My Favorite Podcasts of 2025 ⭐

2025 was a strange year for podcasts: I added four new shows but my overall listening time was down by about 50 percent year-over-year. I chalk that up to a big lifestyle change this past year in which we spent over half our time in Mexico City, where we walk everywhere every day. But we do that together, so I can’t listen to podcasts, audiobooks, or music at that time. And since we walk so much, I don’t see any point in walking solo just so I can catch up on content.

I’ll try to review the life balance thing in 2026. But the way I listen hasn’t changed: I still use and prefer Pocket Casts, and recommend it to everyone.
❤️ Favorite bingeable podcasts
Every once in a while, I discover a podcast that I enjoy so much I want to listen to every episode. But even those come and go. I was a big fan of How Did This Get Made for several years, for example, but stopped listening a few years back. And while The Rewatchables is still a favorite, I’ve listened to all the previous episodes I would like to listen to and now just cherry–pick from the new episodes as they appear, which explains why it’s moved into the next section.

But the following three endure, in alphabetical order.

If Books Could Kill

This might be my favorite podcast overall because the hosts are consistently smart and funny and land on the correct side of big issues. It skewers and debunks so-called “airport books,” those books, often of the self-help variety, that somehow sell in the millions despite being absolutely terrible and in many cases objectively wrong. Think Freakanomics, The 4-Hour Work Week, The Secret, and similar drivel. Classic.

Made by Google

I’ve been listening to this podcast since its inception and it added a video version in the most recent season. I like the host, I like hearing from those who work on Google’s products, and I make a point to listen to (or, now, watch) every episode. (The video version is not in Pocket Casts, but it’s available on YouTube.)

Scott & Mark Learn To

I could not have been happier last year when I saw that two of my favorite people at Microsoft started this podcast. It’s still a favorite, and I look forward to each episode.
? Favorite podcasts for cherry-picked episodes
I don’t have time to listen to every single episode of every podcast I subscribe to, but I have several that are favorites depending on the topic. This is pretty much why my Pocket Casts playlists view is set to “New Releases.” You never know when the next great show is going to pop up.

Here are my favorites, in alphabetical order.

.NET Rocks

Richard Campbell and Carl Franklin are friends and two of my favorite people, and they’re terrific together on this developer-focused podcast, which may now be the longest-running podcast in history.

Hanselminutes

Scott Hanselman (of Scott & Mark Learn To fame) is a tech-focused content maker who I’ve know for decades and really enjoy. This show has been around a while, and it’s...