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10 Podcast Awards to Have on Your Radar in 2026
Not every great podcast gets noticed. Some fly under the radar for months (or even years) before someone says, “Wait, why isn’t everyone listening to this?”
That’s where podcast awards are helpful.
Podcast awards don’t just hand out trophies; they highlight the creators who are pushing boundaries, experimenting with format, or simply nailing the kind of storytelling that sticks. For listeners, they’re a shortcut to shows that are actually worth your time.
The landscape is only getting busier. New shows launch daily, and what worked last year won’t necessarily work this year. Awards help separate signal from noise, spotlighting innovation, craft, and consistency.
Whether you’re a podcaster, brand with a show, or just like knowing what’s worth your attention, this list covers the 10 podcast awards that are shaping the conversation in 2026. Read More
Article originally written by Tianna Marinucci and published on CoHost.
Podfest PodTour Upcoming Stops
Podcasters and Content creators drowning in ideas but struggling to turn them into polished, impactful work now have a solution. On Saturday, November 8, 2025, PodINDY.com presents "AI for Content Creators," a workshop designed to help podcasters, YouTubers, master artificial intelligence tools—without sacrificing authenticity or voice.
Led by Dr. Craig Van Slyke, the Mike McCallister Eminent Scholar Chair in Information Systems at Louisiana Tech University and host of the acclaimed AI Goes to College podcast, this four-hour intensive will take participants from half-formed concepts to production-ready content using cutting-edge AI strategies. PodINDY.com is 9:00am-1:00PM ET. This is a live in person event and live streamed and recordings will be available; so attendance is not rquired to benefit. https://podcastindependent.com/podindy
Send our Newsletter to a friend and tell them where the party is at!
This is your shot to speak at one of the biggest stages in podcasting, where indie creators, experts, and innovators gather to learn, grow, and build real community.
If you’ve got a story to tell, a strategy to share, or a unique angle that helps podcasters stand out, this is the moment to throw your hat in the ring.
Podfest isn’t about big egos or polished pitches. It’s about people who show up with real value. So if you’ve been thinking, “Maybe next year…” stop. Make it this year. Apply Here
A VERY Special Guest Joining Us at Podfest (See Below)
Every year, Podfest brings something new and special and this year is no different!
Over the next several weeks, we'll be sharing news about some of the brands and personalities joining us this year, so be on the lookout for future emails, and make sure you get your tickets!
Today, we're excited to announce that Dave Ramsey has confirmed that he will be appearing at the Hall of Fame ceremony to induct one of his dear friends, who will be entering the Hall of Fame this year.
As you know, Podfest hosts the Podcasting Hall of Fame ceremony to honor some of the most impactful and accomplished contributors to podcasting.
This year, the Hall of Fame has been working tirelessly to appoint and vote for the 2026 inductees.
And while they are not yet ready to announce the 2026 Hall of Fame class, we can reveal that Dave Ramsey will be part of the ceremony!
If you don't know Dave Ramsey, he's the founder and CEO of Ramsey Solutions and a prolific radio host and podcaster with millions of listeners around the world. He's also a New York Times bestselling author of several books, including The Total Money Makeover and Financial Peace.
He has also helped millions of people get out of debt and build wealth, including many members of the Podfam.
So if you don't already have your ticket and want a chance to be in the room with Dave Ramsey and other notable personalities, get your Podfest and Hall of Fame tickets right away!
Hall of Fame Tickets are VERY limited, so if you want to be in the room make sure you get your Podfest and Hall of Fame tickets ASAP.
Get Podfest Tickets Here.
Get Your Hall of Fame Ceremony Ticket Here. (Must have a Podfest ticket and a Hall of Fame ticket to attend the Hall of Fame ceremony.)
Jackie Bernardi went from crickets to monetized in 28 days by trusting YouTube’s features and creating early momentum with premieres, Shorts, and a consistent weekly upload. She focuses on percentages over raw views, aiming for “viral for me” growth that steadily raises her baseline.
High production value helped her stand out in the art niche; she borrowed filming cues from cooking channels, used multiple angles and clear audio, and reinvested earnings in gear. Her Saturday 8:45 a.m. email lands the moment a video publishes, sending 700 to 900 viewers in the first hour, which signals heat to the algorithm and accelerates reach. Watch Now
Podcaster chapters have a long history, going back to the early days of podcasting when podcasters would publish separate “Enhanced AAC” podcasts with chapters.
Now, MP3s and many popular podcast apps support chapters.
But it’s still a pain to add chapters to your podcast. There hasn’ a good solution for adding chapters that wasn’t limited to a specific platform or frustrating workflow.
Further, there are no multiple standards for podcast chapters! Legacy MP3 chapters, Podcasting 2.0 cloud chapters (and someday super chapters), Podlove Simple Chapters, and in-content timestamps.
Article originally written by Daniel J. Lewis and published on PodChapters.
🎤 🎧 If you’re a busy entrepreneur who’s looking to get more stuff done in less time, grab something to take notes with and follow along as we discover lessons from some of the world’s most productive small business owners. Discover how to overcome your fears and anxieties and take purposeful, impactful action. If you’re tired of being stuck where you’re at and determined to break through that barrier in front of you, The Do Zone is the place to be.
🎤🎧 Hosted by Suzanne Culberg (aka the Velvet Hammer), The Nope Coach is the show for recovering people-pleasers who are done putting themselves last. You’ll learn how to put yourself first without the guilt, set boundaries that actually stick, and reclaim the unapologetic badass you buried under everyone else’s expectations. No fluff. No filters. No overproduced nonsense. Just one take, real talk, and the occasional F-bomb, because life’s too short for self-abandonment.
🎤🎧 Welcome to Revelations with Cole Johnson - where everyone is fearfully and wonderfully made. Cole guides us through the wonderful process of human power in a connection tour-de-force. Each person interviewed gets to peel back their layers while demonstrating what makes them uniquely beautiful and essential to this process called life. This is the platform dedicated to empowering and changing the world one conversation at a time.
🎤🎧 Were You Still Talking is about people, places, arts, food, culture, putting positive energy in the world, how all of us have something to say or maybe we don’t, drugs, exercise (or exorcise, if you spell it wrong!), laziness, motivation, breathing! The connection we all share on the planet and quite possibly getting away from the pedestrian level of consciousness.
Morgan James Publishing has revolutionized book publishing—from the author’s standpoint.
Morgan James teaches authors strategies to leverage their books and grow their businesses—adding value while staying out of the way.
Ranked by Publishers Weekly as one of the fastest-growing publishers in the nation ten times in our short history. Morgan James is reported to be “the future of publishing.”