12 Daily Podcasts to Add to Your Routine

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Looking to change your habits for the better in the new year? Sure, you could cut the sugar from your coffee or start walking to work instead of driving. Or you could adopt a new podcast into your daily routine. Here are the best shows dropping a new episode every day, from the informative, to the inspiring, to the amusing. Comedic news coverage, quick true crime updates and even the peaceful sound of birds: There’s a show here for all types of listeners.

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The Daily Zeitgeist

Every day on The Daily Zeitgeist, Jack O’Brien (founder of Cracked) and Miles Gray bring on a comedian or artist or just general smart person to cover whatever is, er, in the zeitgeist—whether that be looming abortion bans or the newest Taco Bell menu item. You’ll get a great rundown of the news from a progressive slant, with jokes from the very funny hosts to leaven the mood—smart guys who are willing to get silly when the moment merits it. The more you listen, the more you’ll love it. I have been listening for years, sometimes multiple times a day (they have longer episodes in the morning, and shorter episodes in the evening), which means I have listened to Jack and Miles for perhaps thousands of hours, and I regret nothing.

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The Puzzler

If you’re obsessed with Wordle, Heardle, or any other daily puzzles, you’ll want to add The Puzzler With A.J. Jacobs to your morning listening routine. Each week, A.J. drops five episodes (one a weekday), welcoming guests like Ben Bowlin (Stuff They Don’t Want You To Know) Michael Ian Black, Ophira Eisenberg, Roy Wood Jr., and more, and talking them through tricky word puzzles that were written just for them. Listening to The Puzzler is the most fun way to sharpen your brain every day—while episodes are educational, they’re packed with fun, and there’s always a puzzle at the end that goes unanswered until the following day, making it easy to play along.

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TED Talks Daily

TED Talks Daily is a mini TED talk delivered to your ears every single weekday. Host and journalist Elise Hu sets up presentations from some the brightest thinkers in the world, who give talks on everything from AI, to zoology, to leadership philosophies, to what happens when we die. You’ll hear from people like Glenn Close, Debbie Millman, Laurie Santos, and Charles M. Blow, and in just a few minutes, you can expand (and challenge) your brain, spark your curiosity, and learn something new.

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Breaker Whiskey

The audio fiction podcast Breaker Whiskey is cool for two reasons: it’s released every weekday in bite-sized episodes, and it’s recorded on a 1976 Midland CB Radio. The premise: you’re hearing one woman’s audio diary as she treks across 20th century America after an apocalyptic event in 1968 that appears to have obliterated everything around her. It’s great for fans of Alice Isn’t Dead.

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Commotion

Sam Sanders’ Into It was canceled last year, and the world was sad about it. I was sad too, but less sad because of Commotion, a daily culture podcast from CBC with similar vibes. Host Elamin Abdelmahmoud invites writers and culture critics to unpack movies, TV, music, and more, delving into controversial social media topics of the day. (Like…is Buffy Saint Marie being canceled?) Each 30-minute conversation is full of insight and lots of laughs.

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The Journal

There are a lot of daily news shows, but The Journal is my favorite. Every evening they drop a business story, usually about a failing business, which will appeal to people interested in business and people interested in schadenfreude. (I’m the later.) Every so often there’s a longer story (I loved “Our Refinery Is On Fire: Two Brothers and a Deadly Explosion.”) They’re not all business disaster stories. But those are may favorites. And The Journal knows its strengths, so there are a lot of them. 

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True Crime Daily

There are a lot of true crime podcasts, and even more true crime stories. True Crime Daily doesn’t want you to miss a single one. Every day, Ana Garccia brings on crime experts, police officers, defense attorneys, and other leading authorities in their fields to go in-depth on shocking and bizarre stories you’ve heard about, and some you haven’t. This stuff can get grim (content ranges from an art heist to scams to brutal murders) and the show doesn’t hold back, but Ana brings a lot of personality (and a love of chihuahuas) to make it feel less of a drag, and more of a quick blitz of addictive true crime news.

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History Daily

Every day is historic for something, and on History Daily, host Lindsay Graham (American Scandal, American History Tellers) takes you back in time to explore an epoch-making event that happened on that day. Whether you’re listening on Jan. 1 (Ellis Island opens its doors to), March 1 (Yellowstone becomes the world’s first National Park), or June 1 (the execution of a former high-ranking Nazi and architect of the Holocaust), you’re bound to discover something momentous. On the weekends, Lindsay releases “Saturday Matinee” episodes, which are drops of other interesting history podcasts he thinks you’ll like, and it’s worth subscribing just for that excellent curation.

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Make Your Damn Bed

If you make your bed every damn day, why not turn on Make Your Damn Bed while you’re doing it? Every bite-sized episode (we’re talking 7 minutes) offers real talk and daily motivation that you can listen to while you’re positioning those pillow cases or tucking in your sheets. Not only is it easy to apply this show to your daily routine, it’s a way to will pair something fun with something you’d probably rather not be doing. Making your bed is the first step toward global domination!

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BirdNote Daily

The world is loud, social media is loud, but listening to BirdNote Daily when you first wake up is a great way to start the day connecting to nature. Each episode lets you immerse yourself in the rich sounsz of the bird world, and offers lots of facts that will shake up your brain. You’ll find yourself being extra attentive to the nature around you afterward, and you might even be able to identify some of the birds you see (and hear) on your daily commute.

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It Could Happen Here

It Could Happen Here is your daily guide to the insanity of our past, present, and future, covering all the drone wars, the rise in Antisemitism, worldwide infectious disease risks, the war on trans people, immigration shenanigans, and more. It won’t put you in a good mood about the world, but it will keep you informed. The team from Cool Zone Media (including Robert Evans, host of Behind the Bastards) jump on for history lessons, hellacious news of the week, and predictions for what’s to come.

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Business Wars Daily

Is there anything more intriguing than a rivalry in the business world? On Business Wars Daily, the battles between McDonald’s vs Red Robin, Alaska Airlines vs. Jet Blue, And Dior vs. Fendi vs. Gucci baby products are juicy and addictive listening, and will give you the gossip peering into board rooms, court rooms, and delivering the behind-the-scenes gossip that shape the world we live, breathe, and shop in.