Acast vs AdvertiseCast Comparison 2026
Acast hosts a podcast and sells the advertising against it from the same account, free for one show and five episodes before the marketplace lifts the cap. AdvertiseCast sells advertising only, with no hosting attached, and it prints its rates in public: $24 to $26 CPM for a baked-in host read, $18 to $22 for a dynamic insert. The choice is between one company doing both jobs, or keeping your existing host and adding a marketplace with numbers you can check in advance.
Podcast hosting with an ad marketplace attached
Podcast ad marketplace with published rates
At a glance
- Both have a genuinely free tier.
Side by side
Acast | AdvertiseCast | |
|---|---|---|
| Starting price | From $14.99 | Free |
| Pricing model (they differ) | Free plan, paid tiers | Free |
| Free tier | Yes | Yes |
| Billing (they differ) | Monthly or annual | Usage-based |
| Free trial | None | Not stated |
| API | Yes |
Acast
Podcast hosting with an ad marketplace attached
Acast hosts the show and sells the ads against it, which is the combination a podcaster otherwise assembles from two companies. Putting a show into its marketplace lifts the episode cap on the free plan, so monetizing and hosting are the same decision. Ad revenue depends on being picked up by advertisers, and a small show may see nothing for a while.
Only on this side
- Covers monetization & payments
AdvertiseCast
Podcast ad marketplace with published rates
AdvertiseCast is the rare ad network that prints its rate card in public, so a podcaster can work out what an episode is worth before talking to anybody. Shows list, advertisers book, and host-read spots are matched against downloads. Its rates are an industry average rather than an offer, and a small show will be quoted under them.
Our note
The rate table is worth reading whether or not you list here, because it is the clearest public benchmark for what podcast advertising is worth. Use it to sanity-check any sponsorship offer you get directly.
Why people weigh these two
- AdvertiseCast instead of Acast
- AdvertiseCast publishes its ad rates and is free to join, though it only sells the ads and leaves hosting the show to somebody else.
- Acast instead of AdvertiseCast
- Acast reaches an ad marketplace by hosting the show there, free to start with paid plans from $14.99, where AdvertiseCast only handles the ads.
Which one should you pick
Pick Acast when you want hosting and ad sales handled by one company and are willing to let the host take that role. The free plan covers one show and five episodes, and joining the ad marketplace removes the episode cap, so monetizing and hosting are the same decision. A card is required at signup even for the free tier, though the page states it will not be charged.
Pick AdvertiseCast when you already have a host and want an ad marketplace with rates printed before you talk to anybody: $24 to $26 CPM for a host-read spot, $18 to $22 for a dynamic insert. Listing is free for the podcaster. A show doing a few hundred downloads an episode will not clear the minimums that make a buy worth an advertiser's time, so this pays off only once the download count is real.
Common questions
- Does AdvertiseCast host podcast episodes?
- No. It only sells advertising against a show you already host somewhere else. Acast does both jobs from one account, hosting the episodes and filling the ad slots against them.
- Which one publishes its ad rates?
- AdvertiseCast does: $24 to $26 CPM for a baked-in host read and $18 to $22 for a dynamic insert, both for 30 or 60 second slots. Acast does not publish a rate card, since ad revenue there depends on being picked up by its marketplace.
- Is either one free to join?
- Both are, for the podcaster. Acast's free plan covers one show and five episodes with hosting included, and the episode cap lifts once you join its ad marketplace. AdvertiseCast charges nothing to list, since its money comes from the advertiser side.
- How small a show can make money on AdvertiseCast?
- The published rates are pitched at a few thousand downloads an episode. A show doing a few hundred will not clear the minimums that make a buy worth an advertiser's time, so a smaller podcast is better served waiting or trying Acast's own marketplace instead.
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