Traditionally, dynamic mics are less sensitive and more durable, which makes them popular in the world of live music.

Podcast Terms Deeper Dive: Have a look at our best podcast microphones guide, if you’re in the market for a dynamic mic.

Dynamic Range (recording/production)

Quite simply, this is the range of different volume levels within a piece of audio. Music production circles tend to use this term more. In podcasting, you could say that your dynamic range should be consistent, with no huge differences between your loudest and quietest parts.

EQ (recording/production)

Also known as Equalisation. This is a process that lets you decrease or increase specific frequencies within your audio. For example, if you record an interview outside and it’s windy, the recording will include the wins as a very low, rumbling sound. The distortion here is all low frequency, and you can use EQ to minimise its effect.

EQ appears in your DAW in a window that looks a bit like a radio mixing desk. Each band of frequencies has a little fader that you can drag down to decrease, or pull up to increase. 

Podcast Terms Deeper Dive: For an in-depth look at EQ, check out Tools of the Trade: Equalizers

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Gain (recording/production)

It’s not entirely correct to refer to Gain as a volume setting, though in a sense, it is your input volume setting. Gain is really just a way of increasing or decreasing the sensitivity of your mic.

When you hit record, the mic picks up your audio as a signal. Think of loud audio as a strong signal, and quiet audio as a weak signal. Increasing gain makes your signal stronger, whilst decreasing it makes your signal weaker.

Here’s the main difference between volume and gain. Gain controls what is going in to your equipment (and what your equipment records). Volume controls what is coming out (and what people can hear on the other end).

It’s good practice to set your gain levels before you hit record. But you can adjust during a session, if it sounds like someone is talking too loud or too quiet.

Hard Limiting (recording/production)

Hard limiting allows you to chop off or flatten the peaks of your waveform to a certain level, using the decibel (dB) scale that runs vertically alongside your waveform.

This allows you to flatten everything over, for example, -6dB. You can use this process to balance out your waveform and give it a more consistent shape and sound in the production process.

High-Pass Filter (recording/production)

An Equalisation/EQ technique used to minimise or remove low frequencies (wind noise, mic handling noise, knocking boom stand, mic popping, etc) from your audio.

Podcast Terms Deeper Dive: For an in-depth look at EQ, check out Tools of the Trade: Equalizers

ID3 Tags (audio files)

Also known as Metadata. This information is embedded into your MP3. It helps organise files on your listener’s computer or device.

This includes things like podcast name, episode title, the podcaster’s name (or business), episode number, and cover art. Your DAW will give you an option to add this information once you’ve mixed your episode down.

Alternatively, you can use iTunes.

Interface (equipment)

An audio interface is similar to a mixer, that acts as a bridge between your microphone and your recording platform. An interface will give you added control over things like gain, and provide phantom power for condenser microphones.

Podcast Terms Deeper Dive: One of our favourite audio interfaces is the Focusrite Scarlett 2i2.

Low-Pass Filter (recording/production)

An Equalisation/EQ technique used to minimise or remove high frequencies from your audio. Less commonly used than its high pass counterpart, but can still come in handy for fixing distortion sometimes found in recordings of Skype or phone interviews.

Podcast Terms Deeper Dive: For an in-depth look at EQ, check out Tools of the Trade: Equalizers

Media Hosting (podcast distribution)

A media host is a website/service you’ll sign up and create an account with when you launch your show. Basically, it’s where your podcast episodes live.

Once you create an account and fill out your show details (title, description etc.), your media host will give you an RSS feed. You can then submit this RSS feed to various podcast directories like Apple Podcasts, so that your show will show up there.

Podcast Terms Deeper Dive: Here are the best media hosting providers on the market.

Metadata (audio files)

Also known as ID3 tags. This is the information embedded into your MP3 file. It helps organise files on your listener’s computer or device.

This includes things like podcast name, episode title, the podcaster’s name or business, episode number, and cover art. Your DAW will give you an option to add this information once you’ve mixed your episode down.

Alternatively, you can use iTunes.

Mixer (equipment)

An audio interface that allows you to mix together other elements into your show as you record, rather than editing them in in the post-production phase. Using a mixer enables you to bring in your intro, outro, and transition music into your show “as live”.

