Podcast Ad Index
October 2026month to date
Who advertised on podcasts in October 2026, from ad reads we detected in the audio itself. Every number links to the brand it came from.
Press summary
Written from the numbers on this page. Quote it, with a link.
Podcast Ad Index, October 2026 so far: Game Day leads with reads on 110 shows; 12 brands ran their first podcast ad
7,594 ad reads from 706 brands on 987 podcasts, detected in the episodes we transcribed so far in October: top advertisers, new promo codes, host-read share by genre, and the reads themselves.
So far in October, TrackPodcasts detected 7,594 podcast ad reads from 706 brands across 987 podcasts, in the episodes we transcribed. Every figure below links to the verbatim read it came from.
Game Day led with 330 reads on 110 shows, against 368 in September 2026, followed by Indeed (223 reads, 39 shows; 1,060 in September 2026) and Patreon (221 reads, 98 shows; 1,374 in September 2026).
12 brands with no detected podcast ads in any earlier month showed up so far in October, including New York, My Company, 20th Century Studios, Youtube Premium and Us Here.
The biggest movers were T-Mobile (3,123 → 116 reads), Verizon (1,280 → 26 reads) and Patreon (1,374 → 221 reads). Verizon went from 63% host-read to 0% and Main Street went from 0% host-read to 60%, shifts between host-read and network-inserted delivery of 20 points or more.
Of the 3,637 reads we could classify, 9% were host-read and 91% network-inserted. By genre, host-read share was highest in comedy (16% of 476) and lowest in spirituality (1% of 250).
20 promo codes appeared for the first time so far in October, including sleep20 (Hers) and Rover (Good Ranchers).
One read, verbatim, for LifeLock on Shaun Attwoods True Crime Podcast: “Lifelock detects alerts you to and fixes identity theft, guaranteed or your money back. Wow, that's a lot of people. Kind of makes you think. Don't wait to become the one identity theft happens to. Get Lifelock. Seat up…”
In brief
- 7,594 ad reads, 706 brands, 987 podcasts so far in October (episodes we transcribed)
- Top advertiser: Game Day, 330 reads on 110 shows (368 in September 2026)
- 12 first-time podcast advertisers: New York, My Company and 20th Century Studios and more
- 9% of classified reads were host-read; highest in comedy at 16%
- 20 new promo codes, including sleep20 (Hers)
TrackPodcasts transcribes podcast episodes, detects the ad reads inside them and resolves each to a brand, so every number in the Podcast Ad Index links to the verbatim read behind it. All figures are ad reads detected in transcribed audio so far in October, not spend estimates, and cover the episodes we transcribed rather than every podcast; the full report and method are at https://trackpodcasts.com/reports/podcast-ad-index/2026-10.
706
Brands detected
7,594
Ad reads detected
987
Podcasts carrying ads
Top advertisers
By detected ad reads, with change from the previous month.
| # | Brand | Category | Ad reads | Shows | vs prior |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Game Day | — | 330 | 110 | -10% |
| 2 | Indeed | hr | 223 | 39 | -79% |
| 3 | Patreon | media | 221 | 98 | -84% |
| 4 | Spotify | media | 205 | 87 | -77% |
| 5 | Shopify | ecommerce | 186 | 84 | -79% |
| 6 | Hilton | travel | 186 | 48 | -69% |
| 7 | LinkedIn Jobs | hr | 182 | 52 | -86% |
| 8 | LifeLock | security | 180 | 31 | -82% |
| 9 | PayPal | finance | 174 | 45 | -84% |
| 10 | Mint Mobile | telecom | 165 | 70 | -68% |
| 11 | Apple | bigtech | 163 | 17 | -77% |
| 12 | Progressive | insurance | 138 | 50 | -82% |
| 13 | Wealthfront | finance | 119 | 39 | -72% |
| 14 | T-Mobile | telecom | 116 | 70 | -96% |
| 15 | New York | — | 104 | 60 | new |
| 16 | Lululemon | apparel | 103 | 34 | -66% |
| 17 | Visible | telecom | 97 | 7 | -86% |
| 18 | Each Other | — | 93 | 67 | +745% |
| 19 | DraftKings | gambling | 93 | 29 | -85% |
| 20 | Kalshi | finance | 91 | 23 | -80% |
New this month
Brands with no detected podcast ads in any earlier month.
