Podcast Episode block

The Podcast Episode block lets you create podcast episodes with a rich player that supports chapters, transcripts, soundbites, and Podcasting 2.0 metadata. This guide covers how to add the block, which plans include it, and what to expect if your site doesn’t have a qualifying plan.

The Podcast Episode block requires Jetpack Growth or Jetpack Complete.

Adding the Podcast Episode block

To add the block:

1. Open the block editor on a new post.
2. Click the + block inserter and search for “Podcast Episode,” or type /podcast episode in a new paragraph.
3. Click Upload to add a new audio or video file, or click Media Library to choose one you’ve already uploaded.

The episode title in the block populates from your post title automatically. You can write your show notes in the body of the post, and assign it to the podcast category you chose in your podcast settings.

Upload audio files directly to your site using the Podcast Episode block. Supported formats include .mp3, .m4a, .ogg, and .wav. Do not embed audio from external hosting services like SoundCloud or Audiomack, as files cannot be downloaded from those sources.

Plan Requirements

The Podcast Episode block is available on Jetpack Growth or Jetpack Complete. Sites without a qualifying plan will not see the block in the editor’s block inserter.

Rich player featuers

The Podcast Episode block includes a rich player with support for:

• Chapters — let listeners jump to specific sections of an episode.
  • Upload a Podcasting 2.0 chapters JSON file to define chapter titles and start times.
• Transcripts — display a text transcript alongside the audio player.
  
• Metadata — additional podcast metadata supported by modern podcast apps.
  
• Soundbites — Highlight short clips from an episode.
  • You can add one or more soundbites by specifying a start time, duration (in seconds), and title for each. On the front end, these appear as click-to-seek buttons that jump the player to that timestamp.Highlight short clips from an episode. You can add one or more soundbites by specifying a start time, duration (in seconds), and title for each. On the front end, these appear as click-to-seek buttons that jump the player to that timestamp. In the RSS feed, each soundbite emits a <podcast:soundbite> tag for compatible podcast apps.
• Alternate Files — Offer listeners different versions of the same episode. For example, a lower bitrate for mobile or a different audio format.
  • You can add one or more alternate files by specifying a file URL, MIME type, title, language, and bitrate for each. On the front end, these appear as a list of alternate download links. In the RSS feed, each entry emits a <podcast:alternateEnclosure> tag.

Both Soundbites and Alternate Files are managed in the Podcasting 2.0 panel in the block sidebar.

Video podcasts

The Podcast Episode block accepts a video file in place of an audio file. Click Upload in the block and pick your video. For best results, upload the video directly to your site rather than using YouTube or Vimeo links, as those may not work properly in podcast apps.

Published episodes after a plan downgrade

Plan requirements only apply to the editor. Episodes you have already published continue to display the full rich player on your site and in your RSS feed, regardless of your current plan. Visitors can still listen, view chapters, and read transcripts on published episodes even if your plan changes.

If your site is downgraded from a qualifying plan, you will not be able to add new Episode blocks, but nothing changes for episodes that are already live.