You can also use a mixer to record multiple interviewees or co-hosts, as well as Skype calls, and on-line broadcasts. It’s worth noting though, that a mixer is overkill for most folks. There are plenty great online recording tools available.

Podcast Terms Deeper Dive: Have a look at our Best Podcast Mixers Roundup, if you think you might want one for your own show.

Mixing (recording/production)

Mixing is a common term for editing your podcast together. You can also refer to this as production, post-production, or just plain old editing.

Mixing Down (recording/production)

When you’re happy with your mix in the editing process, you’ll then ‘mix down’ or ‘bounce down’ everything to one single audio file. This is the mixing down process.

Mono Audio (recording/production)

A mono track appears as one single waveform in your DAW, whilst a stereo track appears as two – one above the other, the top one being the left side, and the bottom one being the right side.

Stereo tracks can offer different sounds from the right to the left hand side, which give a stereo effect when listening through headphones or speakers. A mono track will play exactly the same audio on either side.

It’s good practice to record spoken word content in mono. The only real reason to create a podcast in stereo is if your show has a lot of music, or is a highly produced documentary or audio drama. Stereo WAV files are virtually twice the size of mono WAV files. If you convert down to MP3 format, you can eliminate this difference.

Multitrack (recording/production)

Multitrack, or multitracking, is when you work with multiple (more than one) audio track during the editing process.

MP3 File (audio files)

An MP3 is a type of audio file, and the type you’ll use to distribute your podcast episodes. Back in the day, data storage on computers wasn’t as generous as it is now. MP3s are smaller audio files that don’t take up as much space.

Nowadays, this makes them ideal for quick and low-bandwidth uploading and downloading. The trade-off with an MP3 is that they are a “lossy” format. Crushing them down to their small size makes for a loss of some audio quality.

This can be an issue for some musicians and audiophiles. However, there are few people who can tell the difference between an MP3 and a WAV file, especially with purely spoken word content.

Noisefloor (recording/production)

Even if you’re recording in complete silence in a sound treated room, the recording will still pick up a very low level of noise. Depending on equipment, this sounds like a light hissing, or buzzing. It might be inaudible to most human ears, unless it’s amplified to a higher volume.

Noisefloor is really just the static from your recording equipment working away in the background.

Normalisation (recording/production)

Inside your DAW you’ll find a Normalisation effect which allows you to make your waveform bigger or smaller (thus changing the sound levels) based on its loudest peaks. Normalising audio won’t change the shape of your waveform (like Hard Limiting or Compression will), but it will change its size.

Peaking (recording/production)

‘Peaks’ are the highest points of your waveform. Using these as a guide, alongside the vertical decibel scale running alongside your audio track, you can read that the waveform is “peaking” at -3dB, -6dB, etc.

Some audio producers use the terms “peaking” and “clipping” synonymously.

Phantom Power (equipment)

Phantom power is an option available on most recorders, mixers, and interfaces. It allows you to send power to condenser microphones.

It commonly appears as a button marked “+48V”.

Plug-ins

Plug-ins are additional features you can install on your DAW or website to give you extra control and customisation options. Usually, third-party sources create plug-ins. In rare cases, they can conflict with each other and cause issues.

Podcast Terms Deeper Dive: For more on this, check out our guide to Podcast Production Plugins

Post-Production (recording/production)

Another term for mixing/editing. Though you can also use the term “production,” some argue that the production is the thing you to to create your source material, thus what you do afterwards (editing, mixing down) is actually “post-production”.

Polar Patterns (equipment)

Microphones have polar patterns built into them, which determine the areas and directions they predominantly record or “hear” from. Microphone polar patterns are bi-directional, cardioid, hypercardioid, omnidirectional, shotgun, subcardioid, and supercardioid.

Room Tone (recording/production)

Similar to noisefloor, this is really just the sound of the room you’re recording in. It’s good practice to leave 5-10 seconds of room tone at the start of your recording, for noise reduction purposes.

RSS Feed (podcast distribution)

This is a unique URL your media host will give you when you sign up for an account and create your podcast series. You use your RSS feed to submit your show to various podcast directories (like Apple Podcasts), so that people can listen/subscribe to it, there.