- New York104 reads · 60 shows
- My Company43 reads · 17 shows
- 20th Century Studios36 reads · 16 shows
- Youtube Premium34 reads · 18 shows
- Us Here22 reads · 19 shows
- Youtube Premium19 reads · 10 shows
- Taco Bell9 reads · 3 shows
- Alka Salsa Cold9 reads · 1 shows
- Howard Team8 reads · 1 shows
- Comcast Business7 reads · 4 shows
- Pipe Drive7 reads · 2 shows
- All Right Guys5 reads · 5 shows
Biggest movers
Largest change in detected ad reads versus the previous month.
- T-Mobile3123 → 116
- Verizon1280 → 26
- Patreon1374 → 221
- LinkedIn Jobs1294 → 182
- PayPal1057 → 174
- Geico851 → 0
- Indeed1060 → 223
- LifeLock986 → 180
- Shopify898 → 186
- Spotify905 → 205
- Progressive780 → 138
- Visible717 → 97
- State Farm639 → 62
- Apple715 → 163
- DraftKings638 → 93
- Wayfair518 → 16
New promo codes
Codes we heard for the first time this month, for that brand, in any transcript we hold. Each links to the read where it debuted.
| Code | Brand | Offer | First heard on | Date |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| sleep20 | Hers | — | Mark Narrations - Reddit Stories | Oct 4 |
| Rover | Good Ranchers | — | Wes & Walker Show | Oct 4 |
| hard | Kalshi | — | Hard Factor | Oct 4 |
| BustedOpen | Shopify | — | Busted Open | Oct 4 |
| NPR | Charles Schwab | — | Wait Wait... Don't Tell Me! | Oct 4 |
| TIM | Mod Mod Prescribes | — | The Tim Dillon Show | Oct 4 |
| BERT | Whoop | — | The Bert Show | Oct 4 |
| BIRT | Whoop | — | The Bert Show | Oct 4 |
| power | Parlay Bakery | — | Two Man Power Trip of Wrestling Podcast | Oct 4 |
| BustedOpen | Pnc Bank | — | Busted Open | Oct 4 |
| BustedOpen | Chase | — | Busted Open | Oct 4 |
| 847 | Diamond Ghost Charters | — | Daily Download | Oct 4 |
| 847 | Masterworks | — | Daily Download | Oct 4 |
| BustedOpen | New York | — | Busted Open | Oct 4 |
| BustedOpen | Youtube Premium | — | Busted Open | Oct 4 |
| BustedOpen | Youtube Premium | — | Busted Open | Oct 4 |
| BustedOpen | Youtube Premium | — | Busted Open | Oct 4 |
| 1053 | Kalshi | — | Shan and RJ | Oct 4 |
| new20 | Five Hour Energy | — | Mully & Haugh Show | Oct 4 |
| SGP | Mint Mobile | — | MMA Gambling Podcast | Oct 4 |
Host-read share by genre
Of the 3,637 reads we could classify this month, 9% were host-read and the rest network-inserted. Reads we could not classify are left out of every percentage here, and a show listed under two genres counts in both.
