How much do podcasters make? The Answer

The number one question we hear from podcasters is how much money they can make. Well, it depends on a lot of things. For example, how much energy, focus, & effort did you put into your show? How good is your promotion? And does your podcast have sponsors? These are just some of the questions that come up when talking about making money from podcasts.

It is true that the average income for a podcaster is small compared to other types of media. However, there are still plenty of ways to generate revenue from your podcast. In fact, there are even more options today than ever before.

Podcasting has become very mainstream over the past few years, and this is something that we can definitely see. One reason why this happened is because of the increased use of laptops and smartphones. People listen to podcasts whenever they want, wherever they want. They don’t have to sit in front of a computer or TV anymore. So, while the average income for a podcast host might be low, there are still lots of ways to make extra money from your podcast.

In addition to selling ads, you can also sell sponsorship packages. Sponsors pay you to include their products in your show. You can earn anywhere from $100-$10,000 per month depending on the package you choose to sell.

You can also sell merchandise like t-shirts, mugs, and stickers. If you have a large enough audience, you could even start offering live events where you invite guests to talk about topics related to your niche.

So, the next time someone asks you how much money you make from your podcast, tell them the truth. While it might seem like a simple question, there are actually a lot of variables involved.

Let’s first warm you up. Here are what we’ve got for you, straight and to-the-point answers to your burning questions:

Requirements to Start Monetizing Your Podcast

The biggest mistake podcasters make is starting out without knowing what it takes to build a sustainable audience. You don’t want to start off with a huge investment of money and resources only to find out later that you’re not making enough to cover costs. So, how do you know if you’ve met the “basic requirements”? Here are some things to check:

1. Are you submitting your RSS feed to all top directory sites?
2. Do you post a new episode every week?
3. How many people download your episodes each week?
4. Do you have a social following?
5. Is there a baseline number of downloads per episode?
6. Does your podcast have a logo?

So in short, you need to make it professional and treat it as a real business even if you haven’t seen anything exciting with it, yet.

How Much Does A Podcaster Make?

The following people are above-average podcasters. But if you ask how much the average podcast makes, it’ll be around $70,000.- in salary per year.

Here are several examples of really highly successful podcasters. The following will be just an estimation since there are many sources telling different numbers, but you get the idea.

Here Are Some Examples of How Much Podcasters Make

Not all people will reach this level, but you will get an idea of what’s possible.

1/ Joe Rogan, $30M(Estimate)

Joseph James Rogan, better known as the podcast lord is one of the most popular podcasts in the world. He has been producing his show since 2009 and it has over 30 million downloads per month. His podcast has won multiple awards including best comedy podcast and best sports/news podcast. In 2017 he sold his production company called Rooster Teeth Productions to Warner Brothers Entertainment.

The Joe Rogan Experience Podcast is now owned by the same company as The Walking Dead, HBO, and DC Comics.

2/ Dave Ramsey, $9M(Estimate)

Dave Ramsey is one of the most successful entrepreneurs in America today. He is known as The Dave Ramsey Show and he has been named one of the Top 10 Money Podcasts by iTunes. His podcast is an old-school advice show with a modern spin that is heard on over 200 radio stations nationwide.

In addition to having a daily podcast, Dave hosts a weekly TV show called Financial Peace University, where he teaches people how to live debt free and build wealth. He also runs a financial coaching practice, Ramsey Solutions, which helps individuals improve their finances and lives.

3/ Pat Flynn, $1.2M(Estimate)

Pat Flynn is the host of Smart Passive Income, which features regular interviews with people developing their online businesses. He is known for his focus on helping others develop successful online businesses. The show covers topics like personal finance, marketing, entrepreneurship, technology, real estate investing, and much more. The show is hosted on iTunes, Spotify, Soundcloud, YouTube, and Stitcher.

The show is based on first-hand experiences and includes interviews with some of the most prominent entrepreneurs, authors, bloggers, and financial experts out there. Some of the guests include Jason Cohen, Chris Guillebeau, David Bach, Tony Robbins, Robert Kiyosaki, Ramit Sethi, Tim Ferriss, Marie Forleo, and many more.

