Triton Digital’s September 2026 “U.S. Podcast Ranker,” covering the reporting period of August 31 to September 27, shows “Stuff You Should Know” retaining the No. 1 spot by weekly average downloads, with “Pod Save America” and “My Favorite Murder with Karen Kilgariff and Georgia Hardstark” unchanged at No. 2 and No. 3. The top seven positions showed no movement at all, a run of stability led by iHeart Audience Network, which represents five of those seven shows.
Source: Triton Digital
Fantasy and NFL Shows Post the Month’s Largest Gains
The steepest single-podcast rise on the ranker belonged to “NFL Daily with Gregg Rosenthal,” which climbed 40 spots to No. 60. “The Late-Round Fantasy Football Podcast” followed with a 32-spot jump to No. 70, and “Josh Pate’s College Football Show” gained five spots to No. 71. “KSR,” a Kentucky sports podcast, rose four spots to No. 31. The reporting window lines up with the opening weeks of the NFL and college football seasons, and the cluster of football-adjacent titles climbing together suggests seasonal listening drove a measurable share of September’s download gains.
Other Notable Climbers Span True Crime, Comedy and Politics
Outside sports, “Legally Brunette” rose 23 spots to No. 104, “Strict Scrutiny” gained 22 to reach No. 48, and “Smosh Mouth” also rose 22 spots to No. 94. “Real Survival Stories” climbed 21 spots to No. 105, and “The Latest with Loren LoRosa” rose 30 spots to No. 92. “Fast Politics with Molly Jong-Fast” gained 10 spots to No. 98, and “Bloomberg Daybreak: US Edition” rose nine to No. 122.
Several Long-Running Shows Posted the Sharpest Declines
The ranker’s biggest confirmed drop belonged to “Smash Boom Best: A funny, smart debate show for kids and family,” which fell 29 spots to No. 146. “Front Page,” “The Drew Lane Show” and “Garage Logic” each fell 24 spots, landing at No. 116, No. 51 and No. 123, respectively. “The John Kobylt Show” dropped 23 spots to No. 133, “Pod Meets World” fell 23 to No. 95, and “The Jesse Kelly Show” dropped 22 spots to No. 61. None of the source material accompanying the ranker explains the cause of these declines.
Two Debuts and Six Returning Shows
“The Right Time with Bomani Jones,” distributed through iHeart Audience Network, debuted at No. 55 with 22 new episodes in the period. “2 Pros and a Cup of Joe,” also on iHeart Audience Network, debuted at No. 147 with 84 new episodes. Triton Digital defines a “debut” as a show appearing on the ranker for the first time within the trailing 13 months.
Six shows returned to the ranker after an absence in the prior reporting period, a status Triton Digital labels “Return”: “Heavyweight” at No. 87, “The Colin Cowherd Podcast” at No. 118, “Wiser Than Me with Julia Louis-Dreyfus” at No. 130, “The Chuck ToddCast” at No. 111, “Deebo & Joe” at No. 143, and “What’s Wright? with Nick Wright” at No. 140.
iHeart Audience Network and Audioboom Dominate the Sales Side
Across the full 150-podcast ranker, iHeart Audience Network is listed as the sales network for the large majority of entries, with iHeartRadio handling sales representation in nearly every case. Audioboom is the second-most represented sales network, appearing across a wide range of titles including “Pod Save America,” “The Bulwark Podcast,” and “Strict Scrutiny.” Smaller networks on the list include Cumulus Podcast Network (paired with Westwood One for sales representation), American Public Media Group, BBC, Lemonada Media, PRX, Beasley Media Group, Gamut Podcast Network, Salem Podcast Network, and single appearances from outlets including The Washington Post Podcast Network, Al Jazeera, CBC/Radio-Canada, In Touch Ministries, Relevant Radio, Focus On the Family, and Harvest Christian Fellowship.
Episode volume varied widely across the ranker. “iHeartRadio 24/7 News: The Latest” released 675 new episodes during the four-week period, the most of any title on the list, followed by “Bloomberg News Now” with 607 and “Headline News from The Associated Press” with 360. At the other end, several shows, including “Smash Boom Best,” “Wiser Than Me with Julia Louis-Dreyfus,” and “Audio Prayers,” released no more than one new episode in the period while still ranking among the top 150 by downloads.
Methodology: Triton Digital measures downloads under IAB Podcast Measurement Technical Guidelines Version 2.2, and participation in the ranker requires networks to opt into measurement. The company retired its separate Top Podcasts by Weekly Average Users ranker after the June 2025 reporting period, leaving the download-based ranking as its primary monthly measure of audience size.
