How to Build a Podcast Platform as a Solo Developer

What You're Building

A podcast platform can mean a few things. It could be a hosting platform where podcasters upload and distribute their shows (think Transistor or Buzzsprout). It could be a podcast player app (like Pocket Casts). Or it could be a podcast discovery and community platform. Each has different complexity levels, but they all revolve around audio files, RSS feeds, and metadata.

I'm going to focus on the hosting platform angle because that's where the real business opportunity is for solo developers. Podcasters need reliable hosting, analytics, and distribution. And they're willing to pay monthly for it.

Difficulty & Timeline

Recommended Tech Stack

Next.js for the dashboard frontend, a Node.js or Django backend for the API, and an S3-compatible storage service (Cloudflare R2 or Backblaze B2) for the actual audio files. Audio files are large, so you need cheap object storage. Cloudflare R2 has zero egress fees, which is huge for a platform serving audio downloads.

For the RSS feed generation, you'll build this yourself. It's just XML following the iTunes podcast spec. Not glamorous, but it's the backbone of the entire platform since every podcast app (Apple Podcasts, Spotify, etc.) consumes RSS feeds.

Step-by-Step Plan

Phase 1: Core Hosting (Week 1-4)

Build the upload flow first. Users create a podcast, upload episodes (MP3/M4A files), add metadata (title, description, show notes), and your platform stores the files in object storage and generates an RSS feed.

The RSS feed needs to comply with the Apple Podcasts spec. This means proper XML namespaces, iTunes categories, episode artwork, and all the required tags. Apple's validation tool is your best friend here. If it passes Apple's check, it'll work everywhere.

Build a basic dashboard where podcasters can see their shows, manage episodes, and get their RSS feed URL. Don't overthink the design at this stage. Functional beats beautiful for v1.

Phase 2: Distribution & Analytics (Week 4-7)

Add one-click submission to major directories. Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google Podcasts, and Amazon Music. Some of these have APIs, others require manual submission with the RSS feed URL. At minimum, provide clear instructions and direct links.

Build download analytics. This is what podcasters care most about after hosting. Track downloads per episode, listener geography, and listening apps. The tricky part is that podcast analytics are based on HTTP requests for the audio files. You need to track these requests, filter out bots, and present meaningful data.

A simple approach is routing all audio downloads through your API (or a Cloudflare Worker) that logs the request before redirecting to the actual file. This gives you analytics without serving the files directly through your server.

Phase 3: Polish & Launch (Week 7-10)

Add an embeddable player that podcasters can put on their websites. This is a surprisingly effective marketing tool because every embedded player is a backlink to your platform.

Build a public podcast page for each show. Good SEO on these pages (episode titles, descriptions, transcripts if available) drives organic discovery. Add social sharing, episode links, and a subscribe button.

Set up the billing flow. Podcast hosting is a perfect subscription business. Simple tiers based on storage or episodes per month. Something like $9/month for 3 shows, $19/month for 10 shows, $49/month for unlimited.

Key Features to Build First

Audio upload and storage. Large file uploads to object storage with progress indicators. Support MP3 and M4A at minimum.

RSS feed generation. iTunes-compliant RSS feeds that auto-update when new episodes are published. This is the core of everything.

Basic analytics. Download counts per episode. Podcasters check their stats obsessively. Give them something to look at from day one.

Embeddable player. A lightweight audio player widget that podcasters can embed on their own sites. This drives awareness for your platform.

Architecture Overview

Dashboard (Next.js)
  └── API (Node.js / Django)
        ├── Podcast CRUD
        ├── Episode management
        ├── RSS feed generation
        ├── Analytics tracking
        └── Billing (Stripe)

Storage Layer
  ├── Cloudflare R2 (audio files)
  ├── PostgreSQL (metadata, users, analytics)
  └── Redis (caching RSS feeds, rate limiting)

Download Tracking
  └── Cloudflare Worker or API middleware
        → Logs download → Redirects to R2 URL

Common Pitfalls

Underestimating file sizes. Podcast episodes are 50-200MB each. A podcaster with 100 episodes has 10-20GB of audio. Your storage costs and upload handling need to account for this. Cloudflare R2's zero egress fees save a fortune here compared to AWS S3.

Generating invalid RSS feeds. Apple and Spotify are strict about feed format. One malformed tag and your feed gets rejected. Use a validation tool after every change and write thorough tests for your feed generator.

Building a podcast player app instead. The player market is brutally competitive and dominated by free apps. The hosting market has much better economics. Podcasters pay $10-50/month indefinitely. Listener apps struggle with monetization.

Ignoring audio processing. Some users will upload WAV files, files with wrong sample rates, or files with no ID3 tags. Build basic audio validation and consider using FFmpeg to normalize uploads. This prevents a lot of support tickets.

Trying to compete with Spotify on discovery. You're not Spotify. Don't build a recommendation algorithm. Build reliable hosting with great analytics and let the big platforms handle discovery.

Timeline Estimate

Is This Worth Building?

The podcast hosting market is proven and growing. Transistor, Buzzsprout, and Podbean all built profitable businesses in this space. The economics are straightforward: podcasters pay monthly, storage costs are low (especially with R2), and churn is minimal because migrating a podcast with 200 episodes is painful enough that most people stay.

The key differentiator for a solo developer isn't features. It's focus. Pick a niche. Podcasters who do video podcasts. Podcasters in non-English languages. Corporate podcast teams. Indie fiction podcasters. Build specifically for one audience and serve them better than the generic platforms can.