Buzzsprout vs Simplecast Comparison 2026
Buzzsprout hosts a podcast, submits it to the directories and keeps a free plan on the table for anybody starting out. Simplecast is built for a show that answers to a sponsor or a network: downloads measured to the IAB standard, listener numbers broken out by market, and no free tier at all, only a 14-day trial. Both list an entry price of $15 a month, though Buzzsprout meters upload hours and Simplecast meters monthly downloads. The choice is really about who reads the analytics afterward.
Podcast hosting that publishes the video too
Podcast hosting with analytics worth reading
At a glance
- Only Buzzsprout has a free tier.
Side by side
Buzzsprout | Simplecast | |
|---|---|---|
| Starting price | From $15 | From $15 |
| Pricing model (they differ) | Free plan, paid tiers | Free trial, then paid |
| Free tier (they differ) | Yes | No |
| Billing | Not stated | Monthly or annual |
| Free trial | Not stated | 14 days |
| API | Not stated |
Buzzsprout
Podcast hosting that publishes the video too
Buzzsprout hosts a podcast, submits it to the directories and reports back with statistics that are actually readable, which is the reason it keeps being the recommendation for a first show. Upload time is the meter rather than episode count, and the plans are sold as hours a year. One tier up, the same episode is published as video to Apple, Spotify and YouTube from the same upload. Anybody who wants a subscription paywall around episodes will need something else beside it.
Our note
Seventy-two hours a year is about ninety minutes a week, which is more headroom than a new show needs and worth checking against an interview format that runs long. Take the video tier only if you will actually post to YouTube, since the audio plan does everything a podcast strictly requires.
Only on this side
- Works with YouTube
Simplecast
Podcast hosting with analytics worth reading
Simplecast is hosting for shows that answer to somebody, whether that is a network, a sponsor or a client. Downloads are measured to the IAB standard, listener numbers are broken out by episode and market, and the embeddable player is one of the few that does not look borrowed. Distribution to the directories is handled once at setup. Plans are sold by monthly download allowance rather than by episode count, so a show that publishes often is not penalised for it.
Why people weigh these two
- Simplecast instead of Buzzsprout
- Simplecast does the same hosting with analytics worth reading at the same $15 price, though it offers a trial rather than a free plan.
- Buzzsprout instead of Simplecast
- Buzzsprout also publishes the video version alongside the audio, with a free tier before a $15 plan, useful if the show goes to YouTube as well.
Which one should you pick
Take Buzzsprout for a first show, or any show without a sponsor demanding a report. The free plan costs nothing, and Audio at $15 a month billed annually covers 72 hours of upload a year, unlimited episodes and the podcast website. That is enough for most shows to never think about hosting again.
Take Simplecast once a sponsor or a network expects numbers that hold up to their own reporting. Basic is $15 a month, or $13.50 a month prepaid annually, for 20,000 downloads a month, with IAB-certified measurement and an embeddable player that does not look borrowed. There is no free plan, so budget for the $15 from the start once the 14-day trial ends.
Common questions
- Does Simplecast have a free plan like Buzzsprout?
- No. Simplecast has no free tier, only a 14-day trial the vendor calls commitment free. Buzzsprout keeps a free plan on offer, though its exact limits sit behind an accordion rather than on the pricing card.
- How does each one measure the plan you need?
- Buzzsprout meters upload hours: 72 a year on the Audio plan, whatever the audience size. Simplecast meters monthly downloads instead, starting at 20,000 a month on Basic, so a growing audience is what moves a show up a plan there, not how much gets uploaded.
- Are the entry prices actually the same?
- Close. Both list $15 a month at the entry tier. Buzzsprout's figure already assumes annual billing, and Simplecast's drops to $13.50 a month only if paid annually up front, so read the billing terms before assuming they match exactly.
- Which one is built for reporting to a sponsor?
- Simplecast. Downloads are measured to the IAB standard sponsors expect, with listener breakdowns by episode, device and market. Buzzsprout's statistics are described as easy to read rather than built for a sponsor's rate card.
Ratings are the average of reviews readers left. The facts are stated by each tool’s own listing and are not verified by CloutStack. How we make money.