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🎧 Curated Collection
Best Podcasts for Beginners
Never listened to a podcast before? Start here — the most loved, most accessible shows to ease you into one of the world's best free habits.
Want something more personal? Take the quiz and we'll match you to the perfect show.
75 best podcasts for beginners podcasts — the big names
TED Talks Daily
TED
Lore
Aaron Mahnke
99% Invisible
Roman Mars
Astonishing Legends
Astonishing Legends Productions
Last Podcast On The Left
The Last Podcast Network
The Daily
The New York Times
Good Hang with Amy Poehler
The Ringer
Myths and Legends
Jason Weiser, Carissa Weiser, Nextpod
The NoSleep Podcast
Creative Reason Media Inc.
Ologies with Alie Ward
Alie Ward
The Skinny Confidential Him And Her Show
Lauryn Bosstick and Michael Bosstick / Dear Media
Hello From The Magic Tavern
Arnie Niekamp
The Happiness Lab with Dr. Laurie Santos
Pushkin Industries
Duncan Trussell Family Hour
Duncan Trussell Family Hour
Heavyweight
Pushkin Industries
Beautiful Stories From Anonymous People
Chris Gethard
The Peter Schiff Show Podcast
Peter Schiff
The 85 South Show with Karlous Miller, DC Young Fly and Chico Bean
The Black Effect and iHeartPodcasts
The Girls Bathroom
Sophia & Cinzia
Basically Unfiltered with Remi, Alisha, Zane and Heath
Dear Media
Bubba On the Lake
Bill Bubba Bussey
The Daily Beans
MSW Media
Andrew Schulz's Flagrant with Akaash Singh
Andrew Schulz's Flagrant with Akaash Singh
Wolf & Owl with Romesh Ranganathan and Tom Davis
Mighty Ranga / Keep It Light Media
Elis James and John Robins
BBC Radio 5 Live
Deep Water | Tortoise Investigates
The Observer
KILL TONY
DEATHSQUAD.TV & Studio71
StoryCorps
NPR
On with Kara Swisher
Vox Media
Club Random with Bill Maher
Bill Maher
ABC News
@abcnews
BBC News
@bbcnews
The Daily Show
@thedailyshow
India Today
@indiatoday
BBC Learning English
@bbclearningenglish
Fox News
@foxnews
Al Jazeera English
@aljazeeraenglish
CNN
@cnn
WION
@wion
NDTV
@ndtv
The Weekly Show with Jon Stewart
Comedy Central
The Journal.
The Wall Street Journal & Spotify Studios
SmartLess
Jason Bateman, Sean Hayes, Will Arnett
Selected Shorts
Symphony Space
This is Gavin Newsom
iHeartPodcasts
Not Gonna Lie with Kylie Kelce
Wave
Question Everything
Brian Reed
Economist Podcasts
The Economist
Omnibus
Omnibus
Money Rehab with Nicole Lapin
Money News Network
The Athletic NBA Daily
The Athletic
Candace
Candace Owens
IHIP News
Jennifer Welch & Angie Sullivan
Radio Diaries
Radio Diaries & Radiotopia
The Lonely Island and Seth Meyers Podcast
The Lonely Island & Seth Meyers
The Ringer Fantasy Football Show
The Ringer
Love and Radio
Love and Radio | QCODE
Sounds Like A Cult
Studio71
Moral Of The Story
Stephanie Soo
The Rush Hour With Dave Neal
Dave Neal
I, Survivor
Wondery
Black Wealth Renaissance
REVOLT
The Joe Rogan Experience
Joe Rogan
Impolitic with John Heilemann
Audacy | Puck
My Momma Told Me
Big Money Players Network and iHeartPodcasts
Grits and Eggs Podcast
Deante’ Kyle
Therapuss with Jake Shane
Jake Shane
Next Up with Mark Halperin
MK Media
The Other Stories | Sci-Fi, Horror, Thriller, WTF Stories
Hawk & Cleaver | A Digital Story Studio bringing you the best new stories to watch, read, sniff, and absorb.
DIY Money | Personal Finance, Budgeting, Debt, Savings, Investing
Quint Tatro & Daniel Czulno, CFP® a passionate look at everything money from budgeting, savings, investing, stocks, bonds, debt. For those that enjoy Dave Ramsey, Jill On Money, Smart Money, BiggerPockets it’s worth a listen!, Bleav
Otherppl with Brad Listi
Brad Listi
IDIOT with Laura Clery
Laura Clery & Studio71
Woo Woo with Rachel Dratch
Rachel Dratch | QCODE
The Briefing with Jen Psaki
MS NOW, Jen Psaki
Tangle
Isaac Saul
How we curate best podcasts for beginners
Every podcast on WhichPodcast is ranked using Listen Score — a global popularity metric based on listener data, episode frequency, and audience engagement across Spotify, Apple Podcasts, and YouTube. The shows above are drawn from the genres most relevant to this collection and sorted by their global listener ranking, so the top results reflect what millions of real listeners are choosing right now.
Want a more personalised recommendation? Our podcast discovery quiz matches you to the right show based on your mood, your time, and whether you want a household name or a hidden gem.
Frequently asked questions
What is the best podcast for someone who has never listened before?
The best first podcast is one that matches something you already enjoy — if you like crime dramas, start with a true crime podcast; if you enjoy learning, pick an educational show; if you want to laugh, comedy podcasts are hard to beat. The most popular shows above are popular for a reason: they're accessible, well-produced, and easy to get into.
How do I start listening to podcasts?
Download Spotify or Apple Podcasts (both free) and search for a show from this list. Hit play. That's it. Both apps remember where you stopped and will suggest new episodes automatically. Most people find they go from one podcast to ten within a few weeks.
Do I need to listen to podcasts in order?
Most interview and news podcasts are episodic — each episode stands alone, so you can start anywhere. Serialised podcasts (narrative true crime, audio drama, investigative journalism) are best listened to from episode one. The show description usually makes clear which format it uses.