Are you looking for the best podcast app to enjoy all your favorite shows straight from your Android or Apple device? Well, you have come to the right place!
In this article, we will be putting popular podcast apps Stitcher and Pocket Casts to the test to find out which one comes out as triumphant.
Selecting the right podcast apps for you can sometimes be a difficult task. With the rise in popularity of podcasts, also comes a rise in the available features each platform is providing to make them stand out from the crowd.
With this in mind, this guide will outline all the main features that make up the best podcast apps and then compare these to Stitcher and Pocket Casts to find out which one is better. These include new show discovery, offline listening, playback options available, and playlist creation accessibility.
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Pocket Casts
Pocket Casts is a great app for podcast created by listeners for listeners. Below, you will find everything you need to know about Pocket Casts’ features.
Discovery
Pocket Casts provides a curated Discover tab with the most popular podcasts, featured, exclusive content, and trending podcast episode. Users can find new podcasts by browsing by region, category, or network.
As an Android podcast app, you can see what other Pocket Casts users are listening to nearby. Although, while this is a nice feature, it only works when in close proximity to other Pocket Casts users with the feature enabled.
While the Discover tab may be a great way to find new episodes and content, it does have its drawbacks. For one, podcast listening is only allowed for podcasts that you are already subscribed to.
Therefore, if you find a new podcast and want to sample one or two episodes, you won’t be able to without subscribing.
Likewise, you’re unable to search for individual podcasts.
Playback Features
Pocket Casts allows you to skip backward 10 seconds and skip forwards 30 seconds when listening to a podcast. In addition to this, you can also boost voices, has adjustable playback speed from half to triple the normal speed, and trim silence.
When listening offline, you can save individual episodes, as well as automatically download new podcast episodes of your choosing. This can be limited to only downloading episodes when connected to Wi-Fi.
Pocket Casts enables both desktop and mobile sync, although this is only available for premium accounts with a one-time fee of $9.
Once signed up, head to play.pocketcasts.com to pick up where you left off. Likewise, they also offer a new web beta, although this doesn’t sync with the app, yet.
The app also supports Chromecast.
Playlists
Using filters, you can create custom playlists. For instance, these include episode type (audio or video), download status, playing state (unfinished or unplayed), and how recent the episode is. Your playlist can also be limited to specific podcasts.
If you have three podcasts that you listen to regularly, a playlist can be created for the new, played episodes from those podcasts and will be automatically updated.
Likewise, you can choose to download all your favorite episodes automatically and set it to only happen when connected to Wi-Fi.
They also supply you with a helpful feed that shows all the new episodes you’re subscribed to in one place.
Stitcher
Stitcher is a popular app for on-demand internet radio service that focuses on information and news. Stitcher is one of the free podcast apps available for easy listening to Google podcasts and Apple podcasts. Below, you will find everything you need to know about Stitcher’s features.
Discovery
In Stitcher’s Browse Shows tab, you’ll find new or trending shows, as well as category browsing.
In each category, you’ll discover subcategories. This includes New & Noteworthy which features recently added podcasts, curated picks, and popular podcasts. The Popular & Trending subcategory includes most shared, top shows, and top movers.
In Stitcher, you can search by shows or episodes. (Also see, ‘How To Get Your Podcast On Stitcher‘)
Playback
For Stitcher, you can skip forwards and backward using a custom length of time (anything between five to 60 seconds). You can double its speed, snooze playback, or slow it down to half speed.
When offline listening, you have the ability to choose which playlists download automatically, as well as limit your downloads to Wi-Fi only.
When downloading one episode, you need to go to the podcast’s page, select All Episodes, tap the episode’s name, and then Save Episode.
Content downloaded on Stitcher can be limited from between 1GB to unlimited, you can also easily clear your downloads with one button. To listen to podcasts from your browser, Stitcher offers a web interface.
It also supports Chromecast-enabled devices, allowing you to share your audio through speakers or a SmartTV.
- Stitcher is a podcast streaming platform.
- Offers on-demand access to podcasts and radio shows.
- Provides both free and premium services.
Playlists
You create Stations instead of playlists on Stitcher.
These provide you with prompt access to your favorite podcast’s latest episodes. As previously mentioned, entire stations can be automatically downloaded and restricted to Wi-Fi download.
However, you can’t access more than one episode per show within each station. On the other hand, you can save individual podcast episodes which can be accessed under Saved Episodes.
Stitcher Vs Pocket Casts – Which Is Better?
After comparing both podcast apps, in this case, Pocket Casts would be the winner.
While it may be a paid app, there’s no denying that it has rich features which overshadow the inability to test podcast episodes. After all, you can simply unsubscribe from a podcast if need be.
A beta web version can be used to test out podcasts before putting them in your subscription.
Although, the determining factor has to be Pocket Casts playlist features where you can easily navigate all your podcast subscriptions.
Final Thoughts
If you’re an avid podcast user, then choosing the best podcast app for you is important. While both Stitcher and Pocket Casts offer similar features; ultimately, Pocket Casts features are much cleaner and user-friendly.
However, in the end, the decision is up to you and your personal podcast requirements. Hopefully, this guide has informed you of the differences between Stitcher and Pocket Casts.
