--- title: "Podcast Show Notes Template (With Examples)" description: "A copy-ready podcast show notes template, four filled-in examples, and the Apple Podcasts, Spotify and YouTube rules for descriptions and chapters." url: https://exemplary.ai/blog/podcast-show-notes-template published: 2026-04-17 updated: 2026-09-30 author: "Sarath Chandran" publisher: "Exemplary AI (https://exemplary.ai)" --- # Podcast Show Notes Template (With Examples) Good podcast show notes answer three questions fast: what is this episode about, who is in it, and where do I find the things that were mentioned? The template below covers that in eight parts: a one-line hook, a short summary, the guest, key points, chapters, links, where to find the guest, and credits with a call to action. Copy it, fill in the brackets, and cut any part that doesn't apply. There's plenty of room for it: Apple Podcasts Connect accepts episode descriptions of up to 10,000 characters ([Apple Podcasts for Creators](https://podcasters.apple.com/support/825-how-to-create-an-episode)), and YouTube descriptions go up to 5,000 characters ([YouTube Help](https://support.google.com/youtube/answer/57404?hl=en)). The real limit is how much a listener will read, so lead with the hook. *Platform rules below were checked against Apple Podcasts for Creators, Spotify for Creators and YouTube Help on September 30, 2026.* ## The show notes template Copy this into your hosting platform's episode description field: ``` [One-line hook: the most useful thing a listener gets from this episode.] [Two or three sentences: who is talking, what they cover, and why it matters now.] Guest: [Name], [role] at [organisation]. [One line on why they're worth hearing.] In this episode: - [Key point or question 1] - [Key point or question 2] - [Key point or question 3] Chapters: 00:00 [Intro] [mm:ss] [Topic 1] [mm:ss] [Topic 2] [mm:ss] [Topic 3] Mentioned in this episode: - [Resource name]: [https link] - [Book, tool or article]: [https link] Find [Guest]: [website] | [social handle] Transcript: [link, if you publish one] Hosted by [name]. Produced by [name]. Music: [track and licence]. [Sponsor disclosure, if there is one.] [One call to action: follow, rate, join the newsletter.] ``` ## What each part does | Part | What to write | Tip | |---|---|---| | Hook | One sentence on the payoff | Write it last, once you know the best moment | | Summary | Two or three sentences in plain language | Say who, what and why now. Skip "In this episode, we..." | | Guest | Name, role, one line of credibility | Use the spelling and title the guest uses | | Key points | Three to five bullets | Phrase them as takeaways or questions answered | | Chapters | Timestamps with short titles | Follow the format rules below so apps turn them into chapters | | Links | Everything named on the episode | Check each link works and uses https | | Find the guest | One or two links | Ask the guest which ones they want listed | | Credits and call to action | Host, producer, music, sponsor, one ask | Pick one ask, not five | ## Four examples These are illustrative. The shows, guests and links are invented to show the template in use. ### 1. Interview episode ``` Why most small bakeries lose money on wholesale, and the one number that tells you if yours will. Host Priya talks with bakery owner Tom Reyes about the year he nearly closed after signing three café contracts, and how he rebuilt his pricing from ingredient cost up. Guest: Tom Reyes, owner of a two-shop bakery. He has run wholesale accounts for eight years. In this episode: - How to price wholesale when your retail margin is already thin - The contract clause Tom now refuses to sign - When to say no to a big account Chapters: 00:00 Intro 01:40 The contracts that nearly closed the shop 12:05 Pricing from ingredient cost up 27:30 Contract terms to avoid 38:15 Listener questions Mentioned in this episode: - Tom's pricing worksheet: https://example.com/worksheet Hosted by Priya. Produced by Sam. Music licensed from [library]. Follow the show so you don't miss next week's episode on hiring. ``` ### 2. Solo episode ``` Three ways to plan a month of content in one afternoon, with the template I use. A solo episode on batching: how I pick themes, outline ten episodes in two hours, and what I stopped doing after a year of trying. In this episode: - Picking a monthly theme from listener questions - Outlining ten episodes in one sitting - What to leave out of an outline Chapters: 00:00 Intro 00:45 Why I batch 06:30 Picking the theme 15:10 The outline template 24:00 What I stopped doing Mentioned in this episode: - The outline template: https://example.com/template Questions for a future episode? Reply to the newsletter: https://example.com/newsletter ``` ### 3. Narrative or serial episode ``` Episode 4: The Letter. A box of letters turns up in the attic, and one of them is addressed to someone who was never supposed to exist. Content note: this episode discusses a death in the family. Chapters: 00:00 Previously 02:10 The attic 11:45 The first letter 23:30 The archive 34:00 What the date means Sources and further reading: https://example.com/episode-4-sources Written and produced by [name]. Original score by [name]. New episodes every Tuesday. Start from Episode 1 if you're new. ``` For serial shows, Apple Podcasts makes episode numbers mandatory; for episodic shows they're optional but encouraged ([Apple Podcasts for Creators](https://podcasters.apple.com/support/825-how-to-create-an-episode)). Put the number in the episode number field, not only in the text. ### 4. Video podcast on YouTube ``` We tested four budget microphones on the same voice. Here's the one we'd buy. Side-by-side tests, noisy-room tests, and why the cheapest one surprised us. Chapters: 00:00 Intro 01:10 How we tested 04:30 Microphone 1 09:45 Microphone 2 15:20 Microphone 3 20:05 Microphone 4 25:40 Our pick Gear mentioned: https://example.com/gear Audio-only version: [podcast app link] #podcasting #microphones ``` On YouTube, the chapter list only becomes chapters if it follows YouTube's rules (below), and the description can't exceed 5,000 characters. For more on the YouTube side, see our [YouTube description