The Best Australian Podcasts in 2026

The best Australian podcast depends on what you want from the next half hour. For a dependable starting list, try Conversations for life stories, Hamish & Andy for comedy, ABC News Daily for news, Unravel for investigative true crime, The Howie Games for sport, She's On The Money for personal finance and The Imperfects for honest conversations about wellbeing.

This guide combines two different ideas that are often confused. First, it shows the top Australian podcasts by measured monthly audience. Then it recommends the strongest options for different listeners, including independent shows that the major charts can miss.

Last checked: 7 September 2026. Audience figures use the July 2026 reporting period, the latest Australian Podcast Ranker available when this guide was reviewed.

The best Australian podcasts at a glance

How we chose these podcasts

There is no single honest measure of the word "best." A download chart measures reach. It does not measure originality, trust, production quality or whether a show suits the person searching for something to play next.

The list therefore uses two methods:

1. Measured popularity. The audience table comes from the July 2026 Australian Podcast Ranker, published by Triton Digital and commissioned by Commercial Radio & Audio.
2. Editorial usefulness. The category picks consider whether a show is current, what it offers, who it is for, how distinctively Australian it feels and how easy it is to find and follow.

The Ranker includes short news bulletins and radio program replays as well as shows created specifically as podcasts. We identify those formats below so that a three-minute update is not presented as though it offers the same experience as a one-hour interview.

The 10 most listened to Australian podcasts

These were the ten largest Australian produced shows by monthly listeners among participating publishers in July 2026.

Mamamia Out Loud and Hamish & Andy were well ahead of the rest of the field: Hamish & Andy had 409,897 more monthly listeners than third placed ABC News Top Stories. The table also shows why podcast charts need context. News24 Update, previously Sky News Australia Update, and ABC News Top Stories are short news feeds, while SEN Breakfast is a radio program made available on demand. All are valid audio products, but they serve a different purpose from a narrative series or a weekly conversation show.

Life Uncut, now sixth, mixes relationship and everyday life conversations with interviews, hosted by Brittany Hockley and Laura Byrne. No Filter entered the top ten at number ten. Unravel fell from seventh in June to 36th in July; it remains our investigative true crime pick on editorial grounds.

The market is also concentrated. Mamamia, the ABC, News Corp and LiSTNR account for eight of the ten entries: two from Mamamia, two from the ABC, one from News Corp and three from LiSTNR. Dan Does Footy is published by DM Podcasts, with LiSTNR handling sales representation. That makes the Ranker useful for understanding the large network market, but incomplete as a guide to Australian podcasting as a whole.

Best Australian news and current affairs podcasts

ABC News Daily

ABC News Daily is the best place to begin if you want one important story explained without committing your entire commute. Host Samantha Hawley works through a topic with an ABC reporter or specialist, usually in about 15 minutes. It is more useful for context than a headline bulletin and less demanding than a full current affairs program.

Best for: A clear weekday briefing with enough background to understand why the story matters.

7am

7am takes a more narrative approach to daily news. Now a Solstice Media production, episodes concentrate on one political, social or cultural story through interviews and analysis. Choose it when you want a little more scene setting and analysis than a conventional news update.

Best for: Listeners who like reported daily news with a strong editorial voice.

The Daily Aus

The Daily Aus grew from a social media newsroom built for younger Australians. The newsroom co-founded by Zara Seidler and Sam Koslowski covers the news without assuming that the listener already understands the institutions, personalities or history behind it. Current episodes feature a wider presenting team, including Sam Koslowski, Elliot Lawry and Lucy Tassell.

Best for: Anyone who wants Australian news explained in direct, accessible language.

Best Australian true crime podcasts

Unravel

Unravel is the ABC's flagship investigative true crime strand, with each season examining a different case. Its May 2026 season, What Became of Jack?, investigates the disappearance of 27-year-old Queenslander Jack McLennan. ABC is also advertising a forthcoming season, Lies in Lismore. The season format gives the reporting room to develop without stretching every case indefinitely.

Best for: A complete, reported investigation that rewards listening in order.

