iPad User Guide

Find podcasts on iPad

Use the Podcasts app to find shows about science, news, politics, comedy, and more. If you find a show you like, you can follow it to add it to your library. Then you can easily watch or listen offline, get notified about new episodes, access followed shows on your other Apple devices and on Apple Podcasts on the web, and more.

Note: Shows may offer paid subscriptions that give you access to exclusive shows and episodes, new releases, episodes without ads, and more. You can subscribe to a show or channel and manage your subscriptions. If you already subscribe to Apple Music, Apple News+, or an eligible third-party app, you can play its subscriber content in Podcasts. See Listen to subscriber-only content.

👁 The Search screen in the Podcasts app, showing podcast categories. At the bottom of the screen is the Rewind, Pause, Skip Forward, and Sleep Timer buttons, episode artwork, the episode title, the More button, and the View Transcript button.

Find podcasts

  1. Go to the Podcasts app 👁 Image
    on your iPad.

  2. Do any of the following:

    • Search by category, title, person, or topic: Tap 👁 the Search button
      (or tap Search in the sidebar), then enter a word or phrase in the search field. Top hits appear as you type.

      Tap 👁 the Search button
      on the onscreen keyboard to view all results for the word or phrase you typed. Tap a show, channel, or episode to go directly to it.

    • Discover new shows: Tap New to see new and trending shows, and the Apple editorial collections. You can also tap 👁 the Search button
      or Search and get a personalized list of categories to choose from, as well as editorial collections.

      Tip: To quickly see the top shows and episodes for a specific category, tap Top Charts, tap the All Categories pop-up menu in the top-right corner, then tap a category.

    • Add shows by URL: In the sidebar, tap Shows, tap 👁 the More button
      ,       then tap Follow a Show by URL. Enter the URL, then tap Follow.

      Note: The URL must be for a valid podcast RSS feed.

Get personalized recommendations

You can get personalized podcast recommendations based on your watching and listening activity and your favorite channels and categories.

  1. Go to the Podcasts app 👁 Image
    on your iPad.

  2. Tap Home.

  3. Do any of the following:

    • View recommended shows: Scroll left or right in the You Might Like row.

    • Refine your show recommendations: Tap a show in the You Might Like row, tap 👁 the More button
      ,       then tap Suggest Less.

    • View suggested episodes based on your watching and listening: Scroll down to the More to Discover row, then scroll left or right.

    • Opt out of personalized recommendations: Tap 👁 the My Account button
      or your profile picture (you may need to open the sidebar), tap your name, then turn off Personalized Recommendations.

      Note: Your Personalized Recommendations setting also applies to the App Store, Apple Books, iTunes Store, Apple TV, and subscriptions from Apple.

Other recommendations are available based on categories you watch and listen to and any subscriptions you already purchased.

View shared podcasts

When a friend shares a show or episode with you in Messages, you can easily find it in Podcasts.

  1. Go to the Podcasts app 👁 Image
    on your iPad.

  2. Tap Home, then scroll down to the Shared with You section.

    If you don’t see Shared with You, check to make sure your friend is in your contacts, and that Podcasts is turned on in Settings 👁 Image
     > Apps > Messages > Shared with You.

See also Find all the content someone shared with you.

Browse episodes within a specific podcast

  1. Go to the Podcasts app 👁 Image
    on your iPad.

  2. Search or browse to find a show.

  3. Tap the show, then scroll down to see recent episodes (or tap See All, if available).

Filter episodes

If you follow a show, or have saved or downloaded at least one of its episodes, you can choose filter options for it.

  1. Go to the Podcasts app 👁 Image
    on your iPad.

  2. Search or browse to find a show.

  3. Tap the show, then tap Episodes (or the current filter) above the list of episodes.

  4. Choose an option, like Unplayed or Season 1.

Thanks for your feedback.