PowerPress Podcasting by Blubrry
Free Blubrry plugin that builds Apple/Spotify-ready podcast feeds from WordPress posts, with players, Podcasting 2.0 tags and optional hosting.
84
show.fm
Podcast hosting and production platform with a free WordPress plugin for players, episode lists, transcripts and auto-posting episodes as posts.
Est. Pro installs~50Likely 25–100
Price from$230/yrFreemium
Overview
show.fm is a hosted podcast operations platform from show.fm Ltd, the team of Dan Maby and Nathan Wrigley, both long-time figures in the WordPress community. It combines podcast hosting, guest booking, shared show notes, AI transcription, automations, distribution and analytics in one web app. Its companion WordPress plugin, show.fm Podcast Player, is the piece that brings a show.fm show into a WordPress site.
How it works
The plugin is free and GPL-licensed. At the time of writing it is installed from a zip on GitHub, with a WordPress.org listing described as on its way. It adds four blocks: a Player, an Episode list, a Play button and a follow-along Transcript. There is also a [showfm] shortcode, and pasted show.fm links turn into players. The blocks work with any public show.fm show and need no account. They render on the server from a local cache, bundle their own scripts (nothing loads from a CDN) and can wait for a click before loading anything, which helps with consent tools. The player has a sticky mini-player, light and dark themes, an accent colour and a waveform. The plugin also outputs episode structured data.
If you connect the site to a show.fm account on Creator or above, Publish to WordPress turns each new episode into a post. Scheduling, unpublishing and deletion carry across, and any edits you make in WordPress are kept. A Migrate tool finds old players from Buzzsprout, Libsyn, Captivate, Transistor, Spotify, Podbean, PowerPress and Seriously Simple Podcasting, and swaps them for show.fm blocks after a dry run. There are WP-CLI commands too.
Strengths and limits
- Strong guest workflow: booking links, a guest portal, a guest network and shared show notes.
- Podcasting 2.0 feed tags, including chapters, transcripts, person, funding and value-for-value.
- One-click migration from the big hosts that keeps your feed URL and GUIDs.
- Video podcasts are not supported, there are no documented private feeds or ad insertion, and the RSS feed lives on show.fm rather than in WordPress.
The service is young. The company describes itself as approaching beta, and plan limits such as episodes per month, booking links and AI credits shape what you get. It suits podcasters who want hosting and guest logistics handled outside WordPress, with a clean player and automatic episode posts on their WordPress site. If you want WordPress to generate and own the feed, PowerPress or Seriously Simple Podcasting is the better fit.
Best for: Podcasters who want hosting, guest booking and production in one service, with players and automatic episode posts on a WordPress site.
show.fm is a promising all-in-one podcast platform with a carefully built, lightweight WordPress plugin, and its guest booking workflow stands out among podcast tools. It is very new and keeps the feed off your WordPress site, so it makes most sense if you are happy to host on show.fm.
Pros
- Free plugin blocks work for any public show.fm show without an account
- Publish to WordPress mirrors scheduling, unpublishing and deletion while keeping your edits
- Built-in guest booking, guest portal and shared show notes alongside hosting
- Migration tool swaps embeds from eight other hosts and plugins after a dry run
- Privacy-minded: no CDN scripts, optional click-to-load, no telemetry
- Podcasting 2.0 feed tags including chapters, transcripts and value-for-value
Cons
- Not yet on WordPress.org; installed and updated from a GitHub zip
- RSS feed is generated by show.fm, not by WordPress
- No video podcasts, documented private feeds or ad insertion
- Auto-posting needs a paid plan, and the Free plan allows only 2 episodes a month
- Very new service that describes itself as approaching beta
Key features
What show.fm highlights on its own website, split by version.
Free version Free
- Free GPL plugin, no account for blocks
- Player block with waveform
- Sticky mini-player while browsing
- Episode list in cards or grid
- Play button and inline text links
- Follow-along transcript block
- [showfm] shortcode and oEmbed
- Episode structured data for search
- Click-to-load mode for consent tools
- No CDN scripts or telemetry
- WP-CLI commands and multisite support
Pro / paid adds From $230/yr
- Auto-post episodes as WordPress posts
- Scheduled episodes become scheduled posts
- Migrate embeds from eight other hosts
- Edge-hosted RSS feed with custom domain
- Guided Apple and Spotify submission
- Guest booking links with calendar sync
- Guest portal and shared show notes
- AI transcription with speaker labels
- Chapters and Podcasting 2.0 tags
- IAB-aligned download analytics
- Automation rules and templates
- Client reports and white-label portal
Feature checklist
19 of 21 features we track in Podcast Plugins, feature score 89/100
Publishing 6/7
Podcast RSS feed Key
Generates a podcast RSS feed from your episodes.
show.fm builds and edge-hosts the RSS feed; the WordPress plugin itself does not create a feed.
