Top 10 Best Podcasts of All Time

Launched in December 2009, The Joe Rogan Experience grew to become the most listened-to podcast in the world, routinely reaching over 11 million listeners per episode before Spotify paid a reported $100 million to secure an exclusivity deal in 2020 — later extended for reportedly $200 million. Rogan's willingness to host three- and four-hour unedited conversations with scientists, comedians, athletes, and politicians across the ideological spectrum gave the show an intimacy and scope that traditional media could not replicate. Its cultural reach has made it a defining media institution of the 21st century, for better and for worse.

This American Life began as a radio broadcast on WBEZ Chicago in 1995, created by Ira Glass, before becoming one of the most downloaded podcasts in the world with 2.2 million weekly listeners. It has won six Peabody Awards — more than any other broadcast or podcast programme — and pioneered the narrative non-fiction format that made podcasting commercially viable. Shows like Serial, Reply All, and Invisibilia were either direct spin-offs or directly inspired by its aesthetic. Its model of building an hour-long programme around a theme using multiple stories of wildly different subjects remains unmatched for elegance and emotional range.

Dan Carlin's Hardcore History stands apart from every other podcast in the world by its sheer ambition of scale: individual episodes regularly exceed six hours, and his six-part "Blueprint for Armageddon" series on World War I runs nearly 24 hours in total, routinely earning 15 million or more downloads per episode. Launched in 2006, Carlin makes no claim to academic credentials — he presents himself as a passionate amateur — but his ability to convey the emotional reality of historical events through meticulous research and theatrical narration has earned him a devoted global audience that treats each new episode as a cultural event. His back catalogue sells for years after release.

Launched in January 2016 by Karen Kilgariff and Georgia Hardstark, My Favorite Murder fused true-crime storytelling with stand-up comedy to create a format that had never existed before and spawned an enormous genre of imitators. The show reached 35 million monthly listeners at its peak and created the self-identifying "Murderino" fan community — an active, merchandise-purchasing, live-show-attending base that proved true crime could anchor a genuine lifestyle brand. Its blend of laughter and darkness normalised both the genre and the idea that women's interest in violence and crime was culturally significant rather than morbid.

Created by Jad Abumrad and Robert Krulwich and launched on WNYC New York in 2002, Radiolab pioneered a form of audio journalism that blended science, philosophy, and narrative in ways that feel more like music than conventional radio. Its innovations in layered sound design — voices interrupting and completing each other, atmospheric audio beds, music that functions as emotional punctuation — set a production standard that redefined what science communication could sound like. Abumrad won a MacArthur Genius Grant in 2011, in part for his audio innovations on the show, which has since expanded into multiple spin-off series.

NPR's Planet Money launched in September 2008, days before the collapse of Lehman Brothers, making its timing almost mythically apt. In the fifteen-plus years since, it has won a Peabody Award and built a loyal global audience by doing something that seemed impossible: making economics genuinely entertaining through narrative storytelling, character-driven reporting, and a refusal to talk down to its listeners. Its daily "The Indicator" spin-off delivers ten-minute economic explainers, while the flagship show has produced landmark long-form work including the creation of its own T-shirt and its own oil barrel to trace global supply chains.

Launched by The New York Times in February 2017 and hosted by Michael Barbaro, The Daily became the most downloaded podcast in the United States within months, accumulating more than 20 million downloads per month. Its 20-to-30-minute format — a single-story daily briefing built around intimate interviews and immersive sound design — reinvented what a news podcast could be at a moment when daily journalism was under intense commercial and editorial pressure. Its success validated the idea that quality audio journalism could command a mass audience, inspiring every major news organisation in the world to build a comparable flagship show.

Launched in November 2018 after Conan O'Brien ended his television run, "Conan O'Brien Needs a Friend" quickly became the highest-rated comedy podcast in the United States, regularly reaching 2 million downloads per episode. The show's premise — Conan's relentless, semi-ironic quest for genuine friendship — unlocks a looser, stranger, more self-deprecating version of O'Brien than his late-night work ever could. Its chemistry between Conan, producer Sona Movsesian, and assistant Matt Gourley created one of podcasting's most beloved ensemble dynamics, influencing a generation of comedy podcast formats that followed.

Launched in July 2020 by actors Jason Bateman, Sean Hayes, and Will Arnett, SmartLess became one of the fastest-growing podcasts in history, reaching the top of the charts in 65 countries within its first month. Its format is elegantly simple: each episode, one host surprises the other two with a mystery celebrity guest, producing genuine reactions rather than rehearsed promotional banter. The show attracted a reported $60 million combined deal with Spotify and Amazon for exclusive rights and a TV documentary series, confirming celebrity podcasting's value as a premium media category. Guests have included Barack Obama, Paul McCartney, and Barbra Streisand.

