How to autoplay next episode of an Apple Podcast?

I would like Apple Podcast to automatically play the next episode in a series, but I cannot figure out how to do this.


Currently, when Apple Podcast is done playing one episode of a series, e.g., Wondery+, instead of playing the next episode it cues up to something entirely different, or stops playing altogether. Then I have to go through the process of searching through menus until I find the next episode I want.


I've searched online, but the instructions I've found so far don't appear to correspond to the Apple Podcast version I'm using. This should be simple, right? Any suggestions? Thanks.


[Re-titled by Moderator]

Posted on May 27, 2023 9:59 AM

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Posted on Jan 28, 2024 1:47 PM

So I'm still testing this out, but after searching through several forum posts I wanted to share the solution I've found in case it works for anyone else. It's...dumb. In a "that shouldn't be necessary" kind of way. It seems like what you have to do is specifically go to the show that you want to listen to from the Library and hit "Play" or "Resume" or whatever the button is at the top (under the show thumbnail) instead of selecting a specific episode. Selecting an episode seems to assume that you want to listen to a variety, not that you want to start listening to the podcast at that specific episode and continue in order.

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47 replies

Aug 27, 2024 11:12 AM in response to Waltm

So I listen mainly to 1 podcast. I had the global setting continuous playback. And the podcast setting oldest to newest. they played like that. But, I had so many old ones and was tired of listening to old news, I changed the podcast setting ( not global setting ) , newest to oldest. That did not help. But, I then in the global settings disabled continuous playback and now I get them in order, newest to oldest. BUT, that one particular podcast stays in the que, newest to oldest , when I switch to another podcast !!!

May 27, 2023 3:09 PM in response to Raicya

Thank you for your suggestion. Unfortunately, once again the steps described do not match what I see in the Apple Podcast app. The suggested steps are:


1) Open a podcast

2) Tap the settings cog to go to Podcast Settings

3) Toggle on Add To Up Next


Problem: There is no settings cog visible anywhere in the Podcast app. (A screenshot would be helpful.)


However, in the Apple Podcast app there are three dots with these options:


Play Next

Play Last

Go to Episode

Go to Show

Save Episode

Mark as Unplayed


Again, nothing that says, "Play episodes in sequential order." "Play Next" simply plays the currently selected episode.


Any other suggestions?

Sep 29, 2023 3:20 AM in response to Raicya

I’ve experimented with various methods to keep a podcast show playing continuously. For instance, I’m a fan of the Levar Burton podcast, but when I press play, it only plays one episode and then stops, even though there are several more available. It seems impractical to create a playlist with the same episodes and add them to the queue just to have them play in succession.


My reasoning is that, just like playing an album in music, I expect to hit play and have the entire podcast series play continuously. It’s puzzling why this isn’t a standard feature for podcasts.


Furthermore, when I’m streaming a podcast through the HomePod, I can’t set a sleep timer, which adds to the inconvenience.


Is anyone else experiencing these issues, or is it just me?

May 27, 2023 3:23 PM in response to Waltm

Based on this Apple article -> Follow and play shows in Apple Podcasts on iPhone and iPad

Follow and play shows in Apple Podcasts on iPhone and iPad - Apple Support (IN)

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How to choose the order that episodes play

When you follow a podcast, you can play episodes in order, beginning with the newest or oldest episode.

  1. Open the Podcasts app.
  2. On your iPhone, go to the Library tab, then tap Shows. On your iPad, go to Library in the sidebar and tap Shows.
  3. Tap the show to see its information page.
  4. Tap the More button  in the top-right corner, then tap Settings.
  5. Tap Oldest To Newest or Newest To Oldest.


  • After an episode ends, the next episode of that podcast plays automatically. To turn this off, go to Settings > Podcasts, then turn off Continuous Playback.

Nov 24, 2023 5:34 AM in response to jml789uk

I have that one turned on already, but it only plays unplayed episodes. And it skips from show to show.


for example:


if I play podcast A and there is only 1 unplayed episode, it will play it and then skip to podcast B and play it’s unplayed episode.


I’m trying to get it to stay on podcast A and play it continuously only. Similar to listening to an album in its entirety. Even if I hit shuffle, it doesn’t shuffle different albums it stays on the album.

Nov 30, 2023 7:37 AM in response to jml789uk

This is the same thing I’m finding… for some reason when I’m playing a podcast that let’s say podcast A… it will finish episode 1 and instead of auto playing episode 2 which is available, it starts playing podcast B, then C… needs to be a way that you auto play next episode within a podcast, and not shuffle between all of our followed podcasts

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How to autoplay next episode of an Apple Podcast?

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