Apple Podcasts video subscriptions are coming soon

Apple told podcast creators this week that video is finally coming to its paid subscription platform. The announcement, published September 23 on the company's Podcasts for Creators site, means Apple Podcasts video subscriptions will soon let shows sell exclusive video episodes, ad-free viewing, early access, and bonus video content through the same subscription system used for premium audio, according to 9to5Mac.

The launch of Apple Podcasts video subscriptions will reach audiences in more than 170 countries and regions across Apple devices and the web. Apple says it is working with podcast hosting providers on the integration, and more details from participating partners are expected in the coming months.

Four perks for paying listeners

Apple spelled out four specific perks creators can attach to a paid tier: subscriber-exclusive video episodes, ad-free video, early access, and bonus video content. The perks run through the existing Apple Podcasts Subscriptions system, which launched in 2021, rather than a separate video-only program.

Creators already selling premium audio see the biggest change. Apple is pitching simplified delivery, with audio and video offered together without separate storefronts or workflows. For a show already running a paid tier, video becomes another option inside the same product instead of a second thing to manage, which is the practical promise of Apple Podcasts video subscriptions.

One point worth noting: ad-free is a perk the creator chooses to offer, not a default. iPhone in Canada reports that Apple's own support documentation still describes subscriptions as audio-only, a sign of how recently video entered the picture for Apple Podcasts video subscriptions.

A video push months in the making

The announcement follows work Apple started in February, when it rebuilt the free video podcast experience around HLS streaming, with offline downloads and dynamic ad insertion. That update shipped alongside iOS 26.4 on March 24, according to Gadget Hacks.

Earlier this month Apple rolled out its fall software wave, iOS 27, iPadOS 27, macOS 27, and tvOS 27, with video as the throughline for podcasts. Apple TV got a redesigned Podcasts app with sidebar navigation, video playback, and channel browsing that surfaces ad-free and early-access options. The Mac app now opens into a video player with full-screen and picture-in-picture modes. Across iOS, iPadOS, macOS, and visionOS, video episodes gained read-along transcripts, chapters, and media links, plus a Search in Show bar for finding episodes by guest, title, keyword, or transcript mention, as reported by Sounds Profitable.

macOS 27 and visionOS 27 shipped on September 14, per MacObserver. Notably, Apple said little about new Podcasts features for iPhone in this wave; the television and desktop apps carried the video story, and Apple Podcasts video subscriptions are the missing piece for creators who want to charge for it.

Why Apple is moving now

Audience numbers explain the timing. Spotify says video podcast consumption is up 140 percent since the feature launched there, with monthly payouts to enrolled shows up more than a third since January, according to Sounds Profitable. Amazon Music has also expanded its video podcast partnerships, adding shows from ART19, Omny Studio, and Flightcast and pushing video beyond the US into the UK, Canada, Mexico, Brazil, and Japan.

For creators, the bigger change is monetization. Until now, there was no such product as Apple Podcasts video subscriptions: the paid tier sold premium audio, and video stayed outside the benefits reserved for subscribers. Bringing video inside the subscription model gives podcasters another way to sell content directly to listeners instead of relying entirely on advertising or third-party video platforms, iPhone in Canada notes.

Open questions remain. Apple has not said when the first paid video tiers will go live, which hosting providers are signed up, or whether the dynamic ad insertion already available on free video will carry over to paid tiers unchanged. The bet behind Apple Podcasts video subscriptions is that listeners will pay for video they can often watch free elsewhere. Whether that holds is what the launch will answer, and creators should expect those details from participating partners in the coming months. More podcast coverage is collected on the site's Podcasts topic page.