template](https://exemplary.ai/blog/youtube-description-template) and [guide to YouTube timestamps and chapters](https://exemplary.ai/blog/youtube-timestamps-chapters). ## Platform rules that affect your show notes **Apple Podcasts** - When you create an episode in Apple Podcasts Connect, the name can be up to 150 characters and the description up to 10,000 characters ([Apple Podcasts for Creators](https://podcasters.apple.com/support/825-how-to-create-an-episode)). - Titles and descriptions "must always accurately represent" the episode. Apple automatically censors certain explicit words in titles, so it asks creators not to self-censor language in titles or descriptions, and to mark explicit episodes with the Explicit tag ([Apple Podcasts for Creators](https://podcasters.apple.com/support/891-content-and-subscription-guidelines)). - Apple generates transcripts automatically after an episode is published, for podcasts in English, Danish, Dutch, Finnish, French, German, Italian, Norwegian, Portuguese, Spanish and Swedish, on iOS 17.4 or later. You can supply your own transcript as a VTT or SRT file instead ([Apple Podcasts for Creators](https://podcasters.apple.com/support/5316-transcripts-on-apple-podcasts)). **Spotify for Creators** - If Spotify hosts your show, the editor supports bold, italics, bulleted and numbered lists, and links, and you can switch to HTML. If you host elsewhere, Spotify supports a small set of HTML tags in your RSS description: links (https only), level-one and level-two headings, bulleted and numbered lists, paragraphs and line breaks ([Spotify for Creators](https://support.spotify.com/us/creators/article/formatting-your-show-notes/)). - Spotify warns that "your episode descriptions might look different on different platforms", so keep the formatting simple. **YouTube** - Titles can be up to 100 characters and descriptions up to 5,000 ([YouTube Help](https://support.google.com/youtube/answer/57404?hl=en)). - Chapters need a first timestamp of 00:00, at least three timestamps in ascending order, and chapters of at least 10 seconds ([YouTube Help](https://support.google.com/youtube/answer/9884579?hl=en)). ## Chapter timestamps that work on Spotify and YouTube Spotify and YouTube can both turn timestamps in the description into chapters, but their rules differ slightly. If you meet the stricter of each rule, one chapter list works on both: 1. **Start at 00:00.** Both platforms require it ([Spotify for Creators](https://support.spotify.com/us/creators/article/episode-chapters/), [YouTube Help](https://support.google.com/youtube/answer/9884579?hl=en)). 2. **Use at least three chapters**, in time order. 3. **Leave at least 30 seconds between chapters.** Spotify needs 30 seconds; YouTube's minimum is 10. 4. **Put each chapter on its own line**, written as "timestamp title", for example `12:05 Pricing from ingredient cost up`. Spotify accepts MM:SS and HH:MM:SS, with or without brackets. 5. **Keep titles in plain text.** Spotify asks for no emojis or HTML, and suggests titles under 40 characters. Spotify notes that description updates can take a few hours to show up across listening platforms. ## Draft show notes from the transcript Most of the template can be filled from a transcript: the key points, the chapter times, the links people mentioned. Exemplary AI (our product) [transcribes](https://exemplary.ai/transcription) an episode and drafts show notes, chapters, key quotes and title ideas from it, and the [chapter generator](https://exemplary.ai/video-chapter-generator) turns an episode into timestamps. Treat the drafts as a first pass. Check every timestamp against the final edit, and check every link yourself. For the SEO side of show notes, such as keywords, titles and linking, see [podcast show notes that boost SEO](https://exemplary.ai/blog/podcast-show-notes-boost-seo). To turn an episode into a full article, see [how to turn a podcast into a blog post](https://exemplary.ai/blog/podcast-into-blog). ## Checklist before you publish - The first line works on its own, without the rest of the notes. - Guest name, title and links are spelled the way the guest wants. - Chapters start at 00:00, are in order, are at least 30 seconds apart and match the final edit. - Every link opens and uses https. - Sponsor disclosures are included. - Explicit episodes are marked as explicit. - The episode number is set in its field (required for serial shows on Apple Podcasts). ## FAQ ### What should podcast show notes include? A hook, a short summary, the guest's name and role, three to five key points, chapter timestamps, links to everything mentioned, and credits with one call to action. Leave out anything your show doesn't use. ### How long should podcast show notes be? Long enough to cover the episode, and no longer. The platform limits are generous: up to 10,000 characters in Apple Podcasts Connect and 5,000 on YouTube. Most of the value sits in the first line and the chapter list. ### Are show notes the same as the episode description? On most platforms, yes. You write them in the episode description field, and your host sends that text to the podcast apps. On Spotify, formatting can look different from app to app. ### Do timestamps in show notes create chapters? On Spotify and YouTube they can, if they follow each platform's format rules: start at 00:00, at least three chapters in order, and at least 30 seconds apart on Spotify (10 seconds on YouTube). ### Should I paste the full transcript into the show notes? You don't need to. Apple Podcasts generates transcripts for supported languages, and lets you supply a VTT or SRT file instead ([Apple Podcasts for Creators](https://podcasters.apple.com/support/5316-transcripts-on-apple-podcasts)). A link to a transcript page keeps the notes readable. > Exemplary AI is a browser-based AI tool that turns long videos and recordings into short captioned clips, transcripts in 99 languages, subtitles, translations into 116 languages, and written posts such as summaries, blog posts and YouTube chapters. It is built for YouTubers, podcasters and marketing teams; the Free plan includes 500 one-time credits with watermarked video exports. Pricing: https://exemplary.ai/pricing