Proven Ways To Monetize Your Podcast

Podcasters typically earn revenue via one of three methods: advertising, subscriptions, or merchandise sales. Here are 12 different ways you can monetize your podcast:

1. Advertising

2. Crowdfunding

3. Affiliate Marketing

4. Creator Collaborations

5. Coaching, Consulting

6. Book Sales

7. Product Sales

8. Premium Content

9. Live Events

10. Online Courses

1/ Sponsorship and Advertising

Sponsorships and advertising are among the most important forms of monetization for podcasters. They provide a steady source of recurring income that allows you to focus on producing high-quality content without having to worry about finding additional sources of funding.

When you partner with sponsors or advertise, you can generate income just by mentioning a brand a couple of times in your podcast! You don’t even need to mention the sponsor directly; it could be something like “I had a great conversation with …Mary.. today. He told me about his latest product launch…”

The best part is, that you can quickly start generating revenue simply by mentioning a brand in your show. If you’re lucky enough to attract a sponsor, you might receive a check within days or weeks. Even if you aren’t able to secure a sponsorship, you still stand to benefit from mentioning a brand in your podcast. In fact, some brands offer free advertising space to podcasters willing to promote their products.

How much you make from podcasting sponsorships and ad revenue depends on several factors including how many downloads your podcast receives each week, what type of podcast you produce, and whether you’re targeting a specific niche market or general audiences.

For example, a podcast with a small, loyal following might be able to generate $100-$300 per month from sponsorships and ads while a larger podcast with a wider reach might bring in $500-$1000 per month. However, the amount of money you’ll see varies widely depending on your podcast’s size and popularity.

2/ Crowdfunding, Donations

Crowdfunding allows podcasters to raise money for their projects. Podcasters can ask listeners to donate to their project via a variety of platforms, including Kickstarter and Patreon. Some podcasters offer rewards for donating, such as exclusive content or merchandise.

Podcasters are able to turn donations into revenue because they’re not selling anything; rather, they’re asking people to support their work. If listeners don’t want to make a donation, they can just listen without contributing.

Donation rates vary depending on the type of podcast. For example, some podcasts charge $5 per episode while others charge up to $50. Podcasts that charge less tend to have lower levels of success.

The most popular podcasts are those that provide value to their audience. They’re usually long form, meaning they take longer to produce, and they include interviews with experts in their field. These podcasts can command high fees because they’re more expensive to produce.

3/ Affiliate Marketing

Affiliate marketing is one of the oldest ways to monetize podcasts. Many podcasters use affiliate links to promote products and services within their show. This way, whenever someone buys something through those links, the podcaster earns a commission.

With affiliate sales, you can easily generate passive income while you sleep. However, you must build up a good following first. If you don’t have enough people listening to you, then how are you supposed to sell anything?

The best part about affiliate marketing is that you can do it anywhere, even if you don’t live near a major city. All you need is an internet connection and some basic tools.

4/ Creator Collaborations

Creator collaborations are one of the most effective ways to earn money online. In fact, it’s become such a popular option that there’s even a dedicated site called Audry. These types of partnerships allow you to collaborate with someone else while learning how to make money online. You might learn about a new method of making money, like affiliate marketing or discover a new way to market your podcast. There are many benefits to working together, including increased exposure and better conversion rates.

You might think that you don’t know anything about creating podcasts because you’ve never done it before, but creator collaborations are a great place to start. When you partner up with someone else, you’ll both benefit from each other’s expertise, experience, and knowledge. Plus, you’ll be able to find out what works well for one person and doesn’t work so well for another. You could even use the same tools to record and edit audio files.

5/ Coaching, Consulting

When you produce a successful podcast it doesn’t matter whether you are doing it alone or with a team. If you’re looking to grow your income, consider offering coaching and consulting services to other podcasters.

Podcasting is a skill set that can take months or even years to master. There’s no shame in admitting that you don’t know everything there is to know about producing a quality podcast.

You’ll find plenty of people willing to pay for advice and guidance. Offer to coach someone else who wants to start a podcast, or provide consulting services to help them develop their skills. Some people charge $100 per hour while others prefer to charge less. Whatever you decide, remember that you’ll earn revenue every time someone listens to one of your podcasts.

6/ Book Sales

A lot of podcasters make money by selling ebooks. They either write about their podcasts or focus on marketing tips related to podcasting. Some authors even give away free books as part of their promotion strategy.

