Podcast RSS Tags Explained: iTunes and Podcasting 2.0

Short answer: Plain RSS 2.0 cannot describe a podcast well, so podcast feeds add tags from namespaces. The itunes: namespace, defined by Apple, covers the essentials that almost every directory reads: artwork, category, explicit flag, owner, episode type and numbering. The podcast: namespace from the Podcasting 2.0 project adds modern features such as transcripts, chapters, a permanent show GUID, funding links and locking. Use the iTunes tags as the required baseline and add Podcasting 2.0 tags your host and audience’s apps support.

If you open a podcast feed, you will see tags that do not exist in the RSS 2.0 specification: itunes:author, itunes:duration, podcast:transcript and many more. They come from XML namespaces, a mechanism that lets anyone extend RSS without breaking it. Readers that do not understand a namespace simply ignore it. Understanding the main tags helps you fill in your host’s settings correctly, diagnose why an app shows something odd, and decide which newer features are worth enabling.

How namespaces work in a feed

A namespace is declared once, on the root rss element, with a prefix and a URL that identifies it. After that, any tag with that prefix belongs to the namespace. A typical podcast feed declares at least:

• xmlns:itunes="http://www.itunes.com/dtds/podcast-1.0.dtd" for Apple’s tags.
• xmlns:podcast="https://podcastindex.org/namespace/1.0" for Podcasting 2.0 tags.
• Often xmlns:content="http://purl.org/rss/1.0/modules/content/" for full HTML show notes in content:encoded.

The URLs are identifiers, not links that apps download. What matters is that they match exactly. A typo in the namespace declaration means apps treat every tag with that prefix as unknown, which can make a directory report missing artwork or categories even though the tags look correct.

The iTunes namespace: show-level tags

Apple introduced these tags when it added podcasts to iTunes in 2005, and they became the industry’s common language. Spotify, Amazon, Pocket Casts, Overcast and most other apps read them. The key show-level tags are:

Apple’s documentation also lists tags that are deprecated or ignored, such as itunes:keywords and itunes:subtitle in current Apple Podcasts. Other apps may still read them, so leaving them in does no harm, but do not expect them to affect search in Apple’s app.

The iTunes namespace: episode-level tags

Each episode can carry its own metadata:

• itunes:duration in seconds or as HH:MM:SS. Apps use it before the file is downloaded.
• itunes:episode and itunes:season: numbers that help apps group and order episodes, especially for serial shows.
• itunes:episodeType: “full”, “trailer” or “bonus”. Trailers are often shown prominently on the show page.
• itunes:image at episode level: episode-specific artwork, supported by many apps.
• itunes:explicit per episode, if only some episodes are explicit.
• itunes:title: an episode title without the show name or episode number, which Apple recommends keeping clean.

A common mistake is putting the episode number into the title, such as “Ep. 42: Guest Name”, and also into itunes:episode. Some apps then display the number twice. Choose one approach, ideally a clean title plus the numeric tag.

The Podcasting 2.0 namespace: what it adds

The Podcasting 2.0 project, started in 2020 around the open Podcast Index, maintains the podcast: namespace. Its goal is to add features in an open, app-independent way. Tags are added in phases, and adoption varies by app and host. The ones you are most likely to meet:

• podcast:guid: a permanent identifier for the show itself, independent of the feed URL, so the show can be recognised even after moving hosts.
• podcast:locked: tells other platforms that the feed must not be imported by anyone except the owner, which helps prevent unauthorised copies of a show.
• podcast:transcript: links to a transcript file, for example in SRT, VTT or HTML format. Supporting apps show searchable, synchronised text.
• podcast:chapters: links to a JSON chapters file with titles, start times and optional images and links.
• podcast:funding: a link to a donation or membership page.
• podcast:person: hosts and guests with roles and links.
• podcast:soundbite: short highlights that apps can use as previews.
• podcast:value: supports direct listener payments through compatible apps.

Which tags are required, and which are worth adding

Requirements differ between directories and change over time, so always check current documentation. As a practical baseline:

1. Required everywhere: channel title, description, link, language, itunes:image, itunes:category, itunes:explicit, and for each episode a title, a working enclosure and a permanent guid.
2. Strongly recommended: itunes:author, itunes:owner, itunes:duration, itunes:type, episode and season numbers where they make sense, and episode types for trailers and bonuses.
3. Worth adding if your host supports them: podcast:guid, podcast:locked, podcast:transcript and podcast:chapters. They improve portability, protection and accessibility at little cost.
4. Optional: funding, person, soundbite and value tags, depending on your goals and audience.