Casefile

Casefile is one of Australia's most recognisable true crime exports. The anonymous host and restrained production keep attention on the chronology, evidence and people affected rather than on host banter. Its international case selection also gives it a broader scope than the title of this guide might suggest.

Best for: Detailed, carefully structured case narratives with minimal conversation.

I Catch Killers with Gary Jubelin

I Catch Killers is built around interviews rather than narrated reconstruction. Former homicide detective Gary Jubelin speaks with investigators, victims, offenders, journalists and people close to the justice system. His professional background tends to produce different questions from those asked in a conventional celebrity interview.

Best for: First-person accounts of crime, policing and the justice system.

Forgotten Australia

Forgotten Australia sits between history and true crime. Writer Michael Adams tells strange, dark and often overlooked Australian stories, including crimes, public scandals and unusual lives. It is independently produced and has a deep archive, making it a strong option for listeners who want more history and less focus on current court cases.

Best for: Australian social history with mystery, crime and eccentricity mixed in.

Best Australian sports podcasts

The Howie Games

The Howie Games is less interested in last weekend's score than in the person behind the result. Broadcaster Mark Howard interviews athletes, coaches and other sporting figures about their upbringing, setbacks, preparation and careers. The longer format works particularly well when the guest has lived through more than one public chapter.

Best for: Sporting life stories rather than match previews and panel debate.

Dan Does Footy

Dan Does Footy brings Daniel Gorringe's social media energy into a fast-moving AFL show. It is informal, reactive and close to the rhythm of the football week. The tone is closer to talking footy with mates than listening to a traditional broadcast panel.

Best for: AFL fans who want current conversation, personality and humour.

SEN Breakfast

SEN Breakfast is a daily radio replay feed featuring Garry Lyon, Tim Watson, Kane Cornes and David King across the week. Its strength is immediacy: interviews, news and arguments arrive while the sporting conversation is still moving. The trade-off is volume, because a breakfast radio feed publishes far more audio than a weekly podcast.

Best for: Daily AFL and Australian sport coverage with plenty of debate.

Best Australian comedy podcasts

Hamish & Andy

Hamish & Andy remains the safest recommendation for someone who simply wants a funny Australian podcast. Hamish Blake, Andy Lee and Jack Post turn small observations, listener submissions and recurring bits into a show with its own elaborate internal world. New listeners can start with a recent episode, although long-term fans will recognise more of the callbacks.

Best for: Broad, warm comedy built around friendship and audience participation.

Aunty Donna Podcast

The Aunty Donna Podcast is deliberately less predictable. The Melbourne comedy group uses characters, improvisation, absurd premises and episodes that often collapse the idea of a podcast altogether. It will not suit everyone, which is part of the point.

Best for: Listeners who prefer surreal sketch comedy and committed improvisation.

The Inspired Unemployed

The Inspired Unemployed is hosted by Jack Steele and Matt Ford, the South Coast mates who built a large audience through short comedy videos. The weekly podcast is looser and more personal, mixing stories, listener dilemmas and the chemistry that made their original videos work.

Best for: Casual weekly comedy with mates, stories and a strong video component.

Best Australian business and money podcasts

She's On The Money

She's On The Money makes personal finance feel less like homework. Hosted by Victoria Devine, it covers budgeting, debt, investing, property, careers and the financial decisions listeners are already making. Its strength is approachability, although the information is general and should not replace advice based on your circumstances.

Best for: Building confidence with everyday personal finance.

Equity Mates Investing Podcast

Equity Mates Investing Podcast sits between beginner education and serious market conversation. Hosts Bryce and Ren discuss Australian and international shares, ETFs, investment themes and portfolio decisions in accessible language. It offers more depth than a daily market briefing without assuming that every listener already understands investing terminology.

Best for: Newer and intermediate investors who want practical share market education from an Australian perspective.

ABC Business Daily

ABC Business Daily explains the stories moving Australian companies, markets and the economy. Carrington Clarke leads the weekday coverage, while the Friday That's Business interviews with Alan Kohler go deeper with business, political and economic decision makers.

Best for: Understanding why the day's business news matters beyond the market number.

