Launch a Podcast on Your Own Domain: RSS, Verification, and Social Integrations for Hosts

Stop losing listeners to platforms — host your podcast on your own domain

Launching a podcast tied to someone elses platform can feel like renting space in a mall you dont control. For creators — whether high-profile hosts (think Ant & Declevel reach) or indie shows building a brand — the fastest way to protect your IP, improve SEO, and control distribution is to run the show from your own domain. This guide walks you through the exact, practical steps to publish a domain-based podcast in 2026: set up a secure RSS feed, verify with Apple and Google, integrate social badges and structured data, and lock down domain ownership.

What youll get from this guide

• Step-by-step DNS, SSL, and CDN setup for a podcast subdomain
• How to build a valid RSS feed (with Podcasting 2.0 tags) and fix common validator errors
• Exact flows to verify with Apple Podcasts Connect and Google Podcasts Manager in 2026
• Social and SEO integration: badges, embeds, JSONLD, and rel="alternate" tips
• Domain-verification and anti-squatting best practices — registry lock, TXT records and more

Why own your feed in 2026 (and why it matters)

Control, discoverability, and monetization. Platforms change terms, change players, and introduce new distribution rules. Since late 2024 and into 2025 2026, the industry accelerated toward decentralised, domain-first podcasting—driven by Podcasting 2.0 adoption, better feed features (value-for-value, chapters, enhanced metadata), and creators demanding ownership. Hosting on your domain gives you:

• Full control of your feed URL and metadata—no surprises if a host platform changes rules.
• SEO and discoverability because episode pages and show pages on your domain are indexable and can rank for branded and topical queries.
• Brand protection — you own the canonical presence for the show and can prove ownership to platforms and partners.

Overview: the launch checklist (high level)

1. Pick a domain/subdomain and add the DNS records.
2. Host audio files on a performant CDN-backed storage (S3, Bunny, Cloudflare R2).
3. Create an RSS 2.0 feed with Podcasting 2.0 tags and iTunes-compatible values.
4. Enable HTTPS and validate your feed with Cast Feed Validator (or Podba.se).
5. Submit and verify the feed in Apple Podcasts Connect, Google Podcasts Manager, Spotify for Podcasters, and other directories.
6. Add social badges, structured data (JSONLD), and domain verification TXT/meta tags.
7. Enable registrar/registry locks, 2FA, and monitoring to prevent hijacking.

Step 1 — Domain, DNS, SSL: pick your canonical feed URL

Decide: subdomain (podcast.example.com) or path (example.com/podcast). Both work, but there are trade-offs:

• Subdomain (podcast.example.com) isolates the feed and assets (recommended for high-traffic shows) and makes DNS verification simpler.
• Path (example.com/podcast) keeps everything under the same domain and can help centralise authority for SEO.

DNS example for a subdomain using a CDN-backed origin (replace values):

<!-- DNS records -->
podcast.example.com. 300 IN CNAME cdn.provider.net.

Next, add an SSL certificate. Use automated TLS (Lets Encrypt) or your CDN (Cloudflare/Cloudfront) to serve HTTPS. Apple, Google and Spotify require an HTTPS feed and audio URLs.

Quick server check (run from your terminal):

curl -I https://podcast.example.com/feed.xml

Look for a 200 response and Content-Type of application/rss+xml or application/xml.

Step 2 — Where to host your audio files

Don't host large MP3/MP4 files on a basic web server. Use object storage + CDN for reliability and range support. Requirements:

• Support for Range requests (byte-range headers) so players can seek. See the Edge-First Live Production Playbook for CDN range-request best practices.
• Correct MIME types (audio/mpeg, audio/mp4).
• Fast delivery via a CDN (CloudFront, BunnyCDN, Fastly, Cloudflare).

Recommended stack example: S3 bucket (private), CloudFront distribution with signed URLs or Cloudflare R2 with custom domains. Keep filenames predictable: 2026-01-01-episode-05.mp3.

Step 3 — Build a valid RSS feed (the rules that matter)

Apple and other directories expect a valid RSS 2.0 feed. In 2026, the best practice is to include Podcasting 2.0 tags alongside iTunes tags to support advanced features. Minimal required feed fields:

• <title>, <link>, <description>, <language>
• <itunes:owner> with <itunes:email> — contact and verification email
• <itunes:image href="..."/> — show artwork (14003000 px square is safe; 3000 px recommended for future-proof)
• Per item: <title>, <description>, <pubDate>, <guid>, <enclosure url="..." length="..." type="audio/mpeg"/>

Example item snippet (simplified):

<item>
  <title>Episode 5: Hanging Out</title>
  <description>Ant & Dec catch up...</description>
  <pubDate>Mon, 15 Jan 2026 10:00:00 GMT</pubDate>
  <guid isPermaLink="false">episode-005-2026</guid>
  <enclosure url="https://cdn.example.com/ep005.mp3" length="12345678" type="audio/mpeg"/>
  <itunes:duration>00:39:12</itunes:duration>
  <podcast:chapters url="https://example.com/ep005-chapters.json"/ >
</item>

Include Podcasting 2.0 tags when possible: <podcast:value> for monetization metadata, <podcast:chapters>, <podcast:transcript> (or use a hosted transcript URL).

