Throw a stone in any major city and you’ll likely hit someone who has a podcast. (As of 2025, there are just around five million of them.) And it makes sense—the cost of production and barrier to entry is low, and the upsides are sky-high for any storyteller who wants to be heard.
But not all stories are the same length. Just like with film and television, podcast creators need to keep runtimes in mind.
The short answer: It depends. The truth of the matter is, there are no set rules on length when it comes to creating a podcast. When you look at some of the most popular shows (both today and throughout the last two decades), they all vary in length.
“The Joe Rogan Experience” and “Dan Carlin’s Hardcore History” are two of the most popular podcasts ever. Both generally release installments that are over three hours. (”Hardcore History” has episodes that clock in at a whopping six hours!) Meanwhile, the New York Times’ once-a-day news roundup “The Daily,” another extremely successful podcast, averages under 30 minutes an episode.
According to a 2019 study of 19 million podcast episodes, the average length of an episode is just over 43 minutes. The median length of that same sample size is around 39 minutes.
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There is some conventional wisdom behind those numbers. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the average time it takes for people to commute to and from work is a little less than 54 minutes (about 27 minutes to work, and 27 back). So, listening to a podcast episode under that time is a safeguard for knowing they’ll finish the newest release in a single day. (When I was writing for the podcast network Parcast, a division of Spotify, that was our mindset).
Podcast length statistics
Here’s an overall look at the podcast ecosystem from online audio studio Riverside, broken down into various lengths (which I’ve rounded):
- Less than 15 minutes: 14%
- 15–30 minutes: 31%
- 30–45 minutes: 32%
- 45–60 minutes: 18%
- Over 60 minutes: 5%
As you can see, more than half of podcast episodes are over 30 minutes; but if you go over an hour, you’re actually in rare territory. And yet, as we’ve seen, some of the most-listened-to shows in the history of the medium regularly run past 60 minutes. Which is why, when you’re in the planning phase, it’s more helpful to look carefully at the needs of your specific show and its intended audience, rather than overarching trends.
Podcast lengths based on types and formats
As the podcast industry has grown over the last 20 years, genres, styles, and formats have greatly evolved. Your feed can be full of everything from general sports talk to something as niche as “a meditative podcast about cereal.”
So, suffice it to say that these buckets are pretty broad. But you can use them as a starting point based on what your show is about.
Talk/conversational podcasts: These are typically formatted as interviews (like Backstage’s own In the Envelope: The Actor’s Podcast) or just hosts shooting the breeze. Genre-wise, they range from comedy and business to current events, film, and lifestyle. If you’re planning something that is focused on winding, in-depth talks, there is an audience for over 60-minute shows. Examples: “Doughboys,” “Comedy Bang Bang,” “The Bill Simmons Podcast.”
Scripted narrative podcasts: These are less of a “hang out” and more tightly structured, working off a pre-written script (although some, like “Crime Junkie” or “The Dollop,” do mix in conversational elements). This area is where you’ll find a lot of true crime, historical deep-dives, and even fictional audio tales. Scripted podcasts typically run 30–50 minutes. Examples: “Revolutions,” “Serial Killers,” “The Magnus Archives,” “American Scandal.”
News: These fall into two categories: roundups and in-depth. Roundups give you the bullet points of what’s going on in a given day or week, with some light commentary. These episodes run around 30 minutes. Examples: “The Daily,” “American Prestige,” “Up First From NPR.”
In-depth news podcasts are more commentary-based. A host may discuss a single topic or multiple subjects, and the audience tunes in primarily for that host’s commentary and opinion on the matter. For that reason, these episodes run longer, often over an hour. Examples: “Pod Save America,” “Chapo Trap House.”
Credit: DC Studio/Shutterstock
Because there is no standard length, both options come with their own pros and cons.
Long podcasts
Pros:
- You can delve deeper into a given topic, while also leaving room for the conversation to branch out into related digressions.
- You give your audience more to consume, making your show an attractive option for lengthy commutes, workouts, and traveling.
- The more time the listener spends with your podcast, the more they’ll want to come back for you, ensuring a steady stream of loyal subscribers.
Cons:
- Production costs and time can balloon. This includes parts of the process away from the microphone, like research, booking, scriptwriting, and editing.
- You must ensure you truly have enough material (or a strong enough personality) to keep listeners engaged. Remember, you’re competing with millions of other options for people’s attention spans.
Short podcasts
Pros:
- Minimal production can mean lower costs and time commitments.
- It’s also less of a time commitment for the audience, who might be looking for a quick hit on a brief walk or chore.
- You can produce and release more episodes over a shorter amount of time.
- Listeners can binge your content the same way they’d watch a streaming series.
Cons
- There is the potential to leave the audience wanting more.
- You run the risk of sounding less authoritative on a given subject, especially if any other show covers it more in-depth.