15 Best Underrated Podcasts
Underrated Podcasts
Here are 15 Best Underrated Podcasts worth listening to in 2026. Subscribe in one place on FeedSpot Reader.
Export Contact List1. Ologies with Alie Ward
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Website Apple Spotify
Volcanoes. Trees. Drunk butterflies. Mars missions. Slug sex. Death. Beauty standards. Anxiety busters. Beer science. Bee drama. Take away a pocket full of science knowledge and charming, bizarre stories about what fuels these professional -ologists' obsessions. Humorist and science correspondent Alie Ward asks smart people stupid questions and the answers might change your life.MORE Host Alie Ward
Producer/Network Alie Ward
Email ****@gmail.com
Estimated listeners
Apple Rating 4.9/5Apple Reviews 29.5K Avg Length 71 min Format Long form Get Email Contact Get access to full database of 2.7M podcastsCreate podcast lists, export in spreadsheet or CSV file with email contacts and start your podcast outreach in minutes.Sign Up for Free with Email Continue with Google
2. 99% Invisible
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Design is everywhere in our lives, perhaps most importantly in the places where we've just stopped noticing. 99% Invisible is a weekly exploration of the process and power of design and architecture. From award winning producer Roman Mars. Learn more at 99percentinvisible.org.MORE Host Roman Mars
Producer/Network SiriusXM Podcasts
Email ****@gmail.com
Estimated listeners
Apple Rating 4.8/5Apple Reviews 38KFacebook 107.4KTwitter 72.8KInstagram 89.6K Avg Length 44 min Format Long form Get Email Contact
3. Heavyweight
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Website Apple Spotify
Maybe you've laid awake and imagined how it could have been, how it might yet be, but the moment to act was never right. Well, the moment is here and the podcast making it happen is Heavyweight. Join Jonathan Goldstein for road trips, thorny reunions, and difficult conversations as he backpedals his way into the past like a therapist with a time machine. MORE Host Jonathan Goldstein
Producer/Network Pushkin Industries
Email ****@gimletmedia.com
Estimated listeners
Apple Rating 4.9/5Apple Reviews 22.6KTwitter 28.1KInstagram 17.8K Avg Length 43 min Format Long form Since Sep 2016 Get Email Contact
4. Ear Hustle
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Ear Hustle is prison slang for eavesdropping, and that's what listening to the show feels like: a raw, often funny, and always surprising peek into the reality of life inside prison. Hosts Nigel Poor and Earlonne Woods co-created the show that launched in 2017 while Earlonne was incarcerated at San Quentin State Prison, where Nigel was a volunteer teaching photography...MORE Hosts Nigel Poor, Earlonne Woods
Producer/Network Ear Hustle & Radiotopia
Email ****@gmail.com
Estimated listeners
Apple Rating 4.9/5Apple Reviews 24.8KFacebook 31.8KTwitter 23KInstagram 72.5K Avg Length 51 min Format Long form Since May 2017 Get Email Contact
5. Unexplainable
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Unexplainable takes listeners right up to the edge of what we know…and then keeps on going. The Unexplainable team — Noam Hassenfeld, Julia Longoria, Byrd Pinkerton, and Meradith Hoddinott — tackles scientific mysteries, unanswered questions, and everything we learn diving into the unknown. New episodes Mondays and Wednesdays. From Vox and the Vox Media Podcast Network.MORE Hosts Noam Hassenfeld, Byrd Pinkerton, Meradith Hoddinott, Mandy Nguyen
Producer/Network Vox Media Podcast Network
Email ****@vox.com
Estimated listeners
Apple Rating 4.6/5Apple Reviews 2.8KFacebook 3.9MTwitter 943KInstagram 997.7K Avg Length 28 min Format Medium form Get Email Contact
6. Criminal
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Website Apple Spotify
Criminal is the first of its kind. A show about people who've done wrong, been wronged, or gotten caught somewhere in the middle. Hosted by Phoebe Judge. Named a Best Podcast of 2023 by the New York Times. Part of the Vox Media Podcast Network.MORE Host Phoebe Judge
Producer/Network Criminal Productions
Email ****@thisiscriminal.com
Estimated listeners
Apple Rating 4.7/5Apple Reviews 48.7KFacebook 42.2KTwitter 33.6KInstagram 57.6K Avg Length 40 min Format Long form Get Email Contact
7. Imaginary Worlds
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Website Apple Spotify
Imaginary Worlds sounds like what would happen if NPR went to ComicCon and decided that's all they ever wanted to cover. Host Eric Molinsky spent over a decade working as a public radio reporter and producer, and he uses those skills to create thoughtful, sound-rich episodes about science fiction, fantasy, and other genres of speculative fiction. Every other week, he talks with comic book artists, game designers, novelists, screenwriters, filmmakers, and fans about how they craft their worlds, why we suspend our disbelief, and what happens if the spell is broken...MORE Host Eric Molinsky
Producer/Network Eric Molinsky | QCODE
Email ****@gmail.com
Estimated listeners