Step 4 — Validate your feed and fix common errors

Use validators: Cast Feed Validator, Podba.se, or the Apple Podcasts Connect validator. Common issues and fixes:

• Missing enclosure length — set exact bytes. Get it via curl -I and look for Content-Length on the file origin, or keep it accurate when uploading.
• Redirects breaking validators — ensure feed URL returns 200 OK and follow a single 301 if you must redirect. Avoid 302s for permanent moves.
• HTTPS certificate errors — check with openssl s_client -connect podcast.example.com:443. (See patch and certificate guidance in security playbooks.)
• Invalid characters — ensure the feed is UTF-8 encoded and escape special characters.
• Artwork issues — Apple still recommends square images between 1400 and 3000 px with no alpha channel; PNG or JPG.

Step 5 — Submit to Apple Podcasts Connect (exact flow)

1. Create an Apple ID with 2FA and sign in to podcastsconnect.apple.com.
2. Click +, paste your feed URL, and click "Validate". Apple will parse the feed and show warnings/errors.
3. If the feed validates, complete show metadata and select territories.
4. Apple will ask you to confirm ownership. If they send a verification email, ensure the feed's <itunes:owner> email is reachable.

Troubleshooting Apple rejections:

• "Feed unreachable" — check DNS, HTTPS and make sure your CDN allows HEAD/GET for the URL.
• Artwork or audio format issues — ensure image size and file type, and that audio is in a supported codec and MIME type.
• Repeated episode duplicates — ensure stable <guid> values per episode.

Step 6 — Google Podcasts Manager and Search Console verification

Google uses Search Console to prove ownership. Steps:

1. Add your site to Google Search Console as a Domain property (recommended) or URL prefix.
2. Verify ownership via a DNS TXT record (preferred for domain properties) or by uploading an HTML file/meta tag.
3. Once verified, go to Google Podcasts Manager and add your RSS feed URL. Google will crawl and index episodes for Google Search and Google Podcasts.

Example DNS TXT record (replace the token):

_google-site-verification.example.com. 3600 IN TXT "abc123_google_verification_token"

Special notes for 2026: Google emphasizes structured data and transcripts. Attach episode pages with JSONLD and transcript text to improve indexing and episode-level search presence.

Step 7 — Other directories and distribution

• Spotify for Podcasters — sign in, paste the feed, verify by email and claim ownership. Spotify accepts standard RSS feeds and respects Podcasting 2.0 tags increasingly in 2026.
• Amazon Music, iHeart, TuneIn — each has a submit flow that accepts feed URLs; many reuse the same feed verification approach.
• PodcastIndex.org — an important decentralised index in the Podcasting 2.0 ecosystem; submit your feed to increase discovery across apps that rely on PodcastIndex.

Step 8 — Social integration and badges that convert

Make it easy for listeners to follow you across platforms and verify your canonical show.

• Add official badges: Apple Podcasts badge, Spotify follow button, and a simple RSS icon that links to your feed. Use platform-provided assets for compliance.
• Embed players: use Spotify or Apple embeds for social share pages, and provide a native HTML5 <audio> fallback on episode pages for direct listening.
• Add rel="alternate" type="application/rss+xml" in your site header to help crawlers discover the feed:

<link rel="alternate" type="application/rss+xml" title="Podcast" href="https://podcast.example.com/feed.xml" />

Use JSONLD Podcast structured data for episodes and shows to help Google show rich snippets and episode carousels. Example PodcastSeries snippet (simplified):

<script type="application/ld+json">
{
  "@context": "https://schema.org",
  "@type": "PodcastSeries",
  "name": "Hanging Out with Ant & Dec",
  "url": "https://beltabox.com/podcast",
  "description": "Ant & Dec catch up and answer fans' questions.",
  "publisher": {"@type":"Organization","name":"Belta Box"},
  "image": "https://beltabox.com/images/podcast-art.jpg"
}
</script>

Step 9 — Domain verification & brand protection

Protect the domain and podcast brand:

• DNS TXT and Search Console — verify ownership and add the verification tags for Google, Facebook (Meta), and any ad networks.
• Registrar and registry lock — enable transfer lock and registry lock where available to prevent unauthorized transfers. See incident and recovery lessons from recent infrastructure incidents (postmortems).
• Two-factor authentication on registrar, Apple ID, Spotify account and CDN/provider accounts.
• WHOIS and contact data — keep administrative contact accurate; consider domain monitoring to detect suspicious changes.