Sample Rates (recording/production)

You’ll have the option to select a Sample Rate prior to hitting record in your DAW or digital recorder. Sample rates are measured in ‘hertz’ or ‘Hz’, which means cycles per second. Each sample appears visually as a dot, which is visible if you zoom right in on a waveform.

The higher the sample rate number, the more times the recording ‘samples’ the audio has been ‘sampled’. This determines audio quality, and also file size.

If you think of your audio file as a photograph, the sample rate is essentially just like the amount of pixels that make up an image. The sample rate of 44100Hz is standard for music and CDs. This is the ideal rate to record all your podcast audio. Just set it, and forget it.

If you do want to learn a bit more about sample rates though, check out What Does 44100 Mean?

Stereo Audio (recording/production)

A mono track appears as one single waveform in your DAW, whilst a stereo track appears as two – one above the other, the top one being the left side, and the bottom one being the right side.

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Stereo tracks can offer different sounds from the right to the left hand side, which give a stereo effect when listening through headphones or speakers. A mono track will play exactly the same audio on either side.

It’s good practice to record spoken word content in mono. If your show has a lot of music, or is a highly produced documentary or audio drama, that would be the only real reason to create a podcast in stereo.

Stereo WAV files are virtually twice the size of mono WAV files. If you convert down to MP3 format, you can eliminate this difference.

Submitting a Podcast (podcast distribution)

This is the process of entering your RSS feed and show details into a podcast directory, (like Apple Podcasts), so that people can listen/subscribe to it there.

Uploading a Podcast (podcast distribution)

Once you’ve put together your episode as an MP3 file, you can then upload it to your media host, so that your listeners can download it via a listening platform.

USB Microphone (equipment)

This is a microphone which connects to your computer via a USB cable. 

Podcast Terms Deeper Dive: Have a look at our Best USB Mics for Podcasters roundup if you’re in the market for one yourself.

Waveform (recording/production)

A waveform is the visual representation of your audio when displayed in a digital form on your computer.

WAV File (audio files)

A WAV is a high quality audio file that captures sound exactly as it is recorded. Though you should work in WAV form with your source material, you will convert your finished episodes to MP3 format for size and bandwidth purposes.

If you think of a WAV as an original painting, the MP3 is like a print of that painting. Some quality is lost in the conversion, but to 99% of people it isn’t noticeable.

XLR Microphone (equipment)

This is a microphone which connects to a mixer, interface, or recorder, via an XLR (microphone) cable.

Podcast Terms Deeper Dive: Have a look at our best podcast microphones guide if you’re in the market for an XLR mic.

Learning About Podcasting?

Hopefully you’ve found the answers you need in this podcast jargon-busting glossary. If not though, let us know. We’re always keen to build this out and make it even more useful.

And if you’re looking to get clued up when it comes to podcasts, then here are some next step resources for you…

• What is a Podcast?
• How to Listen to a Podcast
• How to Subscribe to a Podcast
• How to Start a Podcast

I’ve committed myself to daily podcasts for a year and a day… offering meditations. I keep the window open and like to have the sound of the birds in.I don’t have time to mix or anything, neither during the recording nor afterwards.I encounter the following problem: I have some excellent dynamic mics, Sennheiser M 421 and Schuhe M58, I combine them with the focusrite 2i4, the sound quality is rich and warm, but the volume level is way too low.

My other option is the logitech pro9000 webcam, the quality is nasty, lost of reverb, but the volume is OK.

So I learned more expensive isn’t always better, I ‘m ready to spend some money but have no clear idea what will help me. Seems like for my case- my voice is quite soft- condenser would be best, but small or large diaphragm? What brand?

Why’s it interesting? Well, most of the time people are asking me how to reduce background noise, or how to cut out unexpected sounds in your environment.  Well, this reader is taking the opposite view. She realises that background noise can add athmosphere and texture to a recording, and so she’s embracing it!

The only problem is, her voice is too quiet. So, how do we fix that?

