# Herd: Ad-Free Podcast App — Skip Ads, Player & Transcripts

> AI-powered podcast app that automatically skips ads for uninterrupted listening. (iPhone/iPad app by Bryce Altman.)

- Source: https://appshunter.io/ios/app/herd-ad-free-podcast-app/id6670315567 (this page in markdown: same URL + `.md`)
- Developer: [Bryce Altman](https://appshunter.io/developer/1765711582)
- Category: News, Entertainment
- Price: Free with in-app purchases
- Rating: 4.10/5 from 15 App Store ratings · 11 written reviews indexed
- Age rating: 12+
- Requires: iOS 26.0 · 516 MB
- Languages: American English
- Released: 2025-03-27
- Data updated: 2026-08-25
- Monetization: freemium
- User reviews in markdown: https://appshunter.io/ios/app/herd-ad-free-podcast-app/id6670315567/reviews.md

## What is Herd?

Herd is the podcast app built for listeners - not ads.

Enjoy a truly ad-free podcast experience. Herd uses advanced AI to automatically detect and skip host-read ads, dynamically inserted ads, and external advertisements, so you can spend more time listening to the content you love.

Whether you're listening to business, comedy, news, technology, or true crime podcasts, Herd makes every episode faster, cleaner, and distraction-free.

No manual skipping.
No sitting through ads.
Just great podcasts.

SMART AD SKIPPING

Herd automatically analyzes podcast episodes and identifies advertisements while you listen. Ads are skipped so you can stay focused on the conversation.

Our AI detects:

Host-read ads

Dynamically inserted ads

External advertisement segments

That means less skipping and more listening.

POWERFUL PODCAST PLAYER

Herd includes everything you need in a modern podcast player:

Smart ad skipping that automatically removes ads from podcasts

Easy queue management to organize episodes you want to hear next

Autoplay so your next podcast episode starts automatically

Cross-device listening progress so you can continue on any device

Comments and discussion so listeners can share thoughts on episodes

DISCOVER AND FOLLOW PODCASTS

Explore podcasts across every category including business, comedy, technology, health, news, education, and more.

Follow your favorite podcasts and never miss a new episode.

SAVE HOURS OF LISTENING TIME

Podcast listeners spend dozens of hours each year listening to advertisements.

Herd helps you get that time back.

Skip ads automatically and focus on what matters: the conversation, the ideas, and the stories.

BUILT FOR PODCAST LOVERS

Herd works with podcasts from across the entire podcast ecosystem, so you can listen to the shows you already love - just without the interruptions.

Download Herd and enjoy a better way to listen to podcasts.

## Key features

- AI-powered ad skipping
- Host-read ad detection
- Dynamically inserted ad removal
- External advertisement skipping
- Easy queue management
- Autoplay next episode
- Cross-device listening progress

## Pricing and in-app purchases

Base price: Free.

**Subscriptions**

| Subscription | Price | Period |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Premium monthly | $7.99 | per month |
| Premium yearly | $44.99 | per year |
| Herd Premium Weekly | $2.99 | per 7 days |


## Recent user reviews (10 of 11)

All indexed reviews: https://appshunter.io/ios/app/herd-ad-free-podcast-app/id6670315567/reviews.md

### 1/5 — Literally doesn’t stop a single ad

*2026-08-03*

Completely and utterly useless every single ad played like the app wasn’t even there

**Developer response:** This was an issue related to a specific version of the iOS 27 beta from Apple, which caused transcription to fail. It was fixed quickly and detection is now working as normal even on iOS beta versions

### 2/5 — Misleading and awkward

*2026-07-19*

Free trial of a few episodes only. Instructions absent. Should have this clear statement in the App Store .

### 5/5 — Flawless

*2026-07-03*

Thrilled about this app. Works great.

### 1/5 — Ads not skipping after upgrading

*2026-06-04*

Ad skipping was working during the free trial but after upgrading to monthly it doesn't seem to work anymore.

**Developer response:** We experienced an outage recently from a 3rd party provider which caused detection to fail in some countries, it has been fixed in the latest update and fallbacks have been put in place to ensure it doesn't happen again

### 2/5 — Bug

*2026-05-10*

App won’t let you delete your account. "Missing or insufficient permissions"…

**Developer response:** Thank you for pointing this out. A bug fix is on the way and will be available in the next update. In the meantime if you would like to get it taken care of you can send an email to bryce@herd.au with your account I can ensure your account and all data is deleted.

### 5/5 — So far, holy smokes, game changer

*2026-04-19*

I’m a major hater of ads on tv and podcasts. Nothing worse then stopping what you’re doing to skip through 5 minutes of ads…best use of AI I can think of!

