Lesson #2
Mastering the Apple Podcasts and Spotify Algorithms to Maximize Your Visibility
The algorithms behind listening platforms like Apple Podcasts and Spotify are designed to recommend the most relevant shows based on user search queries. While their inner workings remain mostly undisclosed, we now have a solid understanding of several key factors that influence a podcast’s ranking in search results.
October 6, 2025 • About 11 min. read
Over the past few years, we’ve conducted several studies at Ausha to better understand how the algorithms behind the major podcast platforms actually work.
The first was a large-scale analysis of several thousand search results on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. It gave us concrete insights into just how important keywords are for podcast visibility.
The second study focused on the relative impact of different metadata fields:
Does placing a keyword in a title carry more weight than placing it in a description?
Do tags influence visibility at all?
Thanks to this analysis, we gained a much clearer understanding of how each metadata field contributes to a podcast’s ranking.
In this Lesson #2 on PSO (Podcast Search Optimization), we’ll take you behind the scenes of the Apple Podcasts and Spotify algorithms so you can optimize your show and episodes to boost your chances of being discovered by listeners.
What you’ll learn in this lesson:
- How Ausha analyzed podcast platform algorithms
- How the Apple Podcasts algorithm works
- How the Spotify algorithm works
- Why the results may vary between platforms
Study #1: How Keywords Truly Impact Your Podcast Visibility
In 2024, we launched a first phase of research at Ausha to better understand how organic search works on major podcast platforms.
This large-scale exploratory study had a clear objective: to identify correlations between a podcast’s metadata and its position in search results, with a particular focus on the two most widely used platforms today, Apple Podcasts and Spotify.
Download our study on how Apple Podcasts and Spotify work
Go deeper with our free additional resource and find out how to master the algorithms to boost your visibility.
Why focus on Apple Podcasts and Spotify?
We chose to focus on Apple Podcasts and Spotify because they currently dominate the global listening market. According to the latest PodNews report (April 2025), Apple Podcasts accounts for 50% of podcast listening in the U.S., followed by Spotify with 18%.
That said, nearly all podcast platforms feature a search bar, which means they all rely, at least in part, on some form of search engine logic. The tips in this lesson will also help you improve your visibility on other platforms, such as Amazon Music or Castbox.
A solid methodology for a unique dataset
To conduct this initial study, we used the following methodology:
- 1,000 keywords were tested using the search bar on podcast platforms.
- 100,000 search results were collected and examined.
- In total, over 60,000 shows and more than 7 million podcast episodes were analyzed.
This study allowed us to identify key trends in the factors influencing podcast rankings and to gather concrete data to help optimize visibility.
However, it’s important to keep in mind that a correlation between a specific factor and higher positions does not necessarily imply a direct cause-and-effect relationship. Podcast platform algorithms remain complex and take multiple variables into account when determining rankings.
In the next section of this lesson, we’ll share the most important takeaways from our analysis along with actionable steps you can take to improve your visibility on both Apple Podcasts and Spotify.
How does the Apple Podcasts algorithm work?
Let’s start with Apple Podcasts (formerly iTunes). The platform’s algorithm relies on three core pillars:
- Your podcast metadata: This includes your show name, episode titles, descriptions, and tags.
- Listener behavior: Apple Podcasts primarily analyzes what users do after performing a search. It looks at whether a listener clicks on your podcast after it appears in the results, starts playing an episode right away, subscribes, or adds your show to their library. If there’s interaction with your podcast, it boosts your engagement rate, which in turn improves your visibility.
- Popularity: Based on the number of ratings and subscribers your podcast has.
By analyzing the results of our study, we were able to pinpoint specific trends.
Download our study on how Apple Podcasts and Spotify work
Go deeper with our free additional resource and find out how to master the algorithms to boost your visibility.
📌 The impact of consistency
Contrary to popular belief, simply publishing a new episode does not guarantee an immediate higher ranking. It’s not (just) that one new release that will push you up in search results.