Straight Talk with Mark Bouris

Straight Talk with Mark Bouris is a Mentored Studios interview show that was still publishing in September 2026. Bouris talks with guests from business, sport and other fields about their decisions, setbacks and working lives. It rose 21 places to number 19 in July's Ranker. Choose it for individual career stories rather than a daily market briefing.

Best for: Interviews about business, career decisions and the people behind them.

CommSec Market Update

CommSec Market Update is the practical option. Its short morning and afternoon briefings explain what moved Australian and overseas markets and what investors are watching next. It is designed to keep you current rather than teach investing from first principles.

Best for: Concise share market updates at the beginning and end of the trading day.

Best Australian interview and wellbeing podcasts

Conversations

Conversations is one of Australia's defining interview programs. Richard Fidler and Sarah Kanowski give guests enough time to build a life story rather than race through promotional talking points. The subjects range from public figures to people whose extraordinary experiences have never made them famous.

Best for: An absorbing hour in somebody else's life.

The Imperfects

The Imperfects uses vulnerability as its organising idea. Hugh van Cuylenburg, Josh van Cuylenburg and Ryan Shelton speak with guests about setbacks, mental health, relationships and the gap between a public image and a private struggle. The hosts also make room for humour, which stops difficult subjects from feeling clinical.

Best for: Thoughtful conversations about mental health, connection and self-understanding.

No Filter

No Filter is Mamamia's long-form interview show. Host Kate Langbroek speaks with public figures and people carrying a remarkable personal story, with the conversation usually driven by the guest rather than a fixed set of segments.

Best for: Recognisable guests discussing the parts of their lives that sit beyond a standard profile.

Independent Australian podcasts worth finding

The major charts are largely a picture of participating networks. Independent shows may have smaller marketing budgets or narrower audiences, but they often provide the local knowledge and unusual subject matter that broad rankings miss.

Them Yarns

Them Yarns is an independent weekly show created in Meeanjin. It brings Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander community perspectives to culture, current events, sport and everyday life through relaxed conversation. The show won the independent society and culture category at the 2026 Australian Audio Awards.

Best for: First Nations perspectives delivered through community conversation rather than formal commentary.

Risky Business

Risky Business has covered information security since 2007 and has grown into a group of Australian-produced cybersecurity shows and bulletins. It is technical enough for security professionals but remains grounded in the events, policy decisions and industry behaviour shaping the field.

Best for: Cybersecurity news, analysis and informed industry conversation.

Wiser With Wine

Wiser With Wine is an independent Perth show. Food, wine, family and local personalities provide the starting point, but the appeal is the feeling of joining a candid conversation already in progress.

Best for: A lighter Perth-based show with local guests and plenty of personality.

The JRNY Podcast

Full disclosure: this is our podcast. The JRNY Podcast is made in Western Australia and hosted by Paul Cohalan. It features long-form conversations with business owners and leaders about risk, roadblocks, resilience and the experiences that changed how they lead. It does not have the scale of the network shows above, and we are not suggesting otherwise. Every episode on this site includes a full written transcript for people who prefer to read or search the conversation.

Best for: Honest Western Australian stories about business, leadership and rebuilding after difficult periods.

Australian podcast charts: how to read them

The charts answer different questions. A position on one should not be read as the same audience measure on another.

• Australian Podcast Ranker. Triton ranks participating shows by monthly listeners in Australia. A listener is identified from download activity using an IP address and user agent under IAB measurement rules. The figures cover a calendar month and include downloads for immediate or later listening.
• Apple Podcasts charts. Top Shows and Trending Episodes combine listening, follows and completion rate within Apple's service. They refresh throughout the day. Apple says they are not a measure of the largest podcasts by listenership.
• Spotify podcast charts. Top Podcasts uses weekly unique audience in each country; Trending Podcasts uses a combination of growth factors. Both update daily and reflect activity on Spotify.

The Ranker does not observe every Australian podcast. A publisher that does not participate is absent, regardless of how loyal or substantial its audience may be. Use it to compare measured reach, not as a complete directory or a verdict on quality.

For more shows, browse Great Australian Pods or explore publisher archives through ABC listen, LiSTNR, Mamamia and individual show sites. Use measured charts to understand scale, category recommendations to narrow the field and independent directories to look beyond the biggest networks.