Getting Your Podcast on Apple Podcasts: Complete Guide

Apple Podcasts Connect is the gatekeeper for the original podcast directory. Everything needed to submit correctly.

The landscape

When it comes to the original directory's requirements and approval flow, the details matter. Here's what the evidence and practitioner experience point to:

• Apple Podcasts Connect (podcastsconnect.apple.com) requires an Apple ID — sign in, choose 'New Show', paste your RSS feed URL.
• Apple's feed validation is stricter than most: it checks artwork size, enclosure URLs, required iTunes tags and category correctness — validate before submitting.

What actually works

When it comes to the original directory's requirements and approval flow, the details matter. Here's what the evidence and practitioner experience point to:

• Approval takes 1–5 business days — plan launch marketing around it, and submit before any announced launch date.
• The show category choice matters for browse placement: pick the most specific accurate category — subcategory placement is less competitive.

Putting it into practice

When it comes to the original directory's requirements and approval flow, the details matter. Here's what the evidence and practitioner experience point to:

• Apple's New & Noteworthy is editorially curated; strong launch velocity (multiple episodes, early reviews) is the signal they look for.
• Update the show through the RSS feed — Apple polls feeds periodically; episode changes propagate within 24 hours without resubmission.

Key takeaways

• Apple Podcasts Connect (podcastsconnect.apple.com) requires an Apple ID — sign in, choose 'New Show', paste your RSS feed URL.
• The show category choice matters for browse placement: pick the most specific accurate category — subcategory placement is less competitive.
• Update the show through the RSS feed — Apple polls feeds periodically; episode changes propagate within 24 hours without resubmission.

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