Included
Apple Podcasts & Spotify ready Key
Feed tags and settings needed for Apple Podcasts, Spotify and other directories.
Guided or one-click directory submissions with readiness checks for Apple, Spotify and others.
Included
Multiple podcasts
Run more than one show or feed from one site.
Free and Creator cover one show; Studio covers a few shows, Production House a whole network.
Paid version Studio
Episode scheduling
Schedule episodes to publish later.
Episodes can be scheduled in show.fm; synced WordPress posts are scheduled for the same time.
Included
Transcripts Key
Add transcripts to episodes, in the feed and on the page.
AI transcripts need AI credits (none on Free); Transcript block and podcast:transcript in the feed.
Paid version Creator
Chapters
Chapter markers for episodes.
Per-episode chapters output as podcast:chapters in the feed; WP player chapter display not documented.
Included
Video podcasts
Publish video episodes as well as audio.
Episode uploads accept MP3, M4A or WAV audio only.
Not included
Player 4/4
Built-in podcast player Key
Embeds a podcast player on episode pages.
Free Player block, shortcode and oEmbed for any public show.fm show, no account needed.
Included
Sticky player
Player that keeps playing while visitors browse other pages.
Optional mini-player bar keeps audio playing with seek, speed and time left as visitors scroll.
Included
Player customisation
Colours, layouts and download or speed controls.
Standard or compact size, light/dark/auto theme, accent colour, waveform toggle and theme fonts.
Included
Episode lists & archives
Grids or lists of episodes from a feed or show.
Episode list block with card or minimal style, list or grid, season filter and load more.
Included
Hosting & importing 3/3
Podcast media hosting Key
Vendor-hosted audio files with fast delivery, so files are not served from your web host.
Audio served from show.fm's media CDN; storage from 1 GB (Free) to 500 GB (Production House).
Included
Import an existing podcast Key
Import episodes from another host or RSS feed.
Migration wizard imports episodes, audio, transcripts and tags from an existing RSS feed; plan limits apply.
Included
Auto-sync new episodes
New episodes from your host appear on your site automatically.
Publish to WordPress turns new show.fm episodes into posts; needs a connected site on Creator or above.
Paid version Creator
Growth & analytics 4/5
Download analytics Key
Downloads and listener stats per episode.
IAB v2.2-aligned downloads and per-episode trends in the show.fm dashboard, not in WP admin.
Included
Subscribe buttons
Links to Apple Podcasts, Spotify and other apps.
show.fm listen pages show 'Listen on' app badges; the plugin has no subscribe-button block.
Partial
Podcast SEO & schema
Episode schema and SEO settings for episode pages.
Plugin adds episode structured data (on by default) and can place transcripts in posts.
Included
Private & premium feeds
Members-only or paid podcast feeds.
Not verified
Monetisation
Ads, sponsorships or listener support built in or integrated.
Podcasting 2.0 funding and value-for-value Lightning splits; no ad insertion documented.
Partial
Guests & booking 2/2
Guest booking & applications Key
Guest application or booking forms, or integration with a scheduling tool.
Booking links with calendar checks and custom questions; 1 link on Free, 5 on Creator.
Included
Guest & host profiles
Profiles for guests and hosts linked to episodes.
Guest records, Guest Network and podcast:person credits; no guest profile pages in WordPress.
Partial
Pricing
Free
$0Free version available
Free
Freeper year1 site
Free plugin plus free show.fm plan: 1 show, 2 episodes/month, 1 booking link, 1 GB storage, no AI credits.
Creator
$230per year1 site
Or $19/month. 1 show, 6 episodes/month, 5 booking links, 120 AI credits (~2 hrs transcription); adds Publish to WordPress.
Studio
$566per year3 sites
Or $47/month. A few shows, 30 episodes/month, 3 seats, 25 booking links. Founders deal: $399 once for 3 years, then $49/month.
Production House
$1,430per yearUnlimited
Or $119/month. 100 episodes/month, 10 seats, client workspaces, white-label guest portal, client reports. Enterprise is quoted.
