Podcasting has exploded in reputation, with over 4 million podcasts and practically 600 million listeners worldwide. However are you able to truly generate income podcasting?
I’ve been podcasting with my Your Digital Advertising Coach podcast (which originated as Social Enterprise Unplugged after which grew to become Maximize Your Social after which Maximize Your Social Affect earlier than its present iteration) since 2013. Whereas I can’t say it’s my greatest cash maker, it’s a small money-making asset that has further advantages past simply monetization that I speak about within the video under.
I imagine there are various podcasters like me. Whereas most podcasts don’t generate big income in a single day, the precise monetization technique can flip your podcast right into a worthwhile enterprise or aspect revenue. Whether or not you’ve a small however loyal viewers or are aiming for large sponsorships, there’s a monetization methodology that may be just right for you.
On this information, I’ll share confirmed methods to generate income podcasting, together with methods for novices and established hosts. You’ll learn to monetize even a small podcast, what strategies work finest, and the way prime podcasters are incomes six- and seven-figure incomes.
How A lot Cash Can Podcasters Make?
Let’s start with some normal numbers which are typically talked about within the trade. I’ve included the numbers under to display that with a purpose to turn out to be a profitable podcast when it comes to monetization, a big podcast viewers is preferable and doubtlessly even mandatory.
- Newcomers (below 1,000 downloads per episode): $0 – $500/month
- Mid-tier podcasters (1,000 – 10,000 downloads): $500 – $5,000/month
- Prime podcasters (10,000+ downloads): $5,000 – $50,000+/month
- Largest earners (100,000+ downloads): Six to seven figures yearly (e.g., Joe Rogan’s $250M Spotify deal)
Key Takeaway: You don’t want hundreds of thousands of downloads to generate income—however you do want the precise technique to your viewers and area of interest.
13 Methods to Make Cash Podcasting (Even with a Small Viewers)
Creating wealth podcasting does require some back-end work that you could be not initially discover if you absorb your favourite podcasts, from BBC programming to Joe Rogan. All of those podcasts adhere to some fundamental steps earlier than creating unique content material, and people steps can be utilized that can assist you make your individual break into the trade. To successfully monetize the goal audiences listening to your podcast, I like to recommend the next:
1. Sponsorships: Constructing Lengthy-Time period Model Partnerships
Though loads of podcasts are interrupted by a fast advert, not in contrast to the advertisements you might need heard on the radio, sponsorships differ. Sponsorships are partnerships between you and a model. These sponsorships contain customized suggestions from the podcaster, and usually prolong over the long-term (3-6 months, historically, although they’ll final past this time interval).
There are a number of key elements of sponsorship offers, together with the frequency of mentions embedded inside your unique content material, customized integrations to your platform, and exclusivity agreements. Sponsorships can appear tough to achieve, however securing sponsorship offers can appear comparatively easy: ship a pitch, negotiate your deal, and supply your media equipment, detailing your viewers demographics and your platform.
There are notably profitable podcast sponsorships, together with Totino’s sponsorship of the My Brother, My Brother, and Me podcast, whereby the brothers hosted a podcast that was fully pizza-themed to advertise the model.
2. Podcast Adverts: CPM vs. CPA Fashions
Your goal audiences can play an necessary position in figuring out which mannequin most closely fits your podcast content material. Whenever you place advertisements in your podcast episodes, there are usually two totally different choices obtainable: CPM (Price Per Mille) and CPA (Price Per Acquisition). A CPM podcast advert mannequin pays per 1,000 downloads, in response to normal trade charges. A CPA-based podcast advert pays solely when a listener of your podcast content material completes a purchase order, or indicators up for an electronic mail listing or different service.
Your viewers engagement goes to find out which of those fashions most accurately fits your wants. An engaged viewers could also be extra prone to assist CPA fashions, whereas a much less engaged viewers could also be higher off with a CPM advert mannequin.
From right here, you’ll be able to look additional into dynamically inserted advertisements, versus host-read advertisements. Since you need to set up belief along with your viewers in your podcast episodes, you need to be sure that your podcast monetization technique finest displays what your viewers expects of your advert content material. A dynamically inserted advert is pre-recorded by the podcast host or one other particular person, and could be positioned wherever throughout the episode. Host-read advertisements aren’t as versatile in positioning, and require a stay learn by the host, however a devoted viewers could also be extra prone to belief their contents.
