shouldiuse.io

VERDICT

Should I use Podcastindex.org?

The Podcast Index is here to preserve, protect and extend the open, independent podcasting ecosystem. - podcastindex.org

Depends. Developers building podcast apps or experimenting with Podcasting 2.0 should use it — the API is free and open. Anyone expecting a supported SaaS product, analytics dashboard, or consumer listening app should look elsewhere.

Confidence

Medium. Based on ~20 public sources; most snippets truncated, so no verbatim user quotes could be safely extracted.

Ratings

  • Value for money
  • Ease of use
  • Feature depth
  • Support qualityNo support evidence in sources
  • Security posture

Pricing

$0

Open API

ModelNot disclosed
Monthly feesNot disclosed
HardwareNot disclosed
Free tierYes

Best for

  • Podcast app developers
  • Open-source players and tools
  • Podcasting 2.0 / value-for-value experimenters
  • Researchers mapping podcast ecosystems

Not for

  • Listeners wanting a podcast player app
  • Teams needing SLAs or paid support
  • Buyers wanting hosted analytics dashboards
  • Anyone avoiding volunteer-run, donation-funded infrastructure

Gotchas - check before you buy

medium

Feed updates sometimes need manual nudging; indexing lag happens.

medium

Donation-funded; no SLA or enterprise support guarantees.

low

You must register for a free API key before any query.

low

Podcasting 2.0 features depend on each app's support; listener experience varies.

Pros and cons

Pros

  • Free, open API over a 4M+ podcast catalog
  • Drives the open Podcasting 2.0 RSS namespace: chapters, transcripts, funding tags
  • Adopted by open-source apps like AntennaPod
  • Independent directory not controlled by Apple or Spotify

Cons

  • Not a listening app; it's a directory and API
  • Feed updates can lag or need manual nudging
  • Donation-funded community project; no contractual support
  • Some tools still scrape Apple's iTunes catalog instead

Sources & method

Analyzed 9/24/2026 - 10 sources - No known vulnerabilities found in the sources reviewed.

official x3review x3security x1news x3

Key stats

  • Value for money: 5/5

    Rating

  • $0

    Starting price

  • 10

    Sources

  • Analyzed

  • Value for money: 5/5. Free API, open data
  • Ease of use: 3/5. API key setup; feed lag reported
  • Feature depth: 4/5. Chapters, transcripts, funding via namespace
  • Support quality. No support evidence in sources
  • Security posture: 3/5. Publishes security page; no incidents found
  • 4M+ Podcast catalog feeds indexed
  • $0 API price free API key required
  • 1.0 Namespace version Podcasting 2.0 RSS tags

Pricing

Open API

$0

  • Free API key after signup
  • Full catalog and metadata lookup
  • Community, donation-funded

Security

No known vulnerabilities found in the sources reviewed.

What users say

Developers and indie podcasters treat the index as essential open infrastructure; complaints center on feed-update lag and uneven Podcasting 2.0 adoption.

Companies that use it

  • AntennaPod
  • Castos
  • Bumper⁹
  • gpodder

Companies that could

  • Pocket Casts Uses Apple Podcasts (iTunes) catalog instead
  • Apify Uses iTunes Search API instead
Full analysis

Based on ~20 public sources; most snippets truncated, so no verbatim user quotes could be safely extracted.

Free open podcast index and API for developers building apps; not a product for buyers wanting support.

Methodology

Based on ~20 public sources; most snippets truncated, so no verbatim user quotes could be safely extracted.

Sources

  1. API Docs | PodcastIndex.orgpodcastindex-org.github.io
    official
  2. podcast-namespace docs 1.0github.com
    official
  3. Podcastindex.org GitHub orggithub.com
    official
  4. Anyone doing podcasting 2.0? (Reddit)reddit.com
    review
  5. Podcast not updated on podcastindex.org (Reddit)reddit.com
    review
  6. PodcastIndex.org API vs Taddytaddy.org
    review
  7. Submit Your Podcast To The Podcast Indexthepodcasthost.com
    news
  8. Integration roadmap researchvivly.in
    news
  9. Bumper announces new dashboard (Podnews)podnews.net
    news
  10. Product security pagepodcastindex.org
    security

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