How to Transcribe a Podcast (Free Methods)

You can transcribe a podcast three ways: check whether the show already publishes a transcript, upload the audio file to a transcription tool, or capture the episode as it plays on your computer. Here's how each works and when to use it.

Method 1: Check for an existing transcript

Many shows now publish transcripts on their website or show notes, and Spotify and Apple Podcasts auto-generate transcripts for some episodes (look for the transcript icon while playing). Fastest when it's there — but coverage is patchy, and auto-generated ones can be rough and have no summary.

Method 2: Upload the audio to a transcription tool

If you have the episode's audio file, you can upload it to an AI transcription service. Accurate, but you need the actual file (not always easy to get), and free tiers are usually capped or gated.

Method 3: Capture it as it plays

If you can play the episode, you can transcribe it: record the sound your computer is playing, in a browser, Spotify, Apple Podcasts, or anywhere else. No file to track down, no upload.

Nod can do this, though it's built for meetings rather than podcasts. The desktop app (macOS, Windows, and Linux) records your microphone and your computer's own audio, so an episode playing during a recording is transcribed like the other side of a call, labelled "Others". Transcription runs on your computer and works offline once the models are downloaded; the audio is never written to disk, and the transcript is saved as an encrypted file on your device. The notes it writes are shaped for meetings (a short summary, key points, action items), so for a podcast the transcript is the useful part.

Nod isn't released yet. It will cost at most $5 a month at launch. You can join the waitlist if this is how you'd use it.

Why transcribe a podcast?

• Notes and research without re-listening to an hour of audio.
• Pull quotes accurately for an article or post.
• Accessibility — a readable version of an audio-only show.
• A searchable archive of episodes you can come back to.

For video, see how to transcribe a YouTube video.