The Ultimate Guide to Apple Podcasts Connect

Knowing how to use Apple Podcasts Connect is an absolute must for any current or prospective podcaster. With more than 28.5 million people in the US alone using Apple Podcasts, this is an audience size that just can’t be ignored. 

But Apple has gone through some changes over the years in terms of its podcasting platform. With the recent launch of Apple Podcast Subscriptions and the move away from iTunes, the entire process can seem a bit confusing for new podcasters looking to maximize their audience reach. 

That’s why I created this guide. I’ll explain everything you need to know about Apple Podcasts Connect, including how it works and how you can use it to manage your podcasts. We’ll also cover more information on the Apple Podcasters Program as a whole, Apple Podcast Subscriptions, and answer common questions about Apple Podcasts. 

What is Apple Podcasts Connect?

Apple Podcasts Connect is an online dashboard where podcasters can submit episodes to Apple Podcasts. It’s designed to help content creators manage their shows and gain valuable insights into how listeners are engaging with episodes. 

Apple Podcasts Connect gives podcasters the ability to manage subscriptions, archive podcasts, restore podcasts, manage RSS feeds, transfer ownership of a podcast, manage podcast channels, and more. 

It’s also the place where you’ll contact Apple support if you need any help or have questions about your podcasts.

Getting Started With Apple Podcasts Connect

Signing up for an Apple Podcast Connect account is easy, and you can do it from any computer or iOS device.

Step 1 – Create an Apple ID

To use Apple Podcasts Connect, you must have a valid Apple ID. You can use your existing one or create a new one. To fully activate your Apple ID, make sure you add a valid payment method and enable two-factor authentication. 

Step 2 – Sign Up For Apple Podcasts Connect

When you join Apple Podcasts Connect, you’ll be asked to sign in using your Apple ID. Create a name for your account and register it as an individual account (for individuals and sole proprietors) or a company account (for registered organizations). If you create a company account, you’ll have the ability to add users in your organization to help you manage your shows.

Step 3 – Join the Apple Podcasters Program

From the Apple Podcasts Connect Dashboard, click on “Account” and then navigate to “Sign Up” within the “Details” tab. Joining the Apple Podcasters program lets you offer paid subscriptions to listeners. Any admin can add an Apple Podcasters Plan to an Apple Podcast Connect Account—which is subject to a $19.99 annual fee in the US. 

For podcasters outside of the US, you can check the annual fee for your region here. 

Apple Podcasters Program Overview

The Apple Podcasters Program enables podcasters to sell subscriptions via Apple Podcasts. You need to have an Apple Podcast Connect account to join the Apple Podcasters Program, and you need to be in the Apple Podcasters Program to access Apple Podcasts Subscriptions.

Truthfully, the way Apple sets this up is a bit confusing. But all three of these—Apple Podcasts Connect, Apple Podcasters Program, and Apple Podcasts Subscriptions—all work jointly to publish and manage podcasts via Apple. 

Creating an Apple Podcasts Connect account is free. But the Apple Podcasters Program requires an annual membership fee. 

It’s also worth clarifying that Apple Podcasts is not a podcast host. It’s a platform for distributing podcasts to listeners through an RSS feed. You still need a third-party platform to store your podcast episodes. 

Apple Podcasts Subscriptions Explained

Once you’ve joined the Apple Podcasters Program, you’ll have access to Apple Podcasts Subscriptions. 

By charging a subscription for your podcasts, you can provide listeners with benefits like:

• Add-free listening
• Subscriber-only episodes
• Early access to episodes
• Additional episodes
• Ability to unlock archived content

Apple takes a commission for allowing you to run subscriptions on its platform. 

As a content creator, you’ll get 70% of the listener’s subscription price during each billing cycle (minus all applicable taxes). Once a subscriber reaches one year of a pad service, the creator’s net revenue jumps to 85% of the subscription cost. 

All of your other podcast revenue, including advertisements, is still yours. Apple only takes a cut of the subscription revenue. 

Using Apple Subscriptions is not a requirement. You can still create an Apple Podcasts Connect account and publish podcasts to Apple Podcasts without setting up a subscription. 

How to Manage Your Podcast With Apple Podcasts Connect

Let’s take a closer look at what you can do from your Apple Podcasts Connect dashboard. Here’s a brief overview of the actions and management tools at your fingertips:

Create a Channel

If you want to list two or more podcasts in a single location, you can use Apple Podcasts Connect to create a channel. You’ll also have the ability to create multiple channels through this dashboard.

For those of you planning to create multiple channels, just be aware that you can only link episodes to one of your channels. So each channel would need to have its own unique shows. 