Troubleshooting: the top issues and quick fixes

1. Episodes not updating in Apple/Spotify

• Check feed caching: most directories cache feeds. If you updated enclosure URL or GUID, ensure GUID remains stable to avoid duplicate episodes.
• Confirm Cache-Control headers on your feed are short while launching: e.g., Cache-Control: max-age=300.

2. Feed validations fail with "missing length"

• Set the exact byte size in the enclosure. If youre using signed URLs or temporary tokens, compute the size before upload or set consistent URL behavior so validators can HEAD the file. For robust log analysis and comparison use a fast column-store like ClickHouse for scraped data to reconcile CDN logs and platform reports.

3. Artwork not accepted by Apple

• Square JPG or PNG, no transparency, 14003000 px. Avoid animated formats.

4. Redirect loops or 301/302 issues

• Use a single 301 for permanent moves. Avoid redirect chains — fix at CDN or origin. For advice on safe redirecting patterns see redirect platform guidance.

Advanced strategies (2026)

• Episode-level SEO: publish a unique episode page with full transcript, JSONLD, and a canonical link to the feed item. Transcripts dramatically increase long-tail search traction.
• Monetization metadata: use Podcasting 2.0 <podcast:value> tags to declare monetization options and speed up ad insertion and listener support features.
• Canonical feed redirects: if you switch hosts, 301 the old feed to the new one so subscribers seamlessly follow the new source. For platform and redirect safety refer to recent guidance on redirect handling.
• Analytics: combine server-side logs (CDN) with platform analytics; validate discrepancies by sampling the CDN logs against Apple/Spotify numbers using a dedicated analytics store like ClickHouse.

Case example — A show like "Hanging Out with Ant & Dec" (practical config)

If a high-profile duo launches a branded channel (Belta Box), a recommended minimal setup looks like this:

• Domain: beltabox.com
• Canonical feed: https://podcast.beltabox.com/feed.xml (CNAME to CDN)
• Audio hosting: S3 + CloudFront with signed URLs for early access episodes
• Episode pages: beltabox.com/podcast/episode-5/ with full transcript and JSONLD
• Verification: DNS TXT for Search Console, Apple Podcasts Connect submission with itunes:owner email, Spotify claim via RSS
• Security: registry lock and 2FA on all accounts, automated certificate renewal

Why this works: the brand controls the canonical content, all directories point to the same feed, and episode pages drive organic search traffic to the primary domain instead of a third-party host.

Final checklist before you hit publish

• Feed validates with Cast Feed Validator and Apple Podcasts Connect.
• Artwork is 14003000 px square and hosted on HTTPS.
• Enclosures use HTTPS, support range requests, and report exact Content-Length.
• Search Console verified and JSONLD present on episode pages.
• Registrar locks & 2FA enabled; monitoring in place.

Tip: treat your podcast like a content product — each episode should be a crawlable, indexable webpage with structured data and a full transcript to get the most SEO value.

2026 trends to plan for

• Podcasting 2.0 becomes baseline — more apps will surface value-for-value features and enhanced metadata.
• Domain-first strategies increase — brands will prioritise canonical pages to capture search intent and first-party data.
• Privacy-aware analytics — prepare to combine server logs with privacy-preserving metrics. Consider lightweight models and memory-efficient pipelines (see AI training pipelines) when building anonymized analytics.

Ready to launch? Actionable next steps

1. Reserve a dedicated subdomain (podcast.yourdomain.com) today.
2. Set up S3 or R2 with a CDN, upload one episode and confirm HEAD/Range support.
3. Create your RSS feed with accurate enclosures and validate it.
4. Submit to Apple Podcasts Connect and Google Podcasts Manager and verify ownership via DNS TXT.

If you want a ready-made checklist and a one-page feed template (RSS + JSONLD + Nginx config), download our free Podcast Launch Kit or contact our team to walk you through domain verification and Apple/Google submissions. Own your feed, protect your brand, and make every episode work for your sites SEO.

Call to action

Launch your podcast the right way — on a domain you control. Download the free Podcast Launch Kit now or schedule a quick audit and well check your feed, DNS, SSL, and platform submissions so you dont lose listeners to avoidable errors.

Related Reading

• Micro-Regions & the New Economics of Edge-First Hosting in 2026
• Edge-First Live Production Playbook (2026): Reducing Latency and Cost
• Micro-Drops and Membership Cohorts: How Micro-Podcasts Monetize Local Audiences
• Multimodal Media Workflows for Remote Creative Teams (2026 Guide)