Mic Technique, Not New Kit

So, dear reader, rather than think about a new microphone straight away, it sounds like your problem may be either gain or in being close enough to the microphone. In terms of mic technique, the sound may be improved just by getting right up close to the microphone.

Get yourself a good pop filter and then experiment with different distances between your mouth and the microphone. Go from only a couple of inches back to 12 inches or so and see what gives the best sound.

Buy Some Clean Gain

If that still doesn’t give enough gain, then you might benefit from a simple pre-amp like the Fethead or the Cloudlifter. Both of these do nothing more than sit inbetween your mic and the Focusrite and add a good chunk of clean gain to the signal. They can do wonders for gain hungry mics, of which the Shure SM58 is definitely one.

A New Microphone After All?

Next, to the idea of getting yourself a new condenser. For sure, this will help, as condenser mics are more sensitive than Dynamics and they need much less gain. This is thanks to the phantom power that drives them.

They’ll also pick up a bit more of that nice background noise that you describe, although this could be good and bad, depending on the volume of the birds compared to other less desirable sounds around your house. If you go that route, I’d recommend the MXL990 – that’s my primary podcasting mic and it’s great value.

If you’re looking for more microphone info, though, check out my podcasting microphone guide. Hope that helps!

Need More Help Choosing Podcasting Equipment?

If you need some more tailored advice for your own setup, or want help with any other aspect of podcasting, then we’d love to work with you.

Inside Podcraft Academy we run regular live Q&A sessions, a community forum, and provide access to all of our video courses, tutorials, ebooks, and downloadable resources!

We’re currently working through launch and his question revolved around how to integrate podcasting within his existing website. It’s something that comes up often as people look to bring podcasting into their wider content marketing mix. Let’s have a look at the question:

I’m wondering how should organise the podcast pages on the website. Do you propose that all show notes get posted on the blog rather than a separate podcast section of the site…? I had assumed the latter but wasn’t sure which is better?

So, first thing – this is a very common confusion, and worth tackling. The issue is the difference between a page which is a podcast episode, and a page which is a blog post.

Here’s the thing, there’s no real difference between a blog post and a podcast post. A podcast post is a page on your blog/website which is made up of show notes and an audio file, and often with an audio player which allows you to play that audio file.

A blog post is pretty much exactly the same thing, minus the audio file. This is because show notes should really function as a blog post with a bit of audio attached.

Helping People to Find Your Podcast Via Show Notes

So, show notes as a blog post. There are a few reasons for this.

Firstly, people who find you via the search engines, and come across your website will tend not to be podcast listeners already. They’ll find you via the text within the show notes, as indexed by Google.

Once they find you, it’s then your job to talk them into listening by outlining, in the show notes, how valuable the episode is.

Those people that go to the show notes FROM the podcast, ie. those who are already listeners, will tend to just be looking for resource links. So they don’t mind too much what’s there as long as there’s a link to everything you mentioned on the show.

Next, another reason to treat a podcast post as a full-on blog post is simple content marketing. The one disadvantage of Podcasts is that, being audio, they can’t be indexed by the search engines (yet). So, in order to help yourself be found, and to build the value of your website and brand long-term, you need to write a decent bit of text content around the episode.

This gets across the topic and makes it more likely people searching for that particular topic will end up at your podcast episode.

How You Can Split Out Your Blog and Podcast Content

It is possible to split the two post types out on your website if you’d like to make that delineation, but most of the time publishers will mix text posts and podcast posts within the main content stream. The reasoning is that it’s all content – you don’t really want to hold things back if you think they’re valuable.

A nice way to do it is to have both on your front page, on the main stream, and then to have a Podcast link at the top which shows only podcast episodes.

This is because some people might be looking for podcasts specifically, and only want to view posts with audio attached. Whereas, if people are looking for text content, your show notes should be nearly as valuable as your blog posts, certainly if the person is then directed into clicking the play button.

You could do the same with a blog link in the menu bar too, showing only text posts when someone clicks on that, but, the same thing applies; I think podcast posts should be as valuable to a reader as blog posts, and so shouldn’t be hidden away from that stream of content.

Need Help Setting Up Your Podcasting Website?

If so, be sure to check out our free video website setup course that walks you through the process!