Acast downloads: how to find and read your stats

Acast downloads are in the Insights dashboard for your show. Select the correct podcast, open Insights, and choose the Overview tab. Use the top totals for a quick view, the Today section for an estimate of current activity, and the main Downloads chart when you need a custom period or episode filter.

These numbers describe audio delivery under Acast's measurement rules. They do not prove that every person finished the episode, so keep host downloads separate from retention and completion data inside listening apps.

How to see Acast downloads

1. Sign in to Acast and select the podcast you want to review.
2. Open Insights in the show's navigation.
3. Choose Overview.
4. Read the top cards for the available recent and all-time totals.
5. Scroll to Downloads to choose a custom period, all episodes or selected episodes, and a daily, weekly, or monthly breakdown.
6. Turn on episode publish dates when you want to compare release days with movement in the download chart.
7. Select Export beside the relevant section if you need the current view as a CSV.

Acast's official Overview tab documentation confirms this route and the available filters. For a repeatable reporting routine, our Acast analytics guide explains how to record the source, window, and release context beside each result.

Read the three download views correctly

The Overview page puts several useful numbers near each other, but they are not interchangeable.

Top totals

Acast shows totals for recent periods and all time at the top of Overview. Those default totals do not include today's activity. Use them for a settled view of earlier periods, not as a live release-day counter.

Today's downloads

The Today section updates by hour in your local time zone. Acast describes this as estimated data because the current day has not yet gone through its complete daily processing and filtering. It is useful for watching direction on release day, but it can change when the final data replaces the estimate.

Do not promise a sponsor the Today figure as a finalized total. Record that it was an estimate and return after processing if the decision requires a settled number.

Main Downloads chart

The main chart is the practical reporting view. Choose the period, decide whether you need the whole show or particular episodes, and select a daily, weekly, or monthly grouping. Keep those settings attached to any screenshot or exported file. Otherwise, another person cannot reproduce the result.

Read how to track podcast analytics for a simple way to preserve filters and definitions with each report.

Why Acast downloads can appear to change

A current-day estimate can differ from the finalized total because Acast processes raw requests and filters invalid activity. Acast's download measurement documentation says its download measurement is certified to IAB Tech Lab version 2.2 and that filtering is processed daily.

The Overview documentation also says the dashboard refreshes every 24 hours. If a recent episode appears missing or the page looks inconsistent, refresh the page and check another browser before changing the feed. Preserve the show, episode, selected period, and time checked if the issue continues.

A difference between the dashboard and an exported CSV can have a simpler cause. The dashboard uses your local time zone, while the CSV uses Coordinated Universal Time. A request near midnight can therefore fall on different calendar dates in the two views even when the underlying event is the same.

Our guide to measuring podcast downloads helps you compare reports without treating every difference as an error.

Host downloads are not listening-app engagement

Acast can measure a qualifying request for the hosted audio. Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and other listening apps can observe behavior inside their own products. That is why completion, retention, followers, and similar app-specific metrics belong in those platforms' dashboards.

Keep the sources in separate columns:

• Acast Insights: filtered host download delivery
• Acast Today: an estimate of current-day download activity
• Apple or Spotify analytics: engagement observed inside that app
• Your reporting notes: date range, filters, time zone, episode age, and release context

Do not add these fields into one invented audience number. What is a podcast download? explains the event behind the host metric and why it differs from a completed listen.

If you cannot find the expected downloads

Check the simple causes first:

1. Confirm that you selected the intended show.
2. Expand the date range and remove an unintended episode filter.
3. Check the Today section if the activity happened during the current day.
4. Return after daily processing when you need a finalized figure.
5. Refresh the dashboard if a recent episode or period appears missing.
6. Check the time-zone boundary before comparing the dashboard with a CSV.
7. Use the relevant listening-app dashboard if the metric you need is retention, completion, or followers.

If the problem remains, contact Acast support with the show name, episode, exact date range, screenshot, export, local time zone, and time checked. That evidence gives support a defined report to reproduce.

FAQ

These answers cover where to find Acast downloads, how today's estimate works, and why dashboard and CSV totals can differ.

Where do I find Acast downloads?

Select the show, open Insights, and choose Overview. Use the main Downloads section for custom periods and episode selections.

Does the Acast total include today's downloads?

The default totals at the top exclude today. Use the separate Today section for an estimate, then return after processing for the settled result.

Why does my Acast CSV differ from the dashboard?

The dashboard uses your local time zone, while the CSV uses UTC. Compare matching boundaries before treating a small daily difference as a fault.

Want a cleaner review process without changing your Acast setup? Use our podcast analytics guide to organize host delivery and app engagement as separate, clearly labeled signals.