How to move your podcast to a new hosting platform

To move your podcast to a new hosting platform, you do three things: import your episodes to the new host, redirect your old RSS feed to the new one, and confirm your directory listings picked up the change. Your episodes, artwork, and show notes come with you. So do your subscribers. Done right, your audience never notices the move happened.

Podcasters put this off because it feels like moving house. But really, it's closer to forwarding your mail.

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Your feed is portable. That's the point.

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Spotify, Apple Podcasts, and every other app don't store your show. They subscribe to your RSS feed, the address where your episodes live. Move the feed and set up a redirect, and every app quietly follows it to the new address.

That's what open ecosystem podcasting affords you: no platform owns your show, so no platform can hold it hostage. If your current host makes leaving hard, that tells you something about why you're leaving.

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Before you move: a five-minute checklist

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• Turn off dynamic ads or monetization at your current host. You want your episodes imported in their original form, without stitched-in ads. Depending on the host, you may need to wait 24 to 72 hours after disabling them.
• Copy your RSS feed URL from your current host's settings.
• Note your episode count. You'll use it to verify the import grabbed everything.
• Screenshot your headline stats. Your new host will measure differently (more on that below), and you'll want the before picture.

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Step 1: import your show

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Every serious host has an import tool. On Acast, it's the Import Existing Show button you see the moment you sign up: search your podcast's name or paste your RSS feed URL, check the episode count matches, and press Import. The tool fetches your audio files, episode notes, artwork, and keywords automatically.

Most shows are done in minutes. Verify every episode came through before you touch anything else.

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Step 2: redirect your old feed

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The redirect (technically a 301 permanent redirect) is the step that carries your audience with you. It tells every podcast app your feed has permanently moved, and the apps update themselves.

You set it up at your old host, usually in settings under a name like "redirect feed" or "release feed." Acast gives you instructions tailored to whichever host you're leaving, whether that's Buzzsprout, Spreaker, SoundCloud, or a self-hosted server.

Then leave the redirect alone. Keep it live, and keep your old account open, for at least 90 days so every app and every listener's device has time to catch up.

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Step 3: check your listings

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If your show is already on Apple Podcasts and other directories, the redirect handles them automatically. No re-submission needed.

Spotify is the one exception worth a manual check: update your host information in Spotify's podcaster dashboard so it knows who delivers your show now.

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About your stats: expect a dip that isn't one

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Hosts count downloads differently. If your new host is IAB certified (Acast is, on all four IAB metric standards), it filters out bots, data centers, and duplicate requests that looser measurement lets through. Your numbers may come in lower, and they'll be more true, which is exactly what sponsors want to see.

We've broken down which podcast analytics are worth tracking if you want to rebuild your baseline properly.

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Move for a reason

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Nobody switches hosts for fun. You switch because you've hit a ceiling: analytics you can't trust, monetization that never materializes, video and distribution options that stop at audio.

So pick the new host for the ceiling you're escaping. On Acast, importing your show puts it in front of the Acast Marketplace, where 140,000+ creators earn from 4,000+ advertisers, with distribution to every major app from day one. The move itself takes minutes. What you move to is the decision that matters.

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Frequently asked questions

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How do I move my podcast to a new hosting platform?

Import your episodes to the new host using its import tool (you'll need your RSS feed URL), set a 301 redirect from your old feed to the new one, then confirm your directory listings updated. On Acast, import is built into sign-up and most shows are moved in minutes.

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Will I lose subscribers if I change podcast hosts?

No. Subscribers follow your RSS feed, and the 301 redirect points their apps to your new feed automatically. Keep the redirect live for at least 90 days and your audience carries over intact.

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Do I need to re-submit my podcast to Spotify and Apple Podcasts?

No. Directories pick up your new feed through the redirect. The one manual step worth doing is updating your host information in Spotify's podcaster dashboard.

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How long should I keep my old podcast host account open?

At least 90 days after setting the redirect. Cancel too early and the redirect dies with the account, which is the one way a migration actually loses listeners.