Plans side by side
Checked Oct 28, 2026. US dollars. Captivate prices are per month when paid yearly.
| Transistor | Captivate | |
|---|---|---|
| Entry plan | Starter: $19/mo or $190/yr | Personal: $17/mo paid yearly; monthly billing starts at $19 |
| Entry download allowance | 20,000/mo | 30,000/mo |
| Middle plan | Professional: $49/mo or $490/yr, 100K downloads | Professional: $44/mo paid yearly, 150K downloads |
| Top self-serve plan | Business: $99/mo or $990/yr, 250K downloads | Business: $90/mo paid yearly, 300K downloads |
| Above that | Enterprise from $199/mo | Custom plans by email |
| Podcasts per account | Unlimited | Unlimited |
| Free trial | 14 days | 30 days |
| Free plan | No | No |
Transistor’s yearly billing gives you 12 months for the price of 10. Captivate’s page shows a monthly price only for the entry tier (“starts at $19”), so check the monthly price of higher tiers at signup.
Yearly cost by monthly downloads
| Downloads per month | Transistor plan and yearly cost | Captivate plan and yearly cost |
|---|---|---|
| Up to 20,000 | Starter, $190 | Personal, $204 |
| 20,001 to 30,000 | Professional, $490 | Personal, $204 |
| 30,001 to 100,000 | Professional, $490 | Professional, $528 |
| 100,001 to 150,000 | Business, $990 | Professional, $528 |
| 150,001 to 250,000 | Business, $990 | Business, $1,080 |
| 250,001 to 300,000 | Enterprise, from $199/mo | Business, $1,080 |
Captivate yearly costs are the per-month yearly price times 12.
Features that change the math
| Transistor | Captivate | |
|---|---|---|
| Features by plan | Some features unlock with higher plans | Every feature on every plan |
| Dynamic ad insertion | Professional and up | All plans (AMIE) |
| Dynamic show notes | Professional and up | All plans |
| Remove Transistor branding | Business and up | Not listed as a plan difference |
| Private podcast subscribers | 50 / 500 / 3,000 by plan | Included on all plans, no cap listed |
| Team members | Unlimited on all plans | Team access listed among included features |
| Analytics | Advanced analytics on all plans | IAB-certified analytics on all plans |
| Website | Podcast website on all plans | Captivate websites included |
| AI transcription | Add-on: $5/mo for 5 hrs, $20/mo for 20 hrs | Not listed on the pricing page |
| Nonprofit or education discount | Not listed | 25% off for students, education, charities, and nonprofits |
If you go over your download limit
- Transistor: says it will reach out and ask you to upgrade to the next level, with no automatic shut-off. Your audio keeps serving.
- Captivate: says that if you go over your limit two months in a row, its team will reach out about moving plans. It doesn’t shut your show off.
Neither service is a “pay per download” plan, so a single viral month won’t change your bill on its own.
Private podcasts compared
Transistor gives each private subscriber a unique RSS feed and counts subscribers across every private show in your account. The same email on two private shows counts once. You can add subscribers by hand, by CSV upload, through Zapier, or with an invite link, and Transistor has a Ghost integration that keeps paying members in sync.
Captivate also gives each listener a unique invitation and private feed URL, supports individual and bulk adding of subscribers, and lets you limit how many episodes show on the private feed.
If you expect more than 3,000 private listeners, Transistor needs an Enterprise plan. For a full rundown, see best private podcast hosting.
Which to pick
- Choose Transistor if you run several shows with a team under 20K downloads a month, want the 12-for-10 yearly deal, or want its Ghost member sync for a paid private feed.
- Choose Captivate if your audience is between 20K and 30K or 100K and 150K a month, you want dynamic ads without upgrading, you need a long 30-day trial, or you qualify for its 25% nonprofit or education discount.
Both import an existing show from its RSS feed. See how to move your podcast to a new host before you switch, or the full Transistor pricing breakdown.
Sources
- Transistor pricing: https://transistor.fm/pricing/ (checked Oct 28, 2026)
- Transistor private podcasts: https://transistor.fm/features/private-podcasts/ (checked Oct 28, 2026)
- Transistor help, private podcast subscribers: https://support.transistor.fm/en/article/what-are-private-podcast-subscribers-12lzzka/ (checked Oct 28, 2026)
- Captivate pricing: https://www.captivate.fm/pricing (checked Oct 28, 2026)
- Captivate private podcasting: https://www.captivate.fm/private-podcasting (checked Oct 28, 2026)