3. Promote Merchandise (Print-on-Demand)
When you’ve a bigger viewers, chances are you’ll think about promoting merchandise. This monetization technique is finest reserved for a broader viewers to maximise income, however could be a nice possibility for podcasters seeking to construct belief and loyalty with listeners. Bodily merchandise like T-shirts, hoodies, stickers, and mugs can all bear your brand or your catchphrase. Profitable podcasters can use platforms like Printful, Teespring, and Shopify to successfully automate this course of, and supply a further podcast monetization methodology with out an excessive amount of additional effort (i.e. passive revenue).
Professional Tip: Supply limited-edition drops to extend demand.
4. Affiliate Advertising
Internet online affiliate marketing is the observe of selling services, and incomes a fee when your affiliate hyperlink is utilized by your readers. It’s a widespread podcast monetization methodology, and can also be often present in running a blog and social media profiles. When your affiliate hyperlink is clicked on, you earn a fee. This can be a nice possibility for small to mid-sized podcasts with an engaged viewers. A few of the highest-paying affiliate packages embrace the next:
Professional Tip: Combine naturally into your podcast matters as a substitute of doing a tough promote. Constructing an electronic mail listing will assist amplify your efforts and assist this turn out to be a dependable supply of passive revenue.
5. Promote Premium Content material
Many podcast networks (Apple Podcasts Subscriptions, Spotify Subscriptions, and Patreon, to call just a few) will let you provide premium content material, together with ad-free episodes, digital occasions, prolonged episodes, and bonus episodes. These could be held past a paywall of a one-time buy or a subscription, and might even permit on-line communities to flourish. Premium content material might help monetize superfans of your work whereas making it attainable to maintain your important podcast free to extend your attain.
Additional Studying: The 27 Main Podcasting Instruments to Assist You Launch or Develop Your Podcast
6. Supply Paid Memberships
Paid memberships may also assist assist the event of on-line communities that obtain unique perks past your common podcast content material. Non-public Fb teams might help you determine curiosity in an on-demand service to your podcast listeners, and paid memberships can be utilized to ship weekly stay Q&A calls, direct entry to the podcast host, and extra. That is an alternative choice supreme for podcasters with engaged communities.
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7. Crowdfunding & Asking for Listener Donations
Whereas it won’t initially appear to be the perfect or only possibility, many podcast listeners are comfortable to assist assist their favourite podcasts, from a favourite homicide podcast to a parenting podcast. That is finest utilized by podcasts with each loyal and engaged audiences. Podcast listeners usually tend to take part on this specific method when they’re extremely invested in a podcast. Platforms to crowdfund embrace Purchase Me a Espresso, Ko-fi, PayPal, and Patreon.
Instance? Chapo Entice Home reportedly earns practically $180,000 per 30 days from Patreon.
8. Be a part of Podcast Promoting Networks
Podcast promoting networks provide totally different strategies to submit advertisements, together with mid-way advertisements and post-roll advertisements. Podcast promoting networks are nice for area of interest podcasts and mainstream podcasts alike, offered that they see 10,000+ downloads per 30 days, as that is the usual requirement for podcast internet hosting platforms and promoting networks to start providing advert placements. Standard networks embrace Podcorn, AdvertiseCast, and SXM Media.
Additional Studying: 21 Advertising Podcasts to Encourage You in 2025
9. YouTube Monetization (Podcast Movies)
Providing a video podcast alongside your normal audio podcasts may also present a supply of revenue. Podcasters can make the most of YouTube monetization by importing podcast episodes as movies on YouTube to spice up your annual revenue. This can be a nice possibility to extend your revenue for podcasters who want to encourage a loyal neighborhood. YouTube advertisements, memberships, and tremendous chats can all be used to extend your income streams on YouTube. Monetization on YouTube requires at the least 1,000 subscribers and 4,000 hours of watch time.
Monetization on YouTube is clearly not an possibility for newbie podcasters; as a substitute, it’s a nice possibility for podcasters who’ve already developed a robust sense of neighborhood and a devoted set of followers. In case you are excited about going this route, remember to document movies of your podcasts to construct up your watch time.
