AdvertiseCast vs Audacy Creator Lab Comparison 2026
AdvertiseCast is a marketplace with a published rate card, $18 to $26 CPM depending on the ad format, built for a show already pulling a few thousand downloads an episode. Audacy Creator Lab works differently: a podcaster of any size sets their own rate and pitches brands directly, paying a 10 percent service fee only when a campaign lands, with free hosting thrown in. The choice comes down to one thing: whether your download numbers already clear a network's minimum, or you are still building toward it.
Podcast ad marketplace with published rates
Podcast sponsorships on a stated fee
At a glance
- Both have a genuinely free tier.
Side by side
AdvertiseCast | Audacy Creator Lab | |
|---|---|---|
| Starting price | Free | Free |
| Pricing model | Free | Free |
| Free tier | Yes | Yes |
| Billing | Usage-based | Not stated |
| Free trial | Not stated | Not stated |
| API | Not stated | Not stated |
| Data export |
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.
Only on this side
- Covers brand deals & sponsorships
Audacy Creator Lab
Podcast sponsorships on a stated fee
Creator Lab is a marketplace where brands post campaigns and podcasters pitch for them, with the hosting thrown in free. A creator sets their own rate, talks to the brand directly and gets paid through the platform rather than invoicing anybody. The service fee is published rather than negotiated, which is rarer in podcast advertising than it should be. Shows too small for a network to call back are the ones this exists for.
Why people weigh these two
- Audacy Creator Lab instead of AdvertiseCast
- Audacy Creator Lab does the same matching of podcast sponsorships on a stated fee, free to join like AdvertiseCast.
- AdvertiseCast instead of Audacy Creator Lab
- The closest match: a free podcast ad marketplace that also publishes its rates, doing the same pitch-for-campaigns job as Creator Lab.
Which one should you pick
Pick AdvertiseCast once the show is already pulling a few thousand downloads an episode, enough that the published $18 to $26 CPM becomes real money rather than a rounding error. Listing costs nothing, and the rate card is worth reading even if you go elsewhere, since it is the clearest public benchmark for what a spot is worth. A show doing a few hundred downloads will not clear the minimums that make a buy worth an advertiser's time.
Pick Audacy Creator Lab if the numbers are not there yet. It charges no sign-up fee, includes free podcast hosting, and only takes its 10 percent once a pitched campaign actually pays. You set the rate and talk to the brand directly rather than accepting a published card, which suits a defined audience more than a large one. A show already turning down sponsorship offers does not need a marketplace to find more.
Common questions
- Which one pays more per download?
- AdvertiseCast publishes $24 to $26 CPM for host-read spots and $18 to $22 for dynamic ones, an industry-average rate rather than a guaranteed offer. Audacy Creator Lab has no published rate at all. The podcaster sets the price when pitching, so it depends entirely on what the brand agrees to.
- Does either one charge to sign up?
- No. AdvertiseCast is free for podcasters to list, and Audacy Creator Lab has no sign-up fee either, plus it throws in free hosting. Audacy Creator Lab takes 10 percent when a pitched campaign pays; what AdvertiseCast itself keeps from its CPM rates is not published.
- Is there a minimum show size for either one?
- AdvertiseCast is built around download-based pricing, so a show doing a few hundred downloads will not clear the minimums that make a buy worth an advertiser's time. Audacy Creator Lab states no such floor, which is the whole reason it exists for smaller shows.
- Does Audacy Creator Lab include hosting?
- Yes, hosting is free as part of the platform, alongside the sponsorship marketplace. AdvertiseCast is only the ad marketplace and does not host episodes at all.
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