9 Tips & Tricks to Help You Listen to More Podcasts (in Less Time)

Last Updated on July 14, 2020

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If you love to listen to podcasts but find yourself struggling to find time for even your favorite shows, this article is for you. These tips and tricks will help you listen to more podcasts in less time!

Even as a podcast blogger, I encounter days or weeks when it's not as easy to listen to a podcast (even just one episode!).

My husband and I just returned from a 6-week trip to Europe. When we travel, we like to explore for hours on foot. We talk to each other and point out cool things. We also like to listen to the sounds of the city around us.

On this recent trip, we spent two entire days with friends and family exploring Germany by car.

This means that, for several hours per day, I did not wear headphones or listen to a podcast.

And that means that I had to make up the podcast listening time elsewhere in my days and weeks. Thankfully, this is something I've become an expert at.

Finding time to listen to podcasts is easier than you think, and I'm going to show you how with these 9 tricks!

#1 Identify your downtime (you have more than you think)

A couple of years ago, I wrote a post called 19 comebacks for "I don't have time to listen to podcasts". In that post, I suggest 19 places and situations that are perfect for squeezing in some podcast listening.

My personal favorite times to listen to podcasts are:

• While cooking
• During a workout (both weights and cardio)
• While doing laundry or dishes

If you're the type of person that needs music to stay motivated at the gym, consider listening to an investigative podcast instead. Shows like In the Dark Season 2 and the Maddie podcast have been a great music substitute for me. They are intense and keep me on the edge of my seat.

Another thing that both my husband and I have started doing: listening to podcasts in the shower. We got this awesome Ultimate Ears WONDERBOOM speaker that hangs right in the shower. It's totally waterproof and holds a 10 hour charge, so we only plug it in about once a month.

Because my husband usually stays awake a little later than I do, he's started listening to short podcast episodes in bed. They help him to relax and drift off to sleep.

The truth is, if there's a podcast that you just can't get enough of, you'll probably make the time to listen to it. And once you find these chunks of time to listen, you'll realize just how easy it is to squeeze in even more podcasts.

#2 Wear just 1 earbud

I started doing this long before the arrival of Apple AirPods. As I write this post, I'm wearing my Bluetooth headphones (which are connected by a wire) and only one of the buds is in my ear.

Here's what I do: for corded headphones or wireless headphones (I use both), I hang the other earbud on the collar of my shirt. If you use AirPods, put the other one in your pocket or leave it in its case.

I do this around the house so that I'm not completely unavailable to my husband, a phone call, or the doorbell. Also when I'm listening to a podcast (or music) when walking alone in public. I feel - and look - less vulnerable to someone coming up behind me if I have one ear available.

This is the perfect trick for parents with kids at home, or people working in an office setting, too. You can be focused on your favorite podcast while being available to those around you.

If the kids - or your boss - come calling, you only have to pause the podcast, instead of removing both earbuds.

Trust me: removing two earbuds every time you get interrupted is an annoyance that will make you throw in the towel when you're listening to a podcast.

If all you have to do is pause, or keep one ear available, it will seem like less interruption.

#3 Use hands-free accessories

I would be lost without accessories that help me to keep my phone/podcasts handy.

Being able to move around freely while listening to podcasts is important. If you're going to listen to podcasts while doing housework, walking the dog, or working out, keeping your phone nearby has to be as easy and seamless as possible.

For this, I recommend using hands-free accessories like the ones listed below (you can also find them in the Podcast Fan Gift Guide).

A FlipBelt

The FlipBelt is great for both men and women. It comes in multiple sizes and colors, too. (Mine happens to be the hot pink one in the image!)

For guys, who tend to have pockets on all of their pants and shorts, a FlipBelt can keep your phone from weighing down your pockets while you're on the go.

For women, who tend NOT to have pockets on most of their clothes, a FlipBelt lets you carry your phone no matter what you're wearing. (I wrote a full review post about the FlipBelt that talks about the lack of pockets!).

I wear my FlipBelt to keep my phone handy and secure, whether I'm using Bluetooth headphones, corded headphones, or no headphones at all.

A Bluetooth beanie.

I haven't personally tried this beanie, but only because I'm not a hat person. I do know that it gets really good reviews and several people have purchased it from the podcast gift guide (and haven't returned it!).

I love the idea of this hat, because you can carry your phone in your pocket, a FlipBelt, a backpack, etc, and still have access to all the important control buttons (volume, play/pause, etc). It's also a safer option for walking alone in public.

This ultra-versatile waterproof speaker.