Follow the steps below to create a channel:

1. Click the “Add (+)” button in Apple Podcasts Connect
2. Select “New Channel”
3. Create a name for your channel up to 25 characters
4. Click “Create”
5. Upload a logo, icon, and select a background color
6. Add a description up to 4,000 characters

You can save any changes to your channel before pushing shows live. If you’re ready to submit a new channel for review, simply click the “Publish” button to proceed. 

All channels must comply with Apple Podcasts Content Guidelines.

Manage RSS Feeds

RSS feeds are used to pull podcast files from your hosting service to the podcast listener platform. As previously mentioned, Apple Podcasts is not a host. So you’ll need to host your content elsewhere and then use the RSS feed to grant listeners access to podcast directories—like Apple Podcasts. 

RSS feeds contain all the information about your shows. 

Once Apple crawls your RSS feed, you need to confirm that the files are linked to your Apple Podcast Connect account and that all of the episode details are included. 

View the Status of Your Podcasts

Your Apple Podcast Connect dashboard will display the status of all channels, shows, episodes, and subscriptions tied to your account. 

Everything is color-coded, so you can quickly identify whether something needs your attention.

• Red Status — You must perform an action before the content becomes available on Apple Podcasts.
• Yellow Status — There is work in progress (either by the creator or by Apple).
• Green Status — The content is ready to publish or already available on Apple Podcasts.

In addition to the colors, there are other types of statuses for shows, episodes, and channels:

• Draft — Content that has not yet been submitted to Apple.
• Published — Content is approved and available in Apple Podcasts.
• Subscription in Review — The channel has been approved and published, but the subscription is still pending approval. 
• Subscription Unavailable — The channel was approved, but there’s an issue with the subscription. 
• Removed (Issue Found) — Content did not pass the review process due to a violation of Apple’s content guidelines. 
• Removed and Archived (Issue Found) — Content has been archived after an issue was discovered. To restore the content, the issue must be resolved before it’s submitted for review. 
• Archived — An episode, channel, or subscription has been removed. It can be restored when you’re ready.

The status indicators are all very straightforward. If something is being reviewed by Apple, there’s nothing you can do to speed up the process. 

Manage Your Podcast Availability Settings

Your Apple Podcasts Connect dashboard puts you in control over where your show is available. By default, every country and region is selected. But you have the option to deselect or unselect any locations where you don’t want the show broadcasted. 

All free and paid content related to your show must have the same availability settings. You should also be aware that availability edits can take up to 24 hours to go into effect. 

It’s also worth noting that if our show has subscriber audio and you remove it from a country or region, your subscribers will lose access. Subscriptions will automatically be canceled if you remove access to a show or channel with subscriber audio. 

View Podcast Analytics

You can access analytics related to your podcasts directly from your Apple Podcasts Connect dashboard. This feature provides data visualization and unique insights related to your podcast show, channel, and performance. 

Some examples of what you can uncover through this tool include:

• How many people listen to your podcast
• New podcast followers by month
• If listeners are skipping your intro or mid-roll
• How shows and episodes perform over time
• Listener statistics by city and country

This is also a great way to find which episodes are getting the most listens. You’ll also be able to tell if one or more unique devices listened to a full episode more than once. If you’re using Apple Podcasts Subscriptions, your analytics dashboard will also let you download monthly reports related to sales, subscriptions, and listening metrics. 

For organizations, admins can grant unique and customized access to analytics for each team member. 

Transfer Ownership of Your Podcast

When you sign into Apple Podcasts Connect with your Apple ID, you’ll only have access to shows associated with that ID. 

To transfer a show to another channel, it must first be removed from the existing channel. If a show was part of a channel’s subscription, all current subscribers will lose access and all subscriber audio will be transferred to the new owner. 

Transferring ownership of a podcast requires assistance from the Apple support team. First, they need to verify the ownership of the show. You should also be prepared to provide:

• URL to Apple Podcasts
• Apple Podcasts show ID
• RSS feed
• Contact information
• The new account ID

In preparation for a transfer, simply select the channel and select the minus sign (-) that appears by the show. Then confirm your changes before you begin the transfer process. 

Final Thoughts

Apple Podcasts Connect is a centralized dashboard where content creators can manage everything related to their podcasts.

Technically, Apple Podcasts Connect, the Apple Podcasters Program, and Apple Podcasts Subscriptions are three different things. But don’t let these terms confuse you. They all work together to help you get the most out of your podcasting experience and manage how Apple users engage with your content. 

I’m a big fan of podcasting, and I encourage you to do it as well. Hopefully this guide provided some useful information about how Apple Podcasts Connect works and how you can use it to manage your shows.