However, this factor isn’t completely neutral when it comes to your search ranking. According to a study by Ausha on Apple Podcasts, 65% of podcasts that appear in the top 10 search results have published at least one new episode within the last 30 days.
On the Spotify side, two-thirds of the podcasts that show up in search results have published an episode within the last 15 days.
So, it’s not about when you publish but how regularly you do it.
One thing to keep firmly in mind: your podcast’s activity (meaning how regularly you publish) matters more than anything else. You can fine-tune your metadata all you want, but if you’re not consistently releasing new episodes, platforms won’t highlight your show.
An inactive podcast remains invisible, no matter how good the content is.
📌 The importance of keywords
Through extensive testing and analysis, we’ve seen just how critical keywords are to a podcast’s discoverability. Just look at what happens in the “Search” tab on Apple Podcasts: the moment you start typing, suggested episodes and shows begin to appear automatically.
To generate these suggestions, Apple Podcasts scans the metadata of each show, which is exactly why adding relevant keywords is essential.
🔍 97% of podcasts that appear in Apple Podcasts search results include the user’s search term at least once in their metadata (titles or descriptions).
Once again, this underscores the importance of carefully selecting your keywords and consistently adding them to your metadata. Need help finding the right ones? Head over to Lesson #3 of this PSO academy.
In short, if your podcast doesn’t appear in the top 100 Apple Podcasts search results, it likely means your metadata isn’t yet fully optimized for the searches your target audience is performing.
📌 What about transcripts?
Recently, Apple Podcasts has taken things a step further by analyzing automatic episode transcriptions. This means that the words spoken in your episodes can now contribute to your podcast’s SEO helping you show up in search results if they match a listener’s query.
That’s one more reason to pay close attention to both your content and your metadata!
How does the Spotify algorithm work?
After breaking down how the Apple Podcasts algorithm works, we continued our research to better understand Spotify’s approach.
Spotify’s algorithm is also built around three core pillars, very similar to Apple Podcasts:
- Podcast metadata: Spotify also analyzes the title and description of shows and episodes, as well as the name of the author or publisher.
- Listener behavior: Podcasts that generate the most engagement (full listens, subscriptions, favorites) are ranked higher.
- Recommendations based on listening history: This is the main difference from Apple Podcasts: Spotify prioritizes content its users are likely to enjoy based on their listening habits. That means if you regularly listen to podcasts about true crime stories, then, depending on your search, Spotify will naturally start by suggesting shows that cover that genre.
📌 The impact of keywords and metadata
If you’ve been following along, you’ve probably guessed it: Spotify also rewards content with well-optimized metadata. Here are some key trends we uncovered in our 2024 Ausha study:
- 67% of podcasts in the Top 100 include the search keyword in the show title.
- 74% of podcasts in the Top 10 include the main keyword in their show title.
- 95% of podcasts in the Top 10 use the searched keyword at least once in their metadata.
Our second study, which I’ll detail in the next section of this lesson, will confirm this.
Download our study on how Apple Podcasts and Spotify work
Go deeper with our free additional resource and find out how to master the algorithms to boost your visibility.
📌 The role of publishing frequency
Publishing frequency plays a significant role in podcast rankings, but its impact varies from one platform to another.
According to our study, Spotify places strong emphasis on content freshness. In fact, we’d even call it the fourth pillar of its podcast ranking strategy.
In our first large-scale study, we observed that podcasts publishing at least one episode every 15 days gained an average of 5 positions in search results compared to those that publish less frequently.
On the Apple Podcasts side, consistency seems to carry less short-term weight, but staying active is still a positive signal for the algorithm—especially when combined with other factors like keywords and listener engagement.
📌 Impact of the number of episodes per show
For Spotify, the total number of episodes published by a show has an impact on your ranking, with a gain of +7 positions in search results.
