How to Submit Your Podcast to Spotify
Spotify holds roughly 31% of the global podcast listener market share (Spotify Investor Relations, 2023 Annual Report), making it the single largest podcast listening platform on the planet. Getting a show verified there is not complicated, but the path has a specific shape — and knowing that shape saves time. This page covers the two submission routes, what Spotify actually checks during review, and how to decide which approach fits a given publishing setup.
Definition and scope
Submitting a podcast to Spotify means making a show's episodes discoverable and playable inside the Spotify app and web player by registering its RSS feed with Spotify's catalog. The process is distinct from uploading audio directly to Spotify — Spotify pulls episode files from a hosting provider's servers via that RSS feed, not from a local hard drive.
The submission itself is handled through one of two official channels:
- Spotify for Podcasters (formerly Anchor, rebranded in 2023) — Spotify's own hosting and analytics dashboard at podcasters.spotify.com
- Third-party podcast hosting platforms — services like Buzzsprout, Libsyn, Podbean, or RSS.com that distribute to Spotify on the show's behalf
Both routes end in the same outcome: the podcast appears in Spotify's catalog. The difference is in who manages the RSS feed, where listener analytics live, and how much platform dependency is introduced.
How it works
Whether submitting directly or through a host, Spotify validates five things before approving a show:
- A valid RSS feed — must include a title, description, at least one episode with a valid audio file URL, and an episode publish date
- Podcast artwork — minimum 1400 × 1400 pixels, maximum 3000 × 3000 pixels, in JPEG or PNG format (Spotify Podcast Submission Guidelines)
- A podcast category — at least one category from the standard iTunes/RSS taxonomy
- An explicit content flag — a clean/explicit declaration at the show level
- A working audio file — MP3 or AAC format; Spotify will attempt to fetch the most recent episode during validation
Direct submission via Spotify for Podcasters:
Log in at podcasters.spotify.com, select "Add your podcast," paste the RSS feed URL, and verify ownership via a code embedded in the feed or sent to the email verified in the feed metadata. Spotify's review typically completes within 5 business days, though most submissions are approved in under 48 hours.
Submission through a hosting platform:
Services like those covered in the podcast hosting platforms overview handle the Spotify submission inside their own dashboard. The podcaster authorizes the distributor to submit on their behalf — often a single checkbox during show setup. The host maintains the relationship with Spotify, which means if the host changes, Spotify needs to be notified to update the feed URL or risk broken playback.
Common scenarios
New show, no prior distribution:
The cleanest path is enabling Spotify distribution directly inside the hosting platform at the time the show launches. This avoids the manual RSS submission step entirely and keeps all distribution management in one place.
Existing show moving to a new host:
This is where things get mildly complicated. Spotify caches the old RSS feed URL. The new host needs to serve a 301 permanent redirect from the old feed to the new one, or Spotify's crawler will continue pulling from the original location — a situation that can cause distribution platform inconsistencies across all directories simultaneously. Most reputable hosts handle the redirect automatically during migration.
Show already on Spotify, claiming it in Spotify for Podcasters:
Some older shows were added to Spotify's catalog by listeners or third parties before the podcaster claimed ownership. Claiming is done by submitting the RSS feed through the Spotify for Podcasters dashboard; Spotify then sends a verification code to the contact email in the feed. Claiming unlocks analytics, episode editing, and the ability to add video clips or polls.
Decision boundaries
The core decision is whether to submit directly through Spotify for Podcasters or delegate to a hosting provider. Both are legitimate — the tradeoff is control versus convenience.
| Factor | Spotify for Podcasters (direct) | Third-party host submission |
|---|---|---|
| Analytics access | Spotify's native dashboard | Host's dashboard + Spotify data (sometimes fragmented) |
| Platform dependency | High — Spotify controls the feed | Moderate — host controls the feed |
| Setup complexity | Low for new shows, moderate for migrations | Lowest — often one toggle |
| Monetization tools | Spotify's native ad and subscription tools | Varies by host |
Shows focused on podcast monetization through Spotify's own programs (Spotify Audience Network, subscription features) may find the direct Spotify for Podcasters route more useful, since those tools are native to that dashboard. Shows distributing across 10 or more directories simultaneously tend to prefer a single host-managed pipeline for efficiency.
Podcast artwork is the most common submission failure point. Artwork that falls outside the 1400–3000 pixel square range, contains embedded text smaller than 12pt, or uses a format other than JPEG or PNG will cause the submission to fail without a particularly clear error message. Checking artwork specifications against the podcast artwork requirements standard before submitting eliminates the most predictable delay.
The podcasting authority homepage provides a broader map of the production-to-distribution workflow, situating Spotify submission within the full lifecycle of a show.