Android app for listening to podcasts, similar to Google Podcasts?

April 24, 2024 4:34 PM

At the beginning of April, Google killed its Podcast app and moved us all over to YouTube Music. I hate it. Please recommend alternatives.

I gave it three weeks, but listening to podcasts on YouTube music is the worst. Some things I hate about it: very busy (Podcasts app was streamlined in a way that meant I rarely had to click more than 2 times to listen to anything), favors photo thumbnails over text (I have to do extra clicking to read descriptions of episodes), the search hardly works (this is crazy to me, but yes, it can be very hard to find popular podcasts, I think because the app is intentionally pushing YouTube results to the top of the search, even when I specifically select for podcasts). Is there any free (or cheap, one-time fee) podcast listening app that I would like better? Not Spotify.

posted by grandiloquiet to Technology (15 answers total)

When I was on Android, I used and very much liked DoggCatcher.
posted by ourobouros at 4:45 PM on April 24 [1 favorite]

I use Pocket Casts and love it! The basic app is free and has many included features. I haven't used Google Podcasts or YouTube, so I can't compare them, but it's certainly built for podcasts (unlike YouTube) and is worth a try.
posted by catabananza at 4:54 PM on April 24 [6 favorites]

I moved to the free PocketCasts and like it.
posted by aught at 5:02 PM on April 24 [4 favorites]

Another vote for Pocket Casts free version. I had been using Google's podcast app but switched over when they made the announcement they were going to kill it. There are one or two things I don't love about it, but overall I have liked it more than Google's app!
posted by spamandkimchi at 5:03 PM on April 24 [3 favorites]

Best answer: This recent article is a good summary of the major players. I chose Pocket Casts over Podcast Addict (the two market leaders) several years ago. I can't remember the criteria on which I based my decision but I've felt no need to switch. It syncs well between the Android app and the web based version. The search functionality isn't great (sometimes it's hard to find a feed if you don't specify the exact name) but you can find podcast feeds using any browser search engine and just enter the feed manually (this is not difficult).
posted by Depressed Obese Nightmare Man at 5:04 PM on April 24

Also love PocketCasts. It was recommended by the host of one of my favorite podcasts.
posted by notjustthefish at 5:32 PM on April 24 [2 favorites]

I like Overcast, which is a) free and b) makes it easy to skip ads.
posted by GenjiandProust at 5:49 PM on April 24 [1 favorite]

Response by poster: It looks like Pocket Casts will work for me, though I'll keep exploring if it doesn't suit. Thanks for all your recs! God, I'm actually relieved -- I've really hated the YouTube Music podcast experience.
posted by grandiloquiet at 6:03 PM on April 24

I'm a fan of Antennapod if your other options don't work out. I switched over to it after google got rid of their podcast app and it's worked out well for me.
posted by dearadeline at 8:42 PM on April 24 [5 favorites]

There was some other podcast app that I was using that similarly shutdown about a year ago, prompting a thread asking for alternative, and it's what drove / led me to Pocket Casts. That app has been perfectly fine for me!

It was discussed in all one of these threads:

https://ask.metafilter.com/search.mefi?site=ask&q=pocketcasts
posted by intermod at 9:59 PM on April 24 [1 favorite]

BeyondPod has been my best find in this category for a decade. Never got along with Pocketcasts, myself.
posted by Sunburnt at 1:58 AM on April 25 [2 favorites]

I also tried YouTube Music. It was awful. I started using Podcast Addict based on a recommendation here after Google Podcasts went away. I've been happy with it so far.
posted by poppunkcat at 11:41 AM on April 25

I like PocketCast a lot.
posted by maryellenreads at 3:24 PM on April 25

BeyondPod is the best by a mile, but I'm afraid to look up how longs it's been since an update. Nothing else comes close.

Because I have been aware for years that one day, I will update my phone and BeyondPod won't work, I have tried others. Right now I am using Podcast Addict and AntennaPod just so I know how they work - which they don't. (Mostly using AntennaPod for audio books and one comedy podcast.)

Podcast Addict might have a way to create sections for your list of podcasts, but I haven't been able to figure that out. (Tags are not folders. Tags are not sections. Tags are of no use at all unless there is a dashboard that will organize by tags.)

What most pod players do, besides wait to be slurped up by a major service, is assume you have a list of podcast and you expect to listen to the way people used to listen to radio - there's a selection or programs and they play in order.

I have podcasts that I want to listen to as soon as one comes out so they need to be appended to the playlist as soon as they drop, I have podcasts that I only listen to if I happen to be in the mood and download them on purpose and add them to the playlist, and I have pods that I listen to during the workweek, and pods I only listen to on weekends.

BeyondPod is the only one that will do this for me. Also, it's pretty.

Doggcatcher made me stabby. And I stuck with it for a month to make sure it wasn't me not knowing how it works.
posted by Lesser Shrew at 6:49 PM on April 25 [2 favorites]

I've used Podcast Addict for years and it just works without me having to think about it. That's everything I want in a podcast app.
posted by peppermind at 4:24 PM on April 27