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Triton Digital’s September 2026 “U.S. Podcast Ranker,” covering the reporting period of August 31 to September 27, shows “Stuff You Should Know” retaining the No. 1 spot by weekly average downloads, with “Pod Save America” and “My Favorite Murder with Karen Kilgariff and Georgia Hardstark” unchanged at No. 2 and No. 3. The top seven positions showed no movement at all, a run of stability led by iHeart Audience Network, which represents five of those seven shows.
Source: Triton Digital
Fantasy and NFL Shows Post the Month’s Largest Gains
The steepest single-podcast rise on the ranker belonged to “NFL Daily with Gregg Rosenthal,” which climbed 40 spots to No. 60. “The Late-Round Fantasy Football Podcast” followed with a 32-spot jump to No. 70, and “Josh Pate’s College Football Show” gained five spots to No. 71. “KSR,” a Kentucky sports podcast, rose four spots to No. 31. The reporting window lines up with the opening weeks of the NFL and college football seasons, and the cluster of football-adjacent titles climbing together suggests seasonal listening drove a measurable share of September’s download gains.
Other Notable Climbers Span True Crime, Comedy and Politics
Outside sports, “Legally Brunette” rose 23 spots to No. 104, “Strict Scrutiny” gained 22 to reach No. 48, and “Smosh Mouth” also rose 22 spots to No. 94. “Real Survival Stories” climbed 21 spots to No. 105, and “The Latest with Loren LoRosa” rose 30 spots to No. 92. “Fast Politics with Molly Jong-Fast” gained 10 spots to No. 98, and “Bloomberg Daybreak: US Edition” rose nine to No. 122.
Several Long-Running Shows Posted the Sharpest Declines
The ranker’s biggest confirmed drop belonged to “Smash Boom Best: A funny, smart debate show for kids and family,” which fell 29 spots to No. 146. “Front Page,” “The Drew Lane Show” and “Garage Logic” each fell 24 spots, landing at No. 116, No. 51 and No. 123, respectively. “The John Kobylt Show” dropped 23 spots to No. 133, “Pod Meets World” fell 23 to No. 95, and “The Jesse Kelly Show” dropped 22 spots to No. 61. None of the source material accompanying the ranker explains the cause of these declines.
Two Debuts and Six Returning Shows
“The Right Time with Bomani Jones,” distributed through iHeart Audience Network, debuted at No. 55 with 22 new episodes in the period. “2 Pros and a Cup of Joe,” also on iHeart Audience Network, debuted at No. 147 with 84 new episodes. Triton Digital defines a “debut” as a show appearing on the ranker for the first time within the trailing 13 months.
Six shows returned to the ranker after an absence in the prior reporting period, a status Triton Digital labels “Return”: “Heavyweight” at No. 87, “The Colin Cowherd Podcast” at No. 118, “Wiser Than Me with Julia Louis-Dreyfus” at No. 130, “The Chuck ToddCast” at No. 111, “Deebo & Joe” at No. 143, and “What’s Wright? with Nick Wright” at No. 140.
iHeart Audience Network and Audioboom Dominate the Sales Side
Across the full 150-podcast ranker, iHeart Audience Network is listed as the sales network for the large majority of entries, with iHeartRadio handling sales representation in nearly every case. Audioboom is the second-most represented sales network, appearing across a wide range of titles including “Pod Save America,” “The Bulwark Podcast,” and “Strict Scrutiny.” Smaller networks on the list include Cumulus Podcast Network (paired with Westwood One for sales representation), American Public Media Group, BBC, Lemonada Media, PRX, Beasley Media Group, Gamut Podcast Network, Salem Podcast Network, and single appearances from outlets including The Washington Post Podcast Network, Al Jazeera, CBC/Radio-Canada, In Touch Ministries, Relevant Radio, Focus On the Family, and Harvest Christian Fellowship.
Episode volume varied widely across the ranker. “iHeartRadio 24/7 News: The Latest” released 675 new episodes during the four-week period, the most of any title on the list, followed by “Bloomberg News Now” with 607 and “Headline News from The Associated Press” with 360. At the other end, several shows, including “Smash Boom Best,” “Wiser Than Me with Julia Louis-Dreyfus,” and “Audio Prayers,” released no more than one new episode in the period while still ranking among the top 150 by downloads.
Methodology: Triton Digital measures downloads under IAB Podcast Measurement Technical Guidelines Version 2.2, and participation in the ranker requires networks to opt into measurement. The company retired its separate Top Podcasts by Weekly Average Users ranker after the June 2025 reporting period, leaving the download-based ranking as its primary monthly measure of audience size.
The full report is available here
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