Pick new podcasts from Apple’s list of most popular ones

One of the best ways to discover new podcasts is by finding out what other people are listening to. Apple made that easy Tuesday by tabulating the most popular podcasts of 2023.

These hit podcasts are available in localized versions for listeners in nearly 100 countries and regions.

Most popular podcasts of 2023

Apple played a crucial role in making podcasts into the global phenomena they are today. And that’s clear in the name: A podcast is a broadcast intended for an iPod. These news and entertainment shows in digital format weren’t very popular when people had to play them on a laptop or desktop. Being able to listen to podcasts on the go on Apple’s groundbreaking portable audio player allowed the format to take off.

Now there are so many podcast options — of wildly varying content and quality — that wading through the dreck to find the best is actually something of a chore. But Apple did the work for us.

Here’s the company’s top 10 list of the most popular podcasts of 2023:

1. Crime Junkie
2. The Daily
3. Dateline NBC
4. SmartLess
5. This American Life
6. Morbid
7. Up First
8. Huberman Lab
9. Hidden Brain
10. Stuff You Should Know

Note that the list includes only shows available through Apple Podcasts. Cupertino has no data on podcasts limited to other platforms like Spotify.

Get the list for your area

The top 10 list above is for listeners in the United States. But Apple didn’t leave out the rest of the world.

In the Apple Podcasts application, look in the Browse tab for the list of top 10 most popular podcasts during 2023 in your area. Or follow this direct link.

The lists will be available for the rest of the year.

More popular podcasts

Apple also broke out the popular podcasts into other categories. This should help you find ones you’re interested in.

Top New Shows

1. Scamanda
2. The Retrievals
3. The Deck Investigates
4. Murder & Magnolias
5. Wiser Than Me with Julia Louis-Dreyfus
6. The Girl in the Blue Mustang
7. The Coldest Case in Laramie
8. Murder in Apartment 12
9. The Girlfriends
10. Undetermined

Most Followed Shows

1. Huberman Lab
2. SmartLess
3. New Heights with Jason and Travis Kelce
4. Scamanda
5. The Mel Robbins Podcast
6. Crime Junkie
7. The Retrievals
8. The Deck Investigates
9. Wiser Than Me with Julia Louis-Dreyfus
10. On Purpose with Jay Shetty

Most Shared Shows

1. Scamanda
2. Sold a Story
3. The Retrievals
4. Huberman Lab
5. SmartLess
6. The Witch Trials of J.K Rowling
7. Rachel Maddow Presents: Ultra
8. Wiser Than Me with Julia Louis Dreyfus
9. The Bible in a Year (with Fr. Mike Schmitz)
10. True Sunlight

Most Shared Episodes

1. Huberman Lab: “What Alcohol Does to Your Body, Brain & Health”
2. Wiser Than Me with Julia Louis-Dreyfus: “Julia Gets Wise with Jane Fonda”
3. The Daily: “The Fight Over Phonics”
4. Hidden Brain: “The Paradox of Pleasure”
5. Sold a Story: “The Problem”
6. The Mel Robbins Podcast: “The ‘Let Them Theory’: A Life Changing Mindset Hack That 15 Million People Can’t Stop Talking About”
7. The Retrievals: “The Patients”
8. We Can Do Hard Things with Glennon Doyle: “Why We Love the Way We Love: Attachment Styles with Dr. Becky Kennedy”
9. Just B with Bethenny Frankel: “Reality Reckoning: Rachel Leviss (Part One)”
10. Serial: “The Alibi”

Top Free Channels

1. iHeartPodcasts
2. audiochuck
3. The New York Times
4. Dear Media
5. Serial Productions
6. Barstool Sports
7. ABC News
8. The Daily Wire
9. Scicomm Media
10. Cumulus Podcast Network

Top Subscriber Channels

1. Wondery
2. Dateline NBC
3. Pushkin
4. iHeart True Crime
5. Lemonada
6. Tenderfoot TV
7. TED Audio Collective
8. Freakonomics Radio
9. Radiolab
10. BBC Podcasts

Via: Apple