Apple Rating 4.8/5Apple Reviews 2.8KFacebook 3.9KTwitter 3.8KInstagram 3.2K Avg Length 40 min Format Long form Get Email Contact
8. Song Exploder
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Website Apple Spotify YouTube
Song Exploder is a podcast where musicians take apart their songs, and piece by piece, tell the story of how they were made. Each episode features an artist discussing a song of theirs, breaking down the sounds and ideas that went into the writing and recording. Hosted and produced by Hrishikesh Hirway.MORE Host Hrishikesh Hirway
Producer/Network Radiotopia
Email ****@theoneamradio.com
Estimated listeners
Apple Rating 4.8/5Apple Reviews 8.9KFacebook 23.6KTwitter 41.5KInstagram 71.1K Avg Length 26 min Format Medium form Since Jan 2014 Get Email Contact
9. Noble Blood
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Apple Spotify
Author Dana Schwartz explores the stories of some of history's most fascinating royals: the tyrants and the tragic, the murderers and the murdered, and everyone in between. Because when you're wearing a crown, mistakes often mean blood.MORE Host Dana Schwartz
Producer/Network Grim & Mild
Email ****@gmail.com
Estimated listeners
Apple Rating 4.7/5Apple Reviews 15.1KFacebook 3.8KTwitter 12.8KInstagram 15.2K Avg Length 38 min Format Medium form Get Email Contact
10. The Truth
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Website Apple Spotify YouTube
THE TRUTH makes movies for your ears. They're short stories that are sometimes dark, sometimes funny, and always intriguing. Every story is different, but they all take you to unexpected places using only sound. If you're new, some good starting places are: Silvia's Blood, That's Democracy, Moon Graffiti, Tape Delay, or whatever's most recent. Listening with headphones is encouraged! We're a proud member of Radiotopia from PRX.MORE Host Jonathan Mitchell
Producer/Network Radiotopia
Email ****@thetruthpodcast.com
Estimated listeners
Apple Rating 4.7/5Apple Reviews 5KFacebook 8.1KTwitter 8.6KInstagram 3.1K Avg Length 34 min Format Medium form Since Nov 2011 Get Email Contact
11. Dan Carlin's Hardcore History
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Apple Spotify
In 'Hardcore History' journalist and broadcaster Dan Carlin takes his 'Martian', unorthodox way of thinking and applies it to the past. Was Alexander the Great as bad a person as Adolf Hitler? What would Apaches with modern weapons be like? Will our modern civilization ever fall like civilizations from past eras? This isn't academic history (and Carlin isn't a historian) but the podcast's unique blend of high drama, masterful narration and Twilight Zone-style twists has entertained millions of listeners.MORE Host Dan Carlin
Producer/Network Dan Carlin
Email ****@dancarlin.com
Estimated listeners
Apple Rating 4.8/5Apple Reviews 148.6K Avg Length 281 min Format Extended Get Email Contact
Underrated shows hosts and producers
| Podcaster Name | Role | Podcast Link | Gender | Twitter Handle | Twitter Followers | Location | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Alie Ward | Host | alieward.com/ologies | Female | @alieward | Los Angeles, CA, United States | ||
| Roman Mars | Host | 99percentinvisible.org/episodes | Male | @romanmars | 110.5K | CA, United States | |
| Jonathan Goldstein | Host | cms.megaphone.fm/channel/heavyweight-spot | Male | @j_goldstein | 37.1K | Brooklyn, NY, United States | |
| Nigel Poor | Co Host | earhustlesq.com/listen | Male | San Francisco, CA, United States | |||
| Earlonne Woods | Co Host | earhustlesq.com/listen | Male | @earlonnewoods | 9.7K | San Francisco, CA, United States | |
| Noam Hassenfeld | Co Host | vox.com/unexplainable | Male | @nhassenfeld | 2.6K | NY, United States | |
| Byrd Pinkerton | Co Host | vox.com/unexplainable | Male | @byrdala | United States | ||
| Meradith Hoddinott | Co Host | vox.com/unexplainable | Female | @mdhoddinott | 422 | NY, United States | |
| Mandy Nguyen | Co Host | vox.com/unexplainable | Female | @mandynguyening | 276 | San Francisco, CA, United States | |
| Phoebe Judge | Host | thisiscriminal.com/episodes | Female | @phoebevjudge | 24.4K | Chapel Hill, NC, United States | |
| Eric Molinsky | Host | imaginaryworldspodcast.org | Male | @emolinsky | 4.3K | Brooklyn, NY, United States | |
| Hrishikesh Hirway | Host | songexploder.net | Male | @hrishihirway | 67.8K | Los Angeles, CA, United States | |
| Dana Schwartz | Host | noblebloodtales.com | Female | @danaschwartzzz | 167.7K | Los Angeles, CA, United States | |
| Jonathan Mitchell | Host | thetruthpodcast.com/story | Male | @yourpaljonathan | 590 | NY, United States | |
| Dan Carlin | Host | Male | @hardcorehistory | 435.9K | Eugene, OR, United States |
See Also
- Best 80 PRX Radio Station Podcasts
- Best 100 Storytelling Podcasts
- Best 15 Unique Podcasts
- Best 70 Learn Something Podcasts
- Best 20 Podcasts For Long Flights
- Best 100 Podcasts With Transcripts
- Best 20 Radiotopia Podcasts
- Best 20 True Crime Podcasts For Road Trips
- Best 80 Podcasts To Listen To At Work
- Best 20 Gimlet Podcasts