How to move podcast from Simplecast to a new host

To move podcast from Simplecast, import the full show into your destination host before touching the old feed. Compare the two feeds, set Simplecast's RSS redirect to the new address, and verify your existing directory listings before you close the account. Your show should keep one listing and one subscriber path throughout the change.

A host move is unnecessary if you only want to install Podder. Simplecast has a documented Analytics Prefix field, so you can add Podder while keeping the same host. Change hosts only when the destination solves a separate publishing, monetization, access, or support requirement.

Before you move podcast from Simplecast

Choose the destination first and test it against the reason for leaving. Compare its publishing workflow, team permissions, private content, dynamic ad tools, analytics, integrations, and support. If you are still deciding, use our podcast hosting company comparison before starting the transfer.

Gather the current Simplecast RSS URL, destination account, original audio files where available, artwork, and access to each directory dashboard where the show is claimed. Save the Simplecast reports and billing records you need. A public feed carries published show and episode data, but it does not carry your private dashboard history, team roles, drafts, or account settings.

Create a short migration record before making changes:

The general podcast host switching guide covers the cross-host checklist. The steps below focus on Simplecast's controls.

1. Import the show at the destination

Keep the Simplecast feed public while the new host imports it. Create the show at the destination, choose its import or transfer option, and provide the active Simplecast RSS URL. Do not set a redirect yet.

When the import finishes, count the episodes. Check the first release, a recent release, and several items across the archive. Play each selection from the destination. Compare titles, descriptions, publication dates, artwork, season and episode numbers, audio duration, and show-note links.

Public RSS does not include every host feature. Drafts, scheduled releases, private feeds, subscriber access, team permissions, dynamic ad settings, and a Simplecast-hosted website may need separate work. Record each exception instead of assuming the importer copied it.

Fix missing episodes or broken audio while Simplecast still serves the original feed. This keeps the source available while you diagnose the destination import.

2. Compare the old and new feeds

Open both RSS URLs in a feed viewer. At show level, compare the title, author, description, language, categories, explicit-content setting, and artwork. Keep these fields stable until the move is complete.

At episode level, inspect titles, publication dates, descriptions, media enclosures, and GUIDs. Apple's official hosting-provider change guide says episode GUIDs should remain unchanged. It also tells creators to preserve metadata, audio, and season and episode numbers. A changed identifier can make an old episode appear as a new one.

Do not combine the transfer with a rebrand or catalog cleanup. Move the existing show first, publish one normal episode at the destination, and make editorial changes later. That separation gives duplicate episodes and missing artwork fewer possible causes.

If you need a refresher on what the importer can read, what an RSS feed is separates public feed records from private hosting data.

3. Set the Simplecast RSS redirect

Simplecast's official move-away instructions say the redirect should be one of the last steps. Once it is active, the Simplecast feed stops serving new releases to directories. Publish from the destination after the cutover.

Use this route in Simplecast:

1. Log in to the Simplecast dashboard.
2. Open the gear menu in the upper-left corner.
3. Select Distribution.
4. Open Advanced Settings beneath the Main Feed URL.
5. Paste the destination RSS URL into RSS Feed Redirect.
6. Select Save in the upper-right corner.

Copy the address directly from the destination host. Do not paste its public website, an episode page, or a directory listing. Open the destination feed before saving and confirm that it does not send you back to Simplecast.

Simplecast says the redirect remains permanently after account closure. Even so, treat verification as a separate step before changing the account.

4. Verify the redirect and directory listings

Open the old Simplecast RSS URL outside your signed-in browser session. It should resolve to the destination feed rather than a website, login page, or error response. Check the final URL and inspect the returned show title.

Then open the show in Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and the other listening apps that matter to your audience. Confirm that one listing remains, artwork is correct, the episode order is intact, and several old episodes play. Do not submit the destination feed as a new podcast. The redirect exists to move the current listing and subscriber path.

Apple says a redirect from the old host migrates followers, including those outside Apple Podcasts. Its manual Apple Podcasts Connect method is for a case where you no longer control the old feed. With Simplecast access and a working redirect, check the listing rather than creating a second submission.

Keep a dated log of the old-feed test and each directory check. A successful save inside the host does not prove that every listener-facing route has updated.

5. Publish one controlled test episode

After the redirect works, publish the next regular episode only from the destination. Keep the usual release format, artwork, and schedule so the test introduces as few extra variables as possible.

Check that the episode appears once in your important apps. Compare its title, duration, description, artwork, and audio. Confirm that the destination host receives new activity. Review your own website as well, because a feed redirect can succeed while an embedded Simplecast player or direct media link still points at the old account.

Search production notes, automations, and link templates for Simplecast URLs. Replace only the routes that should now use the destination. Keep the old RSS URL in the migration record because it remains the address existing subscribers may request.

6. Close the old account only after the checks pass

Simplecast's redirect documentation says the redirect stays active after the account closes. That reduces long-term feed risk, but it does not replace a final review.

Before closing the account, confirm all of the following:

• The old Simplecast feed resolves to the destination RSS feed.
• The imported catalog is complete and playable.
• Existing directory listings remain intact and appear only once.
• A new episode has distributed from the destination.
• Simplecast reports and billing records you need are saved.
• Website players, direct media links, and production automations are updated.

If a check fails, keep both accounts available while the hosts investigate. The original dashboard and feed are useful evidence during support work.

Analytics after the Simplecast move

A move transfers podcast distribution, not historical measurement. Keep Simplecast results as one labeled source and start the destination series at the cutover. Do not combine the two dashboards as though they use identical processing.

You can avoid this move when independent analytics is the only reason for considering it. Simplecast's official analytics-prefix guide places the field under Distribution > Advanced Settings > Analytics Prefix. It also gives a playback test for the prefixed MP3 URL. Our Simplecast prefix troubleshooting guide covers that check in detail.

Podder does not import Simplecast analytics. A prefix starts measuring new requests after installation, whether you add it before a move or at a compatible destination. Save each date so the reporting break remains clear.

Chartable is gone, and Podder is where its users landed. If Simplecast still fits your show, start Podder Analytics and install the supplied prefix without moving hosts.