### 4/5 — Has potential

*2026-03-25*

UPDATE:looks like the app is in some flux, things have started working again so I’m going to restore the 4 stars until things settle down, then I’ll revisit the review.

Bottom line is when it works, it works well, and is definitely an app I can (tentatively) recommend. Hopefully as things mature it will get even better in the future.

**Developer response:** Very sorry to hear you had a poor experience, the transition from 1.0 to 2.0 has been much less smooth than anticipated. As an early supporter of the app I will give you a lifetime membership for free, your feedback is really valuable for improving the app. Send through an email to bryce@herd.au and we can organise the free subscription, plus any detailed feedback for any bugs you are still seeing since the latest update and I will prioritise fixing them asap.

### 1/5 — Stinks

*2026-03-23*

Takes longer to download then it would to listen to the ads plus it hasn’t skipped one ad in the several attempts I’ve made to listen. Don’t waste your money or your time.

### 5/5 — Works Very Well!

*2025-06-02*

I listen to a podcast that has almost 30% commercials. The other day that podcast started dropping 10 minute segments of their other podcasts into the commercial breaks. 
I decided to try this app and it works beautifully. I have subscribed for the year.
To the developers, can I suggest adding an “End of Episode” option to the sleep timer?
Otherwise, this is a great app.

### 3/5 — Needs to be a better podcast player.

*2025-05-29*

No way to just download or mark certain episodes from a podcast is a big turn off for me. Pocket casts allows you to archive all the episodes and then go in and download/unarchive whichever ones you want. This does not do anything similar to that. Just follow, wait for the AI to remove adverts and listen.

## Frequently asked questions about Herd

### Does Herd have ads?

No, Herd is designed to be an ad-free podcast app. It uses advanced AI to automatically detect and skip host-read ads, dynamically inserted ads, and external advertisements, allowing for uninterrupted listening.

### How does Herd skip ads?

Herd utilizes advanced AI to analyze podcast episodes in real-time. It identifies and automatically skips host-read ads, dynamically inserted ads, and external advertisement segments, so you can focus on the content.

### What podcast categories can I listen to with Herd?

Herd supports podcasts across all categories, including business, comedy, news, technology, true crime, health, and education. You can discover and follow podcasts from the entire podcast ecosystem.

### What are the subscription options for Herd?

Herd offers several subscription plans: Herd Premium Weekly at $1.99/week, Premium Monthly at $4.99/month, and Premium Yearly at $29.99/year. The yearly plan includes a 14-day free trial.

### Can I listen to Herd on multiple devices?

Yes, Herd offers cross-device listening progress. This means you can start listening on one device and seamlessly continue on another, picking up exactly where you left off.

### How often is Herd updated?

Herd was last updated on May 5, 2026, with version 2.0.6. This indicates a recent update, suggesting ongoing development and support for the application.

### What is the age rating for Herd?

Herd has an age rating of 12+. This means it is considered appropriate for users aged 12 and older, with content generally suitable for this age group.

### What makes Herd different from other podcast apps?

Herd's primary differentiator is its AI-powered automatic ad skipping, providing a truly ad-free experience. It also offers features like easy queue management and cross-device progress syncing for a superior listening experience.

## Version history (last 5 releases)

### 2.0.14 — 2026-08-18

Ad detection improvements and other minor fixes

### 2.0.13 — 2026-08-07

- New library view options
- Performance improvements to reduces freezes in some cases
- Improved CarPlay sorting
- iOS 27 improvements
- Improved ad detection accuracy
- Other improvements and fixes

### 2.0.12 — 2026-07-31

- Improved ad detection and feedback
- Ad timestamps cached and reused for each new listener
- Background intro scanning to enable instant playback
- Other fixes and improvements

### 2.0.11 — 2026-07-16

- CarPlay support!
- Auto trim start and end
- Skip button custom settings
- Custom settings for each podcast
- Many other improvements

### 2.0.10 — 2026-07-03

- Swipe gestures on episodes
- Fixed multi select
- Performance improvements
- Other fixes

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## Related topics

[bryce altman](https://appshunter.io/ios/topics/bryce-altman) · [herd](https://appshunter.io/ios/topics/herd) · [pastime for podcasts](https://appshunter.io/ios/topics/pastime-for-podcasts)

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*Data collected daily from the US App Store and indexed by [AppsHunter](https://appshunter.io/). User reviews are verbatim App Store reviews. Ratings, prices and chart positions refresh continuously; this snapshot is from 2026-08-25.*