What has no impact on search rankings on Apple Podcasts or Spotify
Our study also revealed that certain factors have no direct impact on a podcast’s ranking in search results. Whether on Apple Podcasts or Spotify, the following criteria are neutral in terms of impact:
- The name of the podcast’s author
- The format of the podcast (episodic or serial)
- Whether or not the content is marked as explicit
Is it possible to get different results on Spotify and Apple Podcasts?
Absolutely, and in fact, it’s quite common. The same podcast might show up prominently in Spotify search results but be far less visible on Apple Podcasts (or the other way around). There are several reasons for this.
While both platforms rely on similar factors like metadata, listener behavior, and publishing consistency, they don’t treat those factors the same way. Each platform has its own logic and weighs ranking signals differently. What matters a lot for one might matter much less for the other.
That’s exactly what we set out to explore in Ausha’s second study, which focused on comparing the relative weight of different metadata fields in podcast search rankings.
Study #2: What Each Metadata Field Really Weighs in Your Podcast Ranking
After our large-scale initial study, we wanted to go a step further: to understand the exact role of each individual field, each piece of metadata, in how podcasts are ranked.
In other words: Does placing a keyword in an episode title carry more weight than putting it in the description? Does the author name influence search visibility? Do platforms take transcripts into account?
A simple yet powerful method
To answer these questions, we designed a series of real-world experiments using a straightforward protocol: we published multiple near-identical podcasts, changing only one variable at a time.
Each test podcast included just one unique keyword, inserted into a specific metadata field (such as show title, episode title, show or episode description, author name, transcript, etc.).
The keyword we used was deliberately invented to ensure it had zero existing search results across the web or podcast platforms: “aushaPSO2025.”
(Prior to publishing, searching this term returned no results, creating a perfectly neutral testing environment.)
We then monitored the search ranking of each podcast and episode on both Apple Podcasts and Spotify, just a few hours after publishing.
The results:
- On Apple Podcasts, placing a keyword in either the show title or the episode title boosted the content in search results—even when the episode itself didn’t include the keyword.
- The author field and even the transcript also appeared to influence visibility.
- However, still on Apple Podcasts, descriptions (whether for the show or the episode) had little to no impact on ranking.
- On Spotify, the approach was broader: the show title, episode title, show description, and episode description all clearly affected visibility.
- Unlike Apple, Spotify did not appear to take transcripts into account.
Here’s a quick reference chart based on the test results (keep it handy when optimizing your metadata!):
There are other factors that help explain the difference in rankings between the two platforms.
For example, Spotify stands out for its high level of personalization in search results. The suggestions shown partly depend on each user’s listening habits. So, two people typing the same keyword may see different results. In contrast, Apple Podcasts displays more uniform results, mainly based on metadata and podcast popularity.
Another factor to consider is the composition of the catalog. Spotify includes not only podcasts but also audiobooks and music, which can appear in search results. That makes the competition broader. Additionally, Spotify hosts many exclusive podcasts, further expanding its offering.
Apple Podcasts, on the other hand, only features podcasts, which can actually work in your favor if your show is well optimized.
Congrats! 👏
You’ve just completed Lesson #2 on how the Apple Podcasts and Spotify algorithms work.
Here are the key takeaways:
- Apple Podcasts and Spotify rely on almost the same criteria to rank podcasts: listener behavior, publishing consistency, and most importantly: metadata (titles, descriptions, tags).
- The keywords included in your metadata have a direct impact on your position in search results. Depending on how often and where you include them, you can climb higher in platform rankings.
- Publishing frequency is a decisive factor: an active podcast is always ranked higher than one that hasn’t released an episode in a while.
- Despite these similarities, search results can vary between Apple Podcasts and Spotify due to differences in metadata weight, Spotify’s personalized results, and the platforms’ distinct catalogs.
🎯 Now that you understand how the algorithms work, it’s time to move on to Lesson #3: Choosing the right keywords for your podcast. Let’s get practical! 🔍
Download our study on how Apple Podcasts and Spotify work
Go deeper with our free additional resource and find out how to master the algorithms to boost your visibility.