I already mentioned my awesome WONDERBOOM speaker, which is waterproof, portable, and super durable.

Here's another great portable Bluetooth speaker that is popular with podcast fans. It comes with a carabiner and a suction cup, so it can be attached to practically anything. It's super affordable and has great online reviews!

#4 Download, don't stream

A lot of people who are new to podcast listening don't want to take up room on their phones by downloading podcasts. Some people also worry about the files being corrupt. So, they get into the habit of streaming.

And if you're on WiFi, there's really no harm in streaming. But there is a downside: buffering is a time suck.

Even if you're on really good internet or have a strong phone signal, most podcasts will take a good 10-20 seconds to buffer at the beginning of the episode, with a few more 5-10 second lags during the episode.

And if you get interrupted and have to close the episode while streaming, you might lose your place in the episode altogether (depending on your podcast player). Then you have to find the spot all over again.

Mega time waster.

Although downloading podcast episodes does take up some space on your phone, you'll get the benefit of high-quality audio, without lags, and your podcast player will remember where you left off if you close out.

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#5 Allow auto-download & auto-delete

Don't waste time looking for and downloading new episodes, and then fighting with your phone to free up storage (you do enough of that with your photos!)

Find the setting in your podcast player that allows you to turn on auto-download. This will ensure that your favorite podcast's newest episode is already on your phone when you're ready to listen.

Tip: Most podcast players will have a setting that only allows auto-download while you're on WiFi, so you aren't using data.

If you subscribe to a LOT of podcasts, configure the setting to allow only your favorite shows to auto-download (this saves phone storage).

Then, be sure to set your player to auto-delete after you have finished listening to it. Some players also call this "auto archive" (like mine, see photo). Whatever it is called, this setting will keep your podcast feed clean while also freeing up storage for new episodes.

#6 Listen at a faster speed

All the major podcast players - including Apple's native Podcasts player - have settings that allow you to listen to episodes at faster speeds.

You can increase the speed on an episode-by-episode basis, and some podcast players even allow you to save this setting for specific podcasts.

Listening at a faster speed can literally cut a podcast episode by 1/3 to 1/2 the time. Play around with the speeds to see what you like.

I only started listening at a faster speed back in January, but now I listen at 1.3 times the normal speed (1.0) regularly. I only change this up when listening to hosts with heavy accents, or shows like Lore and The Memory Palace, which have a specific pacing that is important to the story.

#7 Select podcasts with short episodes

Selecting shorter podcasts to listen to is an obvious choice to save time. But finding these gems isn't always easy!

I figured this out a while back, when a lot of my friends were lamenting the fact that even a 35 minute podcast is hard for them to finish in one sitting (and a LOT of people don't like stopping mid-episode).

So I set out to help, and I wrote what has become the most popular post here on the blog, titled The Best Short Podcasts for Busy Days (& Busy People). It's full of podcasts that regularly put out short episodes, under 20 minutes.

#8 Create playlists

If you know in advance how much time you'll have to listen to podcasts (for example: you're going for a 25 minute bike ride, or you'll be cooking dinner for 40 minutes), create a playlist of episodes in your player.

Most podcast players have this setting. You can set up one 15-minute podcast episode followed by a different 10-minute episode, back to back, and usually on auto-play (so you don't have to stop, grab your phone, and press play on the next episode).

Tip: Podcast apps might call this feature something different. In Pocket Casts, my player of choice, I create playlists using the Up Next feature. Just go through your player settings to find what your player calls it.

Playlists are also great for categorizing similar podcasts together, especially for work/professional development podcasts. Put all of your "online marketing" episodes together, and then you can select that playlist whenever you've set aside time for "work" podcast listening.

Are you looking for a better podcast player? Check out this post: The Best Podcast Apps for Apple & Android

#9 Set your skip-ahead & playback times

This one is a serious time-saver. Find the settings that allow you to set the number of seconds for the "fast forward" and "rewind" buttons.

Set your "fast forward" or skip ahead time to 30 seconds (most podcast ads are at least 30 seconds, if not 90).

Then, set your "rewind" or playback to 10 or 15 seconds. This way, when you rewind, you don't go back too far (a waste of time).

Go try these tricks now!

There you have it! 9 tips & tricks to squeeze in more podcast listening.

Whether you're listening to podcasts for entertainment, self-help, professional development, or to learn a new language, you really can find ways to listen more.

Now you just have to decide which new podcasts you want to listen to!

Do you have tricks that you use to listen to podcasts? Share them with the rest of us by leaving a comment below!