How is this different from Apple Podcasts’ official validator?

Apple’s official validator only confirms the feed parses and Apple-required tags exist. This validator runs the same Apple checks, plus Spotify-specific ones, plus the full Podcast 2.0 namespace, plus episode-level quality across the first 25 items, plus best-practice signals — and gives you a fix hint for every issue, not just a pass/fail.

Will my feed contents be saved?

No. We fetch the feed once, run the checks in memory, return the result, and discard the body. We rate-limit by IP so we log the count of calls per IP per 24 hours — nothing about the feed itself.

Why does the score weight some checks differently?

Errors are zero-weighted (Apple/Spotify will reject or quietly drop the feed), warnings are half-weighted (the feed works but loses signal in directories), suggestions are 85% (you’re missing modern features but the feed is solid), passes are full weight. The score is a quick read; the section breakdown is the actual to-do list.

My feed is huge. Will this still work?

We cap fetch size at 5 MB and timeout at 10 seconds. Episode-level checks sample the first 25 items, which is enough signal — issues are almost always systemic, not per-episode. If the fetch times out, your feed is too slow for some directories anyway and you should optimize hosting.

Yes. 10 free validations per day per device, no signup required. If you’re iterating on a feed migration and need more, an EasyCast Studio account gives you unlimited validations alongside the rest of the platform.

EasyCast Studio

Free Tool · No signup required

The free podcast RSS feed validator

Deep conformance check against Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and Podcast 2.0 — with episode-level sampling and a one-line fix for every issue. Faster and stricter than Apple’s own validator.

Quick answer

What is a podcast RSS feed validator?

A podcast RSS feed validator checks whether a show feed has the tags, episode data, media URLs, artwork, ownership details, and namespace support that podcast directories expect. It helps catch issues before Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or modern Podcast 2.0 apps reject the feed or ignore useful metadata.

Use a validator before submitting a new show, migrating hosts, changing artwork, or publishing a large batch of episodes.
Errors usually mean a directory may reject or fail to ingest the feed; warnings usually mean the show can publish but loses quality signals.
Podcast 2.0 checks matter when you want transcripts, chapters, contributors, funding, or other modern app features to travel with the feed.

How it works

Step 1

Paste your feed URL

Drop in the RSS feed your host generates. We fetch it server-side, parse it, and run roughly 25 checks against it.

Step 2

Read the score

Conformance score, then a sectioned breakdown — channel basics, Apple Podcasts requirements, episode-level quality, Podcast 2.0 features, and best practices.

Step 3

Apply the fixes

Each warning or error has a one-line fix hint. Errors block submission to Apple; warnings hurt distribution; suggestions level you up to modern podcast apps.

What this validator checks

Roughly 25 individual checks across these areas. The score weights errors as zero, warnings as half, suggestions as 85%, passes as full — so a 90+ score means the feed is shipping-ready.

Apple Podcasts requirements

iTunes namespace declaration, author, cover image (URL + HTTPS), category, explicit declaration, owner name and verifiable email. Missing any of these and Apple rejects the feed.

Episode-level integrity

Sampled across the first 25 items: titles present, enclosure URLs HTTPS, GUIDs unique, pubDate in RFC 822, MIME types correct, durations declared.

Podcast 2.0 conformance

Modern apps (Fountain, Podverse, Castamatic, Podcast Index) read transcripts, chapters, contributor metadata, location, and value tags. Most legacy hosts skip these — costing you visibility in app discovery surfaces.

Best practices

Atom self-link, namespace declarations, RSS 2.0 root version. The small things directories use to signal "this is a real, professionally hosted feed".

Frequently asked

How is this different from Apple Podcasts’ official validator?: Apple’s official validator only confirms the feed parses and Apple-required tags exist. This validator runs the same Apple checks, plus Spotify-specific ones, plus the full Podcast 2.0 namespace, plus episode-level quality across the first 25 items, plus best-practice signals — and gives you a fix hint for every issue, not just a pass/fail.
Will my feed contents be saved?: No. We fetch the feed once, run the checks in memory, return the result, and discard the body. We rate-limit by IP so we log the count of calls per IP per 24 hours — nothing about the feed itself.
Why does the score weight some checks differently?: Errors are zero-weighted (Apple/Spotify will reject or quietly drop the feed), warnings are half-weighted (the feed works but loses signal in directories), suggestions are 85% (you’re missing modern features but the feed is solid), passes are full weight. The score is a quick read; the section breakdown is the actual to-do list.
My feed is huge. Will this still work?: We cap fetch size at 5 MB and timeout at 10 seconds. Episode-level checks sample the first 25 items, which is enough signal — issues are almost always systemic, not per-episode. If the fetch times out, your feed is too slow for some directories anyway and you should optimize hosting.
Is this really free?: Yes. 10 free validations per day per device, no signup required. If you’re iterating on a feed migration and need more, an EasyCast Studio account gives you unlimited validations alongside the rest of the platform.

Next step

Make the feed support discovery, not just validation

Passing RSS checks is the floor. The growth lift comes from pairing clean feed data with recording, transcript, and SEO workflows.

Podcast RSS feed guideCreate, validate, host, and improve the feed with transcripts, chapter exports, public pages, and analytics context.Read the guide Podcast SEOUse the feed fixes as the technical layer under searchable titles, descriptions, transcripts, and topics.Read the guide Podcast recording softwareCompare platforms that generate recording, publishing, transcripts, and RSS output together.Read the guide Best podcast recording softwareSee which all-in-one tools reduce RSS maintenance while supporting production growth.Read the guide

Tired of fixing your RSS by hand?

EasyCast Studio generates a Podcast 2.0–native RSS feed with directory metadata, transcript links, and episode GUIDs. Chapter tags are emitted only when the published episode already has saved chapter data.

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