10. Promote On-line Programs, E-Books, or Digital Merchandise
On-line programs, e-books, and different digital merchandise might help contribute to a sustainable revenue for people who find themselves consultants in a given area of interest. Enterprise, health, self-improvement–these are all potential niches with nice potential. Creating wealth by means of podcasting alone is just not all the time simple, and including some consumables like digital merchandise might help enhance the probability of creating income streams for content material creators like podcasters. Podcasters can count on to make wherever from $99-$499 per sale.
Contemplate this: a enterprise podcaster can promote a LinkedIn advertising course. A private finance podcast can provide an funding information. Somebody in life-style content material manufacturing can create a course for organizing, optimizing day by day routines, and much more.
11. Teaching & Consulting
Teaching and consulting is just like creating digital merchandise, however as a substitute of making consumable digital merchandise that may be despatched out, podcasters can coach others or provide consulting providers to assist others inside their area of interest. This, too, goes to learn podcasters with a robust neighborhood, and would require the podcaster in query to boast experience of their given discipline. Profession teaching, enterprise consulting, and podcast teaching are all choices to assist folks in your area of interest launch their very own ventures or develop current platforms.
Additional Studying: Learn how to Launch a Social Media Advisor Enterprise in 10 Steps
12. Public Talking & Reside Occasions
Public talking and stay occasions could be a nice possibility for enterprise house owners to attract extra folks in. This specific monetization technique is nice for podcasters who need to leverage their model past the audio platform of strict podcasting. These with merchandise can assist merchandise gross sales throughout the public talking or stay occasion, and might even associate with others to herald all kinds of listeners and enhance engagement charges main as much as the occasion.
In case you are uncertain how you can proceed with this technique, think about internet hosting or collaborating in a stay podcast recording adopted by an viewers Q&A, talking at trade occasions, and becoming a member of in native or regional meet-and-greets.
13. Repurpose Your Content material right into a E book
Whether or not you provide knowledgeable recommendation on funds, otherwise you host a podcast discussing the most recent in well being and wellness, there could also be a option to repurpose your content material right into a e-book, a weblog submit, audiobooks, or social media content material. All of those platforms provide a helpful and doubtlessly profitable technique of repurposing your audio content material and increasing your attain. If you don’t want to shift to different platforms, you too can promote podcast transcripts or use AI instruments to show your audio content material into books.
Additional Studying: Learn how to By no means Run Out of Social Media Content material Concepts: The Final Information
Learn how to Monetize a Podcast with a Small Viewers
In case you are simply beginning out, it may be onerous as a brand new podcast host to generate the variety of downloads it takes to turn out to be an easy-to-monetize in style podcast. With that in thoughts, right here is my really useful podcast monetization technique for novices to get began:
- Internet online affiliate marketing. Internet online affiliate marketing has a decrease entry barrier and could be a good way to get began.
- Listener assist (Patreon, Purchase Me a Espresso). Smaller podcasts might have extra engaged audiences as a result of intimate nature of chatting with a smaller group of individuals, so listener assist can provide a small option to break into monetization.
- Digital merchandise and programs. These choices have excessive margins, so could be supreme for anybody seeking to begin with a bang.
- Teaching and consulting. Teaching and consulting are premium providers you can provide even when you’re beginning out, offered that you simply rapidly set up your self as a thought chief or knowledgeable in your discipline.
- YouTube advertisements. In case you are a video-based podcaster, you’ll be able to considerably rapidly generate income with YouTube advertisements, pre-recorded advertisements routinely positioned along with your movies.
Key takeaway: Deal with high-value, low-volume monetization first (e.g., $500 price of consulting providers vs. $20 CPM advertisements).
Additional Studying: A Full Information to Making a Nice Podcast Web site
Remaining Ideas: Is Podcasting Worthwhile?
Sure! Podcasting could be worthwhile, however monetization requires technique. The most important mistake new podcasters make is ready too lengthy to begin creating wealth or attempting to give attention to lower-producing strategies first. Whereas there are by no means any ensures, starting with the top in thoughts will assist speed up your incomes potential.
Begin early, check totally different income streams, and give attention to engagement over downloads. Whether or not you’ve 100 listeners or 100,000, there’s a option to make podcasting worthwhile. Utilizing the information I’ve put collectively right here, you’ll be able to develop your monetization technique to fit your wants and adapt to your journey.
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