Best podcast hosting: Buzzsprout vs Captivate compared

The short answer

Pick Buzzsprout if you are starting out, publish a weekly show of normal length or want video podcasts. You can launch on the free plan without a credit card, and the Audio plan costs $15 a month billed annually for 72 upload hours a year, which covers an hour-long weekly episode. The Audio + Video plan ($25 a month billed annually) sends 1080p video to Apple Podcasts, Spotify and YouTube from the same upload.

Pick Captivate if you publish a lot of audio, run several shows or want to grow and monetize a show seriously. Uploads and storage are unlimited, every plan hosts unlimited podcasts, and you only move up a tier when your downloads grow past 30,000 a month. Membership sales, listener tips, dynamic ad insertion and private podcasts are included on every plan. You get 30 days to try the full platform before the first charge.

How to choose a podcast host

Every host stores your episodes, builds the RSS feed and lists your show in podcast apps. What differs:

• What you pay for. Some hosts meter the hours of audio you upload, others meter the downloads your episodes get. A long or frequent show pays more on an upload-based plan; a popular show pays more on a download-based plan.
• Free plan or trial. A free plan lets you publish without paying but usually has limits; a free trial gives you the full product for a short time.
• Number of shows. If you run more than one podcast, check whether each one needs its own plan.
• Video. Video podcasts on YouTube and Spotify are growing, but not every host distributes video.
• Monetization. Memberships, listener support, ad insertion and sponsorship tools save you from adding separate services.
• Stats. IAB-certified analytics count downloads in the way advertisers accept.
• Cancellation and refunds. What happens to your episodes and your feed when you leave.

Prices below are in US dollars per month, billed annually unless stated, as shown on each host's pricing page when we checked.

Pricing side by side

Buzzsprout's pricing page lists annual prices; monthly billing is available at a higher rate. Captivate lists $17, $44 and $90 a month paid yearly, and its plans start at $19 a month on monthly billing.

Captivate also offers 25% off all plans to students, educational organizations, registered charities and non-profits. Shows above 300,000 downloads a month get a custom plan.

What each pricing model costs your show

The billing model decides which host is cheaper for you, so run your own numbers:

• A weekly one-hour show uploads about 52 hours a year. That fits Buzzsprout Audio's 72 hours at $15 a month, and it fits Captivate Personal at $17 a month as long as you stay under 30,000 downloads a month. Buzzsprout is slightly cheaper and adds a free plan to start on.
• A daily 30-minute show uploads about 180 hours a year, well over Audio's 72 hours. On Buzzsprout you can keep publishing, and extra time is billed at your plan's hourly rate on the next invoice; unused hours never roll over. Captivate charges nothing extra for uploads, so a high-volume show with a modest audience usually costs less there.
• A growing show pays nothing more on Buzzsprout as downloads rise. On Captivate, going over your download limit doesn't take your show offline; if you go over two months in a row, Captivate asks you to move up a tier, so 150,000 downloads a month means $44 a month.
• Several shows: Buzzsprout's Multi-Podcast covers 5 or 10 shows for $30 a month; Captivate hosts unlimited podcasts on any plan, with downloads counted across all of them.

Free plan vs free trial

Buzzsprout's free plan lets you publish without a credit card: 2 hours of uploads a month, with each episode hosted for 90 days. It doesn't include video distribution or paid add-ons. Because episodes disappear after 90 days, plan to upgrade once your show is more than a test.

Captivate's 30-day free trial gives you the whole platform, with nothing restricted, including human support. Captivate has no free plan, the trial form asks for card details, and billing starts automatically when the trial ends unless you cancel before then, so set a reminder if you are only evaluating.

Video, transcripts and AI tools

Video. This is Buzzsprout's clearest advantage. Its Audio + Video plan ($25 a month billed annually) distributes video episodes to Apple Podcasts, Spotify and YouTube at 1080p, and Multi-Podcast can be bought with the video option. Captivate's pricing and features pages don't list video hosting; its help center covers adding video podcasts to Apple Podcasts through Apple HLS. If video on YouTube and Spotify is central to your show, Buzzsprout is the simpler choice.

Transcripts. Buzzsprout creates transcripts automatically for new episodes on all current paid plans at no extra cost and puts them in your RSS feed, podcast apps and Buzzsprout website. Captivate Assistant transcribes episodes and writes titles, show notes, chapters and ad markers from the transcript; the only charge is transcription, $5 for 5 hours, and unused hours roll over.

Add-ons. Buzzsprout sells Magic Mastering (automatic audio cleanup) and Cohost AI (titles, descriptions, chapters, social posts) as paid add-ons priced by plan.

To record or stream your show live with guests, see Restream vs StreamYard; for editing video episodes, see Movavi vs Filmora.

Monetization, analytics and teams

Earning from your show. Buzzsprout offers listener subscriptions, listener support payments, Buzzsprout Ads and Dynamic Content. Captivate goes further on every plan: custom memberships, listener tips, exclusive and early-access content, a one-click media kit, direct sponsorship sales, its AMIE engine for dynamic ad and content insertion, and Captivate Marketplace for buying and selling ads.

Private podcasts. Captivate includes unlimited private podcasts, with up to 50,000 private subscribers in total, which suits internal company shows and member-only feeds.

Stats. Buzzsprout states its audio and video stats filter bots and are IAB 2.2 certified. Captivate describes itself as the first IAB Tech Lab 2.2 certified podcast host and can import your download history from your previous host.

Teams and websites. Both include a podcast website you can connect to your own domain. Buzzsprout's paid plans include unlimited team members; Captivate lists unlimited network team members on all plans and granular access for client podcasts, which suits agencies and networks.

Cancellation, refunds and the company behind each

Buzzsprout is run by Higher Pixels in Jacksonville, Florida, and has hosted podcasts since 2009. Plans are billed in advance, with no refunds or credits for partial months. Cancelling is done from your account menu and deletes the account and all of its content immediately, so download your files and redirect your feed first.

Captivate is operated by Captivate Audio Ltd, registered in England and Wales. Its terms say fees are non-refundable once charged, except where the law requires otherwise (UK consumers get a 14-day cooling-off right). To cancel, you first close your active podcasts and then cancel the account from the Billing section. Cancelling doesn't delete your content straight away: you can ask support to reactivate within 30 days, after which the data can't be recovered.

Both hosts require you to be 18 or older. With either one, export your episodes before you leave.

Buzzsprout: who it suits and the catch

Buzzsprout suits first-time podcasters, weekly shows of normal length and video podcasters who want one upload to reach Apple Podcasts, Spotify and YouTube. The free plan and simple upload-hour plans make it easy to start, and the Archive plan keeps a finished show online for $5 a month.

The catch: free episodes vanish after 90 days, unused hours don't roll over, extra hours are billed, mastering and AI tools cost extra, and cancelling deletes everything at once. The Buzzsprout review covers each plan in detail.

Captivate: who it suits and the catch

Captivate suits podcasters who publish often or in long episodes, creators running several shows, networks and agencies, and anyone who plans to earn through memberships, tips, sponsors or dynamic ads. Unlimited uploads, unlimited shows and all features on every plan keep pricing predictable until your audience grows.

The catch: there is no free plan, the trial needs a card and billing starts automatically after 30 days, transcription costs extra, fees are non-refundable once charged, and video hosting for YouTube and Spotify isn't listed. Read the full Captivate review, and find more tools for creators in design, video and audio.