Prices are list prices from the vendor's site, checked 14 Oct 2026. Many vendors discount the first year.
How many sites use show.fm?
Free installs from WordPress.org, the vendor's own claim, and our estimate of paid installs.
Free version (WordPress.org)
—
No free version on WordPress.org.
Vendor claim
—
The vendor does not publish a total.
Estimated Pro / paid installs
~50
Our estimate, see method below.
How we estimated this: Not on WordPress.org and no install or customer claims (Customers page 'coming'); v1.0 released 2026, GitHub repo has 0 stars, service near beta -> est. 10-200 sites, ~50. Likely range: 25 to 100. This counts sites running the paid version, including sites whose licence has lapsed. Estimates are rough and based on public figures as of 14 Oct 2026.
Company & policy
| Refund policy | 14-day money-back (source, 13 Oct 2026) Applies to the first payment on all paid plans, including the Founders deal. |
|---|
show.fm compared
Alternatives to show.fm
Seriously Simple Podcasting
Free podcast plugin by Castos that publishes episodes and feeds from WordPress, with players, blocks and optional Castos hosting and analytics.
84
Podlove Podcast Publisher
Open-source WordPress podcast publisher with precise feed control, chapters, transcripts, contributors, built-in download stats and the Podlove Web Player.
85
Buzzsprout Podcasting
Official Buzzsprout plugin with Player and Episode List blocks that stay in sync with your Buzzsprout-hosted show. For Buzzsprout customers.
79
Fusebox Player
Podcast players (single track, archive and sticky) plus Easy Hosting and a transcript plugin, sold as a subscription by SPI Labs. Formerly…
74
MP3 Audio Player by Sonaar
Audio and podcast player with RSS import, playlists, Elementor and block support; Pro adds a sticky player, chapters, auto-sync and stats.
55
FAQ
Is show.fm free?
Yes. show.fm has a free version. Paid plans start at $230/yr.
How many sites use show.fm?
We estimate around 50 sites run the paid version.
Does show.fm have podcast rss feed?
Yes: included. show.fm builds and edge-hosts the RSS feed; the WordPress plugin itself does not create a feed.
Does show.fm have apple podcasts & spotify ready?
Yes: included. Guided or one-click directory submissions with readiness checks for Apple, Spotify and others.
Does show.fm have transcripts?
Yes: paid version (Creator). AI transcripts need AI credits (none on Free); Transcript block and podcast:transcript in the feed.
Does show.fm have built-in podcast player?
Yes: included. Free Player block, shortcode and oEmbed for any public show.fm show, no account needed.
Does show.fm have podcast media hosting?
Yes: included. Audio served from show.fm's media CDN; storage from 1 GB (Free) to 500 GB (Production House).
Does show.fm have import an existing podcast?
Yes: included. Migration wizard imports episodes, audio, transcripts and tags from an existing RSS feed; plan limits apply.
Does show.fm have download analytics?
Yes: included. IAB v2.2-aligned downloads and per-episode trends in the show.fm dashboard, not in WP admin.
Does show.fm have guest booking & applications?
Yes: included. Booking links with calendar checks and custom questions; 1 link on Free, 5 on Creator.
Is the show.fm WordPress plugin free?
Yes. The plugin is GPL-licensed and its blocks work with any public show.fm show without an account. Publish to WordPress and the embed migrator need a connected show.fm account on Creator ($19/month) or higher.
Is show.fm on WordPress.org?
Not yet. The docs say a listing is on its way. For now you download the release zip from GitHub and upload it under Plugins > Add New.
Does WordPress generate my podcast feed with show.fm?
No. show.fm hosts the audio and the RSS feed on its own network. The plugin displays episodes and can copy them into WordPress posts. If you want WordPress to own the feed, use a feed-generating plugin instead.
Can I move from another host or podcast plugin?
Yes. show.fm imports episodes, audio and transcripts from an existing RSS feed. The plugin's Migrate tab can then replace players from Buzzsprout, Libsyn, Captivate, Transistor, Spotify, Podbean, PowerPress and Seriously Simple Podcasting with show.fm blocks after a dry run.
Does show.fm help with booking guests?
Yes. Booking links check your connected calendars, collect custom answers and give guests a magic-link portal. The Free plan includes one link, and paid plans include more.
Last updated 13 Oct 2026. Spotted something wrong? Suggest an edit.