- news9% host-read · 1,218 reads
- sports11% host-read · 1,209 reads
- society6% host-read · 637 reads
- culture6% host-read · 633 reads
- comedy16% host-read · 476 reads
- football8% host-read · 408 reads
- business3% host-read · 370 reads
- education2% host-read · 358 reads
- religion1% host-read · 251 reads
- spirituality1% host-read · 250 reads
Brands that changed how their ads are delivered
Host-read share moved 20 points or more versus the previous month, among brands with at least five classified reads in each. A fall usually means a move to network-inserted ads; a rise, the reverse.
| Brand | Prior host-read | This month | Change | Classified reads |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Verizon | 63% | 0% | -63 pts | 109 → 13 |
| Main Street | 0% | 60% | +60 pts | 7 → 5 |
| My Bookie | 43% | 0% | -43 pts | 14 → 6 |
| LifeLock | 49% | 84% | +35 pts | 264 → 91 |
| Squarespace | 68% | 91% | +23 pts | 59 → 11 |
| Up First | 22% | 0% | -22 pts | 9 → 14 |
Where the money is going
Detected ad reads by advertiser category.
finance
737 reads · 25 brands · -84%
media
537 reads · 8 brands · -82%
hr
449 reads · 6 brands · -83%
telecom
422 reads · 5 brands · -93%
security
237 reads · 8 brands · -86%
bigtech
234 reads · 7 brands · -79%
insurance
225 reads · 2 brands · -86%
travel
205 reads · 5 brands · -81%
ecommerce
186 reads · 1 brands · -79%
retail
165 reads · 6 brands · -85%
gambling
146 reads · 6 brands · -87%
apparel
138 reads · 9 brands · -79%
In their own words
Ad reads from this month, verbatim, host-read where we have them. Each links to the moment in the episode.
“Visit bombas.com slash audio and use code audio for 20% off your first purchase. That's B-O-M-B-A-S dot com slash audio. One purchase equals one donated, always. Thank you for listening to this episode's ads. By supporting our sponsors, you support Case File to continue to deliver quality content. Thank you for watching. At the time of her murder, Amber had been living in West Babylon, a town in Suffolk County, in Dave Schuller's residence.”
“Hey Spotify listeners, when you travel with American Airlines, you'll enjoy comfort and convenience at every altitude. Before takeoff, unwind in the Admiral's Club lounge with curated self-serve offerings of hearty vites and refreshments. In flight, stay connected with high-speed Wi-Fi, sponsored by AT&T. Your journey is designed to feel easy from the moment you check in to the moment you arrive. No matter where you're going, American gets you there. Book now at AA.com.”
Spotify on Bourbon Pursuit · code BurbankPursuit10
“You know, local media like this is brought to you by our members on Patreon. Local media needs to be fearless and be able to talk about things honestly. Part of the reason we're able to do that is that we are supported for these kinds of episodes where we've got how it takes by our members. Join us patreon.com slash daily Detroit. Until next week, I am Jair Stays. I'm Devon O'Reilly. Remember that you are somebody and we'll see you around Detroit.”
“Brought to you by the Capital One Saver Card. With Saver, you earn unlimited 3% cash back on dining, entertainment, and at grocery stores. That's unlimited cash back on ordering takeout from home, or unlimited cash back on tickets to concerts and games. So grab a bite, grab a seat, and earn unlimited 3% cash back with the Saver Card. Capital One. What's in your wallet? Terms apply. See CapitalOne.com for details. This monthly and other limits in terms of apply.”
“Lifelock detects alerts you to and fixes identity theft, guaranteed or your money back. Wow, that's a lot of people. Kind of makes you think. Don't wait to become the one identity theft happens to. Get Lifelock. Seat up to 30% with promo code news at Lifelock.com. Terms apply. That's v-y-v-g-a-r-t-myway.com. And talk to your doctor about Vivgard Hatrulo, brought to you by Arginics.”
LifeLock on Shaun Attwoods True Crime Podcast · code news
How this is built
TrackPodcasts transcribes podcast episodes and detects ad reads in the transcript, then resolves each to a brand. A read counts once per episode per brand. Host-read and dynamically inserted ads are classified separately; the reads quoted above are host-read. Figures cover the episodes we transcribed in the month, not all podcasts, so treat them as a large sample rather than a census. Generated October 4, 2026. Cite as “TrackPodcasts Podcast Ad Index, October 2026” with a link to this page.
Full detail on detection, classification and what is excluded is on the methodology page. Figures are counts of reads detected in transcribed audio, not estimates of spend.