The top 150 most popular podcasts to listen to

Podcasts have quickly become an incredibly popular source of entertainment in the last few years. They’re a great way for us to take time out of our day and tap into our interests, and trust us — there’s a podcast out there for every interest.

Whether you’re a comedy fan, history buff, politics nerd, science enthusiast, or you’re just intrigued about a particular subject, you’ll be spoilt for choice on what to listen to.

So to help you wade through the millions of options online, Uswitch has created the ultimate list of the best podcasts to listen to. We’ve done this according to the number of listens on Castbox, average Apple App Store rating and the number of reviews on the Apple App store.

Podcasts have now become part of the smartphone era, with many readily available at no individual cost, since they’re available through apps and streaming services. Classics that even date back to the 1950s, such as ‘Desert Island Discs’, have been converted onto digital platforms for the modern listener, appearing right next to modern favourites such as ‘No Such Thing As A Fish’.

Google searches for ‘podcasts’ have doubled over the last five years both in the U.S. and the U.K., with an average global search volume of 1.8 million per month.  So with such a vast choice of titles to choose from, our ultimate podcast list will give you a head-start by showing the most popular and well-loved shows around the world.

Top 3 rated podcasts of all time 

• Sh**ged, Married, Annoyed. This U.K. podcast features a real married couple who frequently discuss relationships (others and their own), annoyances, growing up, parenting and more. Genre: Comedy. 

• Crime Junkie. This U.S. podcast tells the story of true crime stories from the archives and more recently. Genre: True Crime. 

• Casefile True Crime. This Australian podcast presents episodes on the investigations of trials from solved and unsolved crime cases around the world. Genre: True Crime. 

Top 150 list of podcasts 

The top 14 US podcasts 

The top 14 US podcasts have a whopping combined Castbox listenership of 359,216,608.

The top 13 UK podcasts 

The top 13 UK podcasts have a combined Castbox listenership of 62,854,133. 

Broadband and TV experts at Uswitch say:

“Podcasts are a great way to take a break from screens and still enjoy some escapism. Whether it’s a true crime story, a comedy panel show or just the latest news, there is a wealth of options available online, and on your smartphone. 

It’s a cultural sensation that everyone can’t get enough of, but it does require a reliable broadband connection too. If you’re listening at home, and there are other people using the internet at the same time as you, there might be a struggle if your broadband speed is less than 15Mbps.

If so, a stronger fibre connection of 30Mbps or more will make sure you aren’t waiting around for your podcast to buffer. Another option is to download your podcasts first while you’re connected to your home broadband router, so you can listen on the go without relying on your mobile data or public Wi-Fi.”