DEV Community: Transistor.fm

How to Start a Developer Podcast

Justin Jackson — Wed, 29 Oct 2025 20:33:19 +0000

Podcasts are where listeners go for authentic conversations on topics they care about. It's one of the last places on the web where you don't have to fight with AI content slop.

And software developers love consuming podcasts. On Transistor.fm, the podcast hosting platform I co-founded, programming podcasts are one of the most popular niches.

If you've always wanted to start a podcast, it's simpler than you think. Here's my guide.

1. Choose your topic and format

"I interview Laravel developers who work on SaaS products" is better than starting a general podcast "about tech and startups.”

Examples that work:

Indie Rails – interviews with indie devs and small business owners who use Rails
DevOps and Docker Talk – a podcast focused on Docker and container tools like Kubernetes
Mostly Technical – two programmers talk about starting a business, and their personal lives

Action: Write your one-sentence pitch.

“A 20-minute weekly show where I [format] about [specific topic] for [specific listener].”

2. Get your audio gear

Here's your data in markdown table format:

Item	My Pick	Cost
Mic	Samson Q2U	$56
Headphones	Sony MDR7506	$99 (used $60)
Boom arm	Elgato Wave LP	$100
Pop filter	Foam windscreen	$5
Software	Audacity (free) or Descript	$12
Hosting	Transistor.fm	$19/month

Pro tip: Record in a closet. Being surrounded by clothes = free sound treatment.

3. Recording and editing

These days, I mostly record and edit my episodes in Descript.

Here are a few editing tips:

If you're recording with a co-host/guest, cut the first 5-10 minutes (warm-up chatter)
Listen to the episode and cut any section where it drags
Add intro/outro music (5-15 seconds each)
Export MP3 128 kbps, -16 LUFS for loudness.

4. Hosting & RSS: Don’t overthink it

Use Transistor (yes, I’m biased—but it’s $19/mo and handles everything).

We'll give you:

An easy to use CMS for creating + publishing episodes
An awesome developer API if you want to build a custom publishing workflow
Properly formatted RSS and XML for podcast apps
One-click distribution to: Apple, Spotify, Overcast, YouTube, etc.
Analytics and stats

5. Publishing routine

Choose a publishing frequency, and stick to it. For example:

Publish every Tuesday at 8am UTC.

Develop a routine/calendar for producing episodes:

Wednesday: Outline episode
Thursday: Record episode
Friday: Edit + schedule
Tuesday: Publish episode + promote

Final thoughts

Starting a podcast isn't about having perfect equipment or a huge audience on day one. It's about showing up consistently and having conversations that matter to your niche.

The developers who succeed with podcasting are the ones who:

Pick a topic/format you're excited about
Commit to a schedule (even if it's just once a month)
Don't wait for permission to hit publish

Your first 10 episodes will be rough. That's normal. Every successful podcast you listen to started the same way.

The best time to start was last year. The second best time is today.

Ready to launch? Sign up for Transistor.fm and publish your first episode this week. You can always upgrade your gear later—but you can't upgrade without starting.

I also have a more detailed guide on starting a podcast here.

How we're Shaping Up

Justin Jackson — Tue, 13 Aug 2019 08:00:00 +0000

Justin and Jon have started the process of implementing Shape Up.

Lots of folks feel like it’d be hard to implement in their team
- "This would be hard at my agency."
- “What about feature requests? Is the idea that you also don't write those down?”
- “Hmm no backlogs? Maybe I am not understanding some backstory/context? Where do they put ideas, comments, quick bits that they might look at later on”
Some backlash against the “cult of Basecamp”
But the majority of folks were really interested in Jason’s approach.
See how our first "shaping" experiment went.

★ Thanks to our sponsors:

ProfitWell . Patrick and Hiten have a new podcast!
New sponsor: ActiveCampaign ! Get the world's most advanced marketing & sales automation platform. Use the code activecampaign.com/buildyoursaas and get two months free + 2 free One-on-Ones!

Show notes:

You can reply to this podcast here:

Leave a comment on Breaker, the podcast app for iPhone.
Otherwise, get us on Twitter: @transistorfm or email us: mail@transistor.fm

Thanks to our monthly supporters:

Pradyumna Shembekar
Ben from narrowr.com
Noah Prail
David Colgan
Robert Simplicio
Colin Gray alitu.com
Josh Smith
Ivan Curkovic
Brian Rhea (Pronounced “Ray”)
Miguel Piedrafita
Shane Smith
Austin Loveless
Simon Bennett
Corey Haines
Michael Sitver
Paul Jarvis and Jack Ellis
Dan Buda danbuda.com
Darby Frey
Samori Augusto
Dave Young
Brad from Canada
Sammy Schuckert
Dan Ericson
Mike Walker
Adam DuVander
Dave Giunta (JOOnta)
Kyle Fox GetRewardful.com
ProfitWell
ActiveCampaign
ProfitWell.com
GetRewardful.com

★ Support this podcast on Patreon ★

"Backlogs make you feel guilty." – Jason Fried

Justin Jackson — Tue, 06 Aug 2019 08:00:00 +0000

Justin and Jon are joined by Jason Fried to talk about:

The philosophy behind their new book Shape Up.
Does Basecamp's approach to 6-week cycles differ for smaller teams?
"Long projects destroy morale. When things don't ship, you get frustrated." – Jason Fried
Why projects ship late (it's human nature).
Why work is like a hill.
How they make product decisions at Basecamp.
How do you know what you should work on next?
Why they don't believe in backlogs.
"That feeling of 'there's nothing to do, but there's everything to do' shouldn't be happening." – Jason Fried
"You need a system at some point. When you have two people, you can hack your way to anything. But as soon as you grow, you'll need a system." – Jason Fried
"What we have is not a perfect system. And even if it was, we don't execute these things perfectly." – Jason Fried

★ Thanks to our sponsors:

ProfitWell's podcast Protect the Hustle has a new season!
New sponsor: ActiveCampaign ! Get the world's most advanced marketing & sales automation platform. Use the code activecampaign.com/buildyoursaas and get two months free.

Show notes:

Jon's launch announcement tweet (from 2018).
Read Basecamp's new book Shape Up.
Jason Fried commented on this Linkedin post.
Hill charts.
Listen to Rework Podcast's "Shape Up Roundtable."
Derek Sivers' new article: My old clothes don't fit

You can reply to this podcast here:

Leave a comment on Breaker, the podcast app for iPhone.
Otherwise, get us on Twitter: @transistorfm or email us: mail@transistor.fm

Thanks to our monthly supporters:

Ben from narrowr.com
Noah Prail
David Colgan
Robert Simplicio
Colin Gray alitu.com
Josh Smith
Ivan Curkovic
Brian Rhea (Pronounced “Ray”)
Miguel Piedrafita
Shane Smith
Austin Loveless
Simon Bennett
Corey Haines
Michael Sitver
Paul Jarvis and Jack Ellis
Dan Buda danbuda.com
Darby Frey
Samori Augusto
Dave Young
Brad from Canada
Sammy Schuckert
Dan Ericson
Mike Walker
Adam DuVander
Dave Giunta (JOOnta)
Kyle Fox GetRewardful.com
ProfitWell
ActiveCampaign
ProfitWell.com
GetRewardful.com

★ Support this podcast on Patreon ★