Many people think that writing a book is a very expensive thing to do. But it doesn’t have to be. You don’t necessarily need to spend thousands of dollars on publishing costs. In fact, most authors start out by creating a simple ebook on Amazon Kindle. Once it starts making money, they move up to paperback format.

Writing a book forces you to learn how to market yourself. This is something that most podcasters lack experience in. And once you master that skill, you can use it to promote your podcast and build a following.

7/ Product Sales

Your podcast could generate some extra cash by selling products directly to listeners. Whether it’s a book, a t-shirt, or a coffee mug, there are plenty of ways to make money off of your hobby.

Many podcasters move into merch and product sales as a means to earn smart passive income. Some hosts even turn their show into a brand, selling branded merchandise and hosting events where fans can meet up and talk about the topics covered on the air.

Hosts of entertainment-focused shows often sell standard merch, like home goods and clothing. They do this either via Amazon or Etsy, or they use a print-on-demand service to produce physical copies of their books, shirts, etc., themselves.

You can produce these using a Print-On-Demand service. This allows you to produce physical items without having to invest capital upfront. All you need to do is provide artwork and information about what you want to be printed. Then, customers purchase the item once it’s ready.

8/ Premium Content

When you have a popular podcast you know your audience will always want more. But how do you give them what they want without alienating your regular listeners?

One way to provide premium content is to produce exclusive content. Exclusive content gives people something special that they cannot find anywhere else. They are often more interested in listening to your podcast because they love your show and want to support you.

You can use exclusive content to build on your existing audience and help them feel like they are part of something bigger. For example, you could offer exclusive interviews with guests, behind-the-scenes footage, or even giveaways.

If you make sure that the extra content is as good quality as your regular podcasts, you can earn some extra cash while still keeping your loyal fans happy.

9/ Live Events

Hosting your own event gives you control over how it looks, what people say about it, and how much money you make. Maybe it’s not for everyone, but it’s one proven way to make money for your podcast. You can even use your event to advertise your podcast. Here’s how:

1. Set Your Ticket Prices

Live events can cost anywhere from free to hundreds of dollars per person. If you don’t know what you’re doing, start small and work up to bigger ones. For example, hosting a $50 event might give you enough experience to host a larger one next month.

2. Choose A Venue

You can host an event virtually anywhere, including your home, local library, church hall, coffee shop, bar, restaurant, hotel ballroom, or someplace else entirely. Just make sure there’s room for everyone to comfortably fit around a microphone and speakers.

3. Decide What To Say About Yourself And Your Podcast

Your live event could be about anything — you could talk about your podcast, answer questions, promote upcoming episodes, or just hang out with your listeners.

10/ Selling Online Courses

Developing an online course can help you earn more money on podcasts. This section explains how to make money with an online course and how to sell one.

An online course allows you to teach others something you know. For example, you could teach people how to build a website. Or maybe you want to teach people how to record audio files. There are many different ways to do this. One way is to develop an online course. An online course gives you the opportunity to share knowledge and information with others in a new and engaging way.

With an online course, you don’t just provide information; you interact with your students and give them guidance. You might even answer questions. In return, you receive feedback from your students. They tell you what worked and didn’t work. And you can learn from this feedback.

You can easily create an online course. All you need is a computer, some basic software, and a few hours. Once you’ve developed your course, you can start selling it to others.

If you decide to set up a course, you’ll need a website where you can host it. You can use a free site like WordPress.com. Or you can publish your courses on sites like Udemy. Either option works fine.

Once you have your course hosted, you need to promote it. Share it on your social media channels and send out emails. Use every channel you can think of. Also, include links to your course on your website.

When someone buys your course, you can charge anywhere from $5 to $100 per lesson. The price depends on the length of the course. A short course costs less because there are fewer lessons. But a long course costs more because each lesson takes longer to deliver.

Conclusion

The average income for podcasters will vary widely based on experience, skill, talent, and the amount of time you put into it. But at the highest level, a podcast can bring in enough money to make it a full-time job. Most of the income (and probably most of the work) will come from brand sponsorships and ads. But in the end, it’s entirely up to you where you derive your income from following a podcasting career path.

Can I make money with podcasts? Of course, you can, with the right timing and business phase, not too early, then you can make money with a podcast. When you already have good brand awareness, and a good amount of audience, that’s when you can make money with podcasts.

Are you ready to really launch your first podcast episode?