Transcripts and chapters in practice

Transcripts and chapters are the Podcasting 2.0 features with the clearest benefits for most shows. Transcripts make episodes accessible to deaf and hard-of-hearing listeners, let people skim before listening, and can be reused as show notes or articles. Apple Podcasts also generates its own transcripts for many shows, but providing your own gives you control over accuracy, especially for names and technical terms.

Chapters help listeners jump to the part they care about and are especially useful for long interviews and news shows. Most podcast editors and several hosts can export chapter files. Keep chapter titles short and descriptive, and update the file if you re-edit the audio, because wrong timestamps are worse than none.

Common tag mistakes and how to spot them

• Misspelled or invented category names. Directories only accept their exact list. Your show may be listed in no category at all.
• Artwork that is not square or is too large a file. Some apps refuse or crop it.
• Duration in the wrong format, such as “42 minutes”. Use seconds or HH:MM:SS.
• Duplicate namespace declarations when a plugin and a theme both add the same namespace, which makes the XML invalid.
• Forgetting the channel-level podcast:guid when moving hosts, so the new feed is treated as a different show by apps that use it.

A podcast-specific validator catches most of these. Run one after changing hosts, templates or plugins.

Where you set these tags in practice

Very few podcasters edit feed XML by hand. The tags are usually filled in from fields in your podcast host’s dashboard, and the field names rarely match the tag names. A few pointers help you map one to the other:

• Show settings usually cover artwork, category, language, author, owner email, explicit flag and show type.
• Episode forms cover title, notes, episode and season numbers, episode type and per-episode artwork. Duration and file size are normally calculated automatically from the upload.
• Advanced or distribution settings often hide the redirect options, itunes:block, podcast:locked and the show GUID.
• WordPress podcasting plugins generate a separate podcast feed from posts, with their own settings pages for the same fields.

After changing any of these settings, open the raw feed and confirm the tag changed as you expected. Dashboards sometimes save a value without publishing it until the next episode, or keep a cached copy of the feed for a while.

Reusing podcast feeds elsewhere

Because episodes are structured data, podcast feeds are easy to reuse: an episode list on your website, a newsletter section, or a combined feed of several shows for a network page. Our tool, Feeds, can merge several feeds, podcast feeds included, into one RSS feed, remove duplicates and keep only items with your keywords, for example episodes about one topic across several shows. The resulting link works in any RSS reader or tool. It does not host audio or edit your podcast tags. See the plans for limits.

Related reading

• Podcast RSS Feeds Explained: How Episodes Reach Every App
• How to Validate an RSS Feed and Fix the Most Common Errors
• RSS vs Atom: Which Feed Format Should Your Site Publish?

The bottom line

Podcast feeds are RSS 2.0 plus namespaces. The iTunes tags are the non-negotiable baseline that every directory reads: artwork, category, explicit flag, owner and episode details. Podcasting 2.0 tags add a stable show identity, protection against copying, transcripts, chapters and more. Fill in the baseline carefully, add the modern tags your host supports, and validate after every change.

FAQ

Do I need iTunes tags if I am not on Apple Podcasts?

Yes, in practice. Spotify, Amazon Music and most podcast apps read the iTunes tags for artwork, categories, explicit flags and episode details. They are the common standard of podcast feeds.

What is the Podcasting 2.0 namespace?

It is an open extension to podcast RSS, maintained by the Podcasting 2.0 project around the Podcast Index. It adds tags for transcripts, chapters, a permanent show GUID, feed locking, funding links, people and more.

Which Podcasting 2.0 tags should I add first?

Start with podcast:guid and podcast:locked for identity and protection, then podcast:transcript and podcast:chapters for accessibility and navigation. Most modern podcast hosts can add these for you.

How do I choose the right podcast category?

Pick from Apple’s official category list, using the exact names, and choose the category and subcategory that best describe most of your episodes. Directories reject or ignore categories that are not on their list.

Are itunes:keywords still useful?

Apple Podcasts no longer uses them for search. Other apps may still read them, so they do no harm, but good titles and descriptions matter far more for discovery.