Google Podcasts users, alert! The app is shutting down soon; Migrate to YouTube Music this way

Google Podcasts will stop its service in April 2024. Before that, you need to migrate your podcast episodes and shows to either YouTube Music or another app. Know how to do this.

Google Podcasts is being discontinued but you do not need to worry. If you want to listen to your episodes uninterrupted, then migrate to YouTube Music with these easy steps. (Google)

If you're a podcast lover and use Google Podcasts to enjoy the latest episodes of your favorite shows, then there is bad news for you. Google has announced that its app will soon be discontinued, and after mid-2024, you will not even be able to migrate your shows and episodes to another app. So, if you do not want to start over with a different app and manually add all your shows and episodes, then this is the time for you to be proactive and move your RSS feed to a different platform. The good thing here is that Google is allowing you to easily migrate to YouTube Music, in case you prefer that app. So, check out how to migrate Google Podcasts data to YouTube Music or a third-party app.

For now, this will affect only those users who are residing within the US. In September, Google announced that it would be discontinuing Google Podcasts. Citing the reason, the post said, “As part of this process, we'll be helping Google Podcasts users move over to Podcasts in YouTube Music. This matches what listeners and podcasters are already doing: according to Edison, about 23% of weekly podcast users in the US say YouTube is their most frequently used service, versus just 4% for Google Podcasts”.

Google Podcasts will be replaced by YouTube Music

Earlier in December, Google made another announcement formalizing the roadmap for discontinuing the podcast app. As per the new information, Google Podcasts will stop working in the US as early as April 2024. To be more precise, after April 2, 2024, the app will no longer play any new episodes.

However, the company has guaranteed that it will be functional as usual till March. Even those users who are not able to migrate by April 2, will get a grace period till July 2024 to switch to another app. Between April to July, the app will continue to exist, but it will not function as a podcast player.

While there are a bunch of podcast apps on the Play Store, Google is offering a smooth transition to YouTube Music if that is an app you already use. However, if you do not prefer that, there is a way for you to take your data and add it to a different app as well. Let us take a look.

How to migrate from Google Podcasts to YouTube Music

Google has made its migration tool to YouTube Music and other apps live on Google Podcasts for users in the US. This is what you must do:

1. Click on ‘Export Subscription' to start the process.

2. On the next page, you will see two options — Export to YouTube Music, and Export for another app.

3. If you choose YouTube Music, you will be redirected to the app and you will have to confirm your email address.

4. Then, you will have to agree to ‘Adding RSS feeds'.

5. That's it. Once the process is done, you can check your podcasts at Library > Podcasts.

6. In case you prefer a third-party app, you can click on ‘Download' on the “Export for another app” page.

7. This will download an OPML file which can be opened in a separate app to transfer your data.