Apple Podcasts URL (The Daily, NYT) → RSS via iTunes Lookup
Input URL
https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-daily/id1200361736Expected feed
https://feeds.simplecast.com/Sl5CSM3STest in finderRSS by platform
How to Get the RSS Feed for Podcasts
Every podcast has an RSS feed by definition. The trick is locating it when directories like Apple and Spotify hide it.
Quick answer
Do Podcasts have RSS?
- Do Podcasts have RSS?
- Yes. Every podcast has an RSS feed by definition. The trick is locating it when directories like Apple and Spotify hide it.
- Feed URL format
Hosted on the show's podcast platform (Buzzsprout, Libsyn, Megaphone, Simplecast, Transistor, Captivate). Discoverable via PodcastIndex.org search or by passing the numeric ID from an Apple Podcasts URL to the iTunes Lookup API.- Key limitation
- Spotify-exclusive shows have no public RSS feed. They only play inside Spotify
Context
What this means for Podcasts
Podcasts are the original RSS use case. Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Overcast, and every other podcatcher reads the same RSS feed. The directories are just listings on top of those feeds. The friction is that Apple and Spotify hide the underlying feed URL from listeners. The reliable way to find it is the Apple Podcasts ID (visible in the URL of any show on podcasts.apple.com), passed to the public iTunes Lookup API which returns the feedUrl field. PodcastIndex.org indexes 4M+ shows and offers the same lookup with a free API key. Spotify-exclusive shows have no public RSS by design.
- Feed URL format
Hosted on the show's podcast platform (Buzzsprout, Libsyn, Megaphone, Simplecast, Transistor, Captivate). Discoverable via PodcastIndex.org search or by passing the numeric ID from an Apple Podcasts URL to the iTunes Lookup API.- Working example
https://feeds.simplecast.com/Sl5CSM3S
Supported patterns
- Apple Podcasts show URL (/podcast/<slug>/id<NUM>): extract the numeric ID, pass to https://itunes.apple.com/lookup?id=<NUM>, read feedUrl
- PodcastIndex search by name (free API), returns feedUrl directly with no ID lookup needed
- Direct host feeds (feeds.simplecast.com, feeds.megaphone.fm, feeds.buzzsprout.com, anchor.fm/s/<id>/podcast/rss, feeds.libsyn.com, feeds.transistor.fm)
- Spotify for Podcasters shows that opted into RSS distribution (anchor.fm/s/<id>/podcast/rss)
- Show notes pages on the podcaster's own site, which often include a 'Subscribe via RSS' link
Limitations
- Spotify-exclusive shows have no public RSS feed. They only play inside Spotify
- Some private/premium feeds are gated behind a token in the URL and cannot be redistributed
- Apple and Spotify do not display the RSS URL anywhere in their listener apps. The iTunes Lookup or PodcastIndex API is the canonical way to recover it
- Dynamic ad insertion swaps audio file URLs at fetch time, so cached enclosure URLs may not stay valid for long
- Podcast RSS uses iTunes-namespaced extensions (itunes:image, itunes:duration, itunes:author) that some generic readers ignore
RSS finder
Find and preview a Podcasts feed
Test a Podcasts URL here to get the same feed analysis, import verdict, and live Aggregator-style preview as the main Feed Finder.
Gotchas
Common mistakes
- Watch for this: Treating podcasts.apple.com or open.spotify.com URLs as the feed itself: they are listing pages, not RSS
- Watch for this: Looking for an 'RSS' button in Apple Podcasts or Spotify: neither expose one to listeners
- Watch for this: Assuming Spotify Originals (Joe Rogan exclusives, Gimlet, Parcast) have RSS, most do not
- Watch for this: Subscribing to the podcaster's main blog or news feed by mistake. That returns text posts, not the audio enclosures the player needs
Examples
Try real Podcasts feed patterns
Direct host feed (Megaphone, Twenty Thousand Hertz)
Input URL
https://feeds.megaphone.fm/20kExpected feed
https://feeds.megaphone.fm/20kTest in finderDirect host feed (Buzzsprout, Podcasting Q&A)
Input URL
https://rss.buzzsprout.com/328913.rssExpected feed
https://rss.buzzsprout.com/328913.rssTest in finderUse Podcasts feeds with Aggregator
Adding a Podcast Feed to Your WordPress Site: A Step-by-Step Guide
End-to-end walkthrough for taking a podcast RSS feed and importing it into WordPress with Aggregator, including audio enclosure handling and inline player display.
Read the full guide on the Aggregator blog →FAQ
Podcasts RSS questions
How do I find a podcast's RSS feed?
Three reliable methods. First, paste the podcast's name into Feed Finder. The tool queries PodcastIndex.org and returns the show's RSS feed. Second, open the show on podcasts.apple.com, copy the numeric ID at the end of the URL (after id), and request https://itunes.apple.com/lookup?id=<ID>. The JSON response contains a feedUrl field with the RSS URL. Third, many podcast hosts (Buzzsprout, Libsyn, Simplecast, Megaphone) link the RSS feed directly from the show page on their own site.
Does Apple Podcasts have an RSS feed?
Apple Podcasts does not host RSS feeds, it consumes them. Every show in Apple Podcasts is just a listing of an RSS feed hosted somewhere else (Buzzsprout, Libsyn, Megaphone, the show's own site, etc.). To find the underlying RSS feed, take the Apple Podcasts numeric show ID and pass it to the public iTunes Lookup API. The feedUrl in the response is the canonical RSS URL.
Does Spotify give me the RSS feed for a podcast?
No. Spotify never exposes the underlying RSS feed of a podcast in its listener app. Most non-Spotify-exclusive shows still have a public RSS feed available elsewhere (find it via PodcastIndex.org or the iTunes Lookup API). Spotify Originals and exclusives have no public RSS by design and cannot be subscribed to outside Spotify.
Can I import a podcast into WordPress?
Yes. Add the podcast's RSS feed URL as a source in Aggregator. Each episode's audio file is exposed via the standard RSS enclosure tag, which Aggregator parses automatically. Enable Link to Enclosure on the source so the audio URL is preserved, and use the Audio Player option in display customisation to render an inline player on each episode.
Will the audio actually play on my WordPress site?
Yes, if the podcast feed exposes audio enclosures (which essentially all of them do). Aggregator's Audio Player display option renders a standard HTML5 audio player for each item, sourced from the enclosure URL. Note that podcast hosts that use dynamic ad insertion may swap the audio URL at fetch time. Your WordPress site will fetch the URL fresh on each request, so this generally works without configuration.
What about Spotify-only shows?
Spotify-exclusive shows do not have a public RSS feed and cannot be imported into WordPress or any other RSS-based reader. The same is true for shows behind paywalls (Patreon-only feeds, Wondery+, etc.) unless the listener has a private feed URL with their auth token, which is not redistributable.