Podverse vs Castos
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
Podverse
This app allows users to discover, subscribe to, and play podcasts, including video and live streams. It offers advanced features like V4V support, chapter integration, and cross-app commenting. Premium features enable seamless syncing across devices and content creation tools.
- CarPlay support
- Subscribe and auto-download episodes
- Video and livestream playback
- Podcasting 2.0 features (chapters, transcripts, comments)
- Value-for-value (V4V) support
- Create and share podcast clips
- Cross-device sync for subscriptions and queues
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Free features: * CarPlay * Subscribe to podcasts * Auto-download episodes * Video playback * Livestream playback * Drag-and-drop queue * Boostagrams (V4V) * Streaming Value (V4V) * Podcasting 2.0 chapters * Podcasting 2.0 transcripts * Podcasting 2.0 cross-app comments * Screen-reader accessibility Premium features: * Sync your subscriptions across devices * Sync your queue across devices * Sync your history across devices * New episode notifications * Livestream notifications * Create clips * Create playlists * Create a profile All Podverse software is provided under a free and open source license (AGPLv3).
Castos
Access all your invited private podcasts in one unified app. Stream company updates, course content, or community information without managing multiple RSS feeds. Enjoy a secure, streamlined listening experience with easy login and playback controls.
- Unified private podcast access
- Magic Link login
- Customizable playback speed
- Skip forward/backward controls
- View episode show notes
- Streaming only (no downloads)
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Listen to all of your favorite private podcasts in one place with the Castos app. Log in once with your email and instantly access all of the Castos private podcasts you've been invited to. Great for internal company podcasts, for membership sites, courses, and online communities, and even local organizations who want to share information only with a select group of listeners. Save yourself the trouble of trying to manage multiple private RSS feeds, and clunky 3rd party listening experiences, and get all your private podcast content in one easy-to-access app. If a private podcast you're subscribed to is hosted on the Castos platform then it will be instantly available to you as soon as you log into the Castos app. With private podcasting, companies can: - Share latest updates from the leadership team - Connect remote employees with the home office - Communicate best practices to sales teams - Improve and sustain employee engagement - Help with the transition to remote work while staying connected Online Communities, membership sites, and courses can use private podcasting to: - Repurpose written or video content into audio format - Share long-form content in an easy-to-consume, mobile, asynchronous manner - Create additional ways to deliver value with their members - Stand out from the competition with higher engagement with students and audience App Features: - Customizable playback speed. - Skip forward 30s and backwards 10s with just a tap. - Easily view episode show notes and resources. - Security focused: streaming only, no download allowed for listeners. - Persistent playback bar in the bottom of the screen for easy access. - Easy to use, Magic Link login - no password to remember (or forget). - View new, unplayed episodes, and ones you've already listened to. Privacy Policy: https://castos.com/privacy
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is review sentiment: Podverse at 68% against Castos's 24%. Podverse also leads on rating (4.8 vs 2.8) and update cadence (every 10 days vs every 2 months). Castos's advantage is in-app purchases (none vs 1). On price, ads, device support and iOS requirement there is nothing between them.
Scored on Price · Rating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings · Update frequency · Ads · In-app purchases · Monetization · Best chart rank · Devices · Requires iOS
Both are free to download. Podverse sells 1 one-off in-app purchase. Castos asks for nothing beyond the download.
Podverse holds the better App Store score, 4.8 against 2.8. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Podverse has 1.9K ratings behind it against 43, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 68% of Podverse's written reviews are positive against 24% of Castos's.
Podverse ships an update every 10 days, Castos every 2 months. The most recent releases landed on October 21, 2026 and October 14, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | Podverse | Castos |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 4.8 (1.9K ratings) — better | 2.8 (43 ratings) |
| Positive reviews | 68.1% of reviews — better | 24.2% of reviews |
| Number of ratings | 1.9K — better | 43 |
| Update frequency | Every 10 days — better | Every 2 months |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | Yes | No — better |
| Monetization | Free with in-app purchases | Free — better |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod — better | iPhone, iPod |
| Requires iOS | 14.0 — better | 15.6 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 18 MB | 50 MB |
| Age rating | 12+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Podverse LLC | Castos |
Customer experience
Podverse
Castos
Bugs and requests
Podverse
Reported bugs
3 issues- Disappearing downloaded episodes
- Inconsistent episode tracking and progress
- Crashes on startup for some users
Requested features
4 requests- Ability to sync playback progress across devices
- Automatic episode deletion after listening
- More customization options
- Improved Bluetooth/CarPlay integration
Castos
Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.
In-app purchases
Podverse
- 1 year of Podverse Premium$17.99
Castos
No in-app purchases
