First, some good news: There are no limits on the episode length or file size of podcasts hosted with ZenCast.
However, even though we don't place limits on the file size or episode length, there are some reasons why you might want to consider keeping things within reasonable limits.
How long should my podcast episodes be?
There is no 'right' answer to this question, and extremely popular podcasts exist with episodes from only a few minutes to a few hours in length... the most popular podcast in the world at the time of writing is the Joe Rogan Experience, where episodes are around 3 hours and often even longer.
When deciding on your episode length, you should think about:
- How much time you can commit to recording and editing new episodes
- How much time your audience has for listening (for example, how long is their commute?)
- How much high-quality content you have (don't pad it out unnecessarily)
- Whether your audience will prefer longer episodes less frequently, or short episodes often
The average podcast episode length is about 20-40 minutes. It's not a rule, but keep that in mind and think carefully if you have good reasons for being way outside of the norm.
How big should my podcast episode files be?
Again, there is no black-and-white rule here, but we recommend where possible keeping your audio files under 300 MB in size.
Keep in mind that most platforms directly play the file you uploaded to ZenCast. That means if you upload a 50 MB file it's a lot faster for someone to download on a slow mobile connection than if you upload a huge 2GB audio file.
In most cases, people will not notice the difference in audio quality between the big file and the small one, it's more important to focus on a good recording setup and a good recording environment than to worry about using a very high bit-rate file that will slow downloads for some listeners.
Try to avoid uncompressed WAV files, and opt for MP3 if possible for the greatest compatibility.
For more information about the best file types to use, check out this article: What's the best audio file type for uploading my episodes?
So ultimately, while there is no limit on the episode size you can upload, keep in mind these practical reasons we've mentioned so that your listeners have a good experience.
If you have any more questions feel free to get in touch via the live chat bubble and we'll be happy to help.