Spotify
Privacy passport
- No tracking
- Yes
- Open source
- Yes
- Only you can read it
- On device
- No account
- Yes
- Free
- Yes
5 of 5 checks
- Android
Private podcast apps
9 apps, each with a privacy passport
Podcasts are open RSS feeds, so a good player needs no account at all. The main differences are whether subscriptions sync, and if they do, whether that sync runs through the maker's servers, an open service like gpodder.net, or one you host.
Leaving one of these?
If you only try two
No account, no ads, every podcast by RSS
Privacy passport
- No tracking
- Yes
- Open source
- No
- Only you can read it
- No
- No account
- Optional
- Free
- Free plan
3 of 5 checks- iPhone
- Mac
- Web
Polished iPhone player with no third-party trackers
All 9 podcast apps
Passes
Works on
9 of 9 apps
AntennaPodPick
App8.2k
Open podcast player for Android that subscribes to any RSS feed with no account, no ads and optional open sync.
- No tracking
- Open source
- Stays on device
- No account
- Free
- Android
OvercastPick
App
Popular iPhone podcast player from an independent developer, with no third-party analytics and no account needed.
- No tracking
- Closed source
- Provider can read it
- Account optional
- Free plan
- iPhone
- Mac
- Web
Amperfy
App1.8k
Free iPhone, iPad and Mac player for Subsonic, Navidrome and Ampache servers, with offline downloads.
- No tracking
- Open source
- On your server
- Account needed
- Free
- iPhone
- Mac
Funkwhale
Self-hosted
Community music and podcast platform you can join or host, sharing libraries across servers.
- No tracking
- Open source
- On your server
- Account needed
- Free
- Web
Kasts
App
KDE podcast player for Linux, Windows and Plasma Mobile phones, with downloads, chapters and optional sync.
- No tracking
- Open source
- Stays on device
- No account
- Free
- Android
- Windows
- Linux
gPodder
App1.5k
Veteran desktop podcast client that downloads episodes from RSS feeds, with no account needed.
- No tracking
- Open source
- Stays on device
- No account
- Free
- Mac
- Windows
- Linux
Audiobookshelf
Self-hosted14.8k
Self-hosted server for audiobooks and podcasts that downloads new episodes and syncs progress to its apps.
- No tracking
- Open source
- On your server
- Account needed
- Free
- Android
- iPhone
- Web
Castopod
Self-hosted
Podcast hosting you run yourself, with built-in fediverse comments and listener stats that stay on your server.
- No tracking
- Open source
- On your server
- Account needed
- Free
- Web
Podverse
App11
Open-source podcast app for Android, iPhone and the web that works without an account; sync is an optional extra.
- Minimal tracking
- Open source
- Stays on device
- Account optional
- Free plan
- Android
- iPhone
- Web
What to check in podcast apps
- 1 Whether you can subscribe and listen without creating an account
- 2 Where subscription sync happens, if it is offered at all
- 3 Whether it adds ads or analytics on top of the shows