Launched in December 2009, The Joe Rogan Experience grew to become the most listened-to podcast in the world, routinely reaching over 11 million listeners per episode before Spotify paid a reported $100 million to secure an exclusivity deal in 2020 — later extended for reportedly $200 million. Rogan's willingness to host three- and four-hour unedited conversations with scientists, comedians, athletes, and politicians across the ideological spectrum gave the show an intimacy and scope that traditional media could not replicate. Its cultural reach has made it a defining media institution of the 21st century, for better and for worse.

This American Life began as a radio broadcast on WBEZ Chicago in 1995, created by Ira Glass, before becoming one of the most downloaded podcasts in the world with 2.2 million weekly listeners. It has won six Peabody Awards — more than any other broadcast or podcast programme — and pioneered the narrative non-fiction format that made podcasting commercially viable. Shows like Serial, Reply All, and Invisibilia were either direct spin-offs or directly inspired by its aesthetic. Its model of building an hour-long programme around a theme using multiple stories of wildly different subjects remains unmatched for elegance and emotional range.

Dan Carlin's Hardcore History stands apart from every other podcast in the world by its sheer ambition of scale: individual episodes regularly exceed six hours, and his six-part "Blueprint for Armageddon" series on World War I runs nearly 24 hours in total, routinely earning 15 million or more downloads per episode. Launched in 2006, Carlin makes no claim to academic credentials — he presents himself as a passionate amateur — but his ability to convey the emotional reality of historical events through meticulous research and theatrical narration has earned him a devoted global audience that treats each new episode as a cultural event. His back catalogue sells for years after release.

Launched in January 2016 by Karen Kilgariff and Georgia Hardstark, My Favorite Murder fused true-crime storytelling with stand-up comedy to create a format that had never existed before and spawned an enormous genre of imitators. The show reached 35 million monthly listeners at its peak and created the self-identifying "Murderino" fan community — an active, merchandise-purchasing, live-show-attending base that proved true crime could anchor a genuine lifestyle brand. Its blend of laughter and darkness normalised both the genre and the idea that women's interest in violence and crime was culturally significant rather than morbid.

Created by Jad Abumrad and Robert Krulwich and launched on WNYC New York in 2002, Radiolab pioneered a form of audio journalism that blended science, philosophy, and narrative in ways that feel more like music than conventional radio. Its innovations in layered sound design — voices interrupting and completing each other, atmospheric audio beds, music that functions as emotional punctuation — set a production standard that redefined what science communication could sound like. Abumrad won a MacArthur Genius Grant in 2011, in part for his audio innovations on the show, which has since expanded into multiple spin-off series.

NPR's Planet Money launched in September 2008, days before the collapse of Lehman Brothers, making its timing almost mythically apt. In the fifteen-plus years since, it has won a Peabody Award and built a loyal global audience by doing something that seemed impossible: making economics genuinely entertaining through narrative storytelling, character-driven reporting, and a refusal to talk down to its listeners. Its daily "The Indicator" spin-off delivers ten-minute economic explainers, while the flagship show has produced landmark long-form work including the creation of its own T-shirt and its own oil barrel to trace global supply chains.

Launched by The New York Times in February 2017 and hosted by Michael Barbaro, The Daily became the most downloaded podcast in the United States within months, accumulating more than 20 million downloads per month. Its 20-to-30-minute format — a single-story daily briefing built around intimate interviews and immersive sound design — reinvented what a news podcast could be at a moment when daily journalism was under intense commercial and editorial pressure. Its success validated the idea that quality audio journalism could command a mass audience, inspiring every major news organisation in the world to build a comparable flagship show.

Launched in November 2018 after Conan O'Brien ended his television run, "Conan O'Brien Needs a Friend" quickly became the highest-rated comedy podcast in the United States, regularly reaching 2 million downloads per episode. The show's premise — Conan's relentless, semi-ironic quest for genuine friendship — unlocks a looser, stranger, more self-deprecating version of O'Brien than his late-night work ever could. Its chemistry between Conan, producer Sona Movsesian, and assistant Matt Gourley created one of podcasting's most beloved ensemble dynamics, influencing a generation of comedy podcast formats that followed.

Launched in July 2020 by actors Jason Bateman, Sean Hayes, and Will Arnett, SmartLess became one of the fastest-growing podcasts in history, reaching the top of the charts in 65 countries within its first month. Its format is elegantly simple: each episode, one host surprises the other two with a mystery celebrity guest, producing genuine reactions rather than rehearsed promotional banter. The show attracted a reported $60 million combined deal with Spotify and Amazon for exclusive rights and a TV documentary series, confirming celebrity podcasting's value as a premium media category. Guests have included Barack Obama, Paul McCartney, and Barbra Streisand.