How do I delete already listened to Podcasts on iPhone?

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A phone with earphones

Downloading podcasts and listening to them offline helps users save on cellular data and keep up with their favorite episodes in areas with poor or zero network coverage. But once you listen to the episodes, you’ll have to clear space for new ones. You need to delete already listened to podcasts.

So, do you know how to remove downloaded podcasts from your iPhone? Don’t sweat it; we’ll take you through the steps.

How to download podcast episodes on iPhone

First, before you remove podcasts from your iPhone or iPad, you must download them. Here is how to go about it:

  • Launch the podcast app on your device.
  • Search for the podcast show you want to download and tap on it.
  • Tap and hold the episode you wish to download.
  • Tap on Download Episode from the pop-up menu.

NOTE: To check the amount of storage space occupied by Podcasts, go to Settings > General > Storage & iCloud Usage > Manage Storage > Podcasts.

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How to delete podcasts from the library

To remove podcasts from your iPhone or iPad, you can delete a single episode, all the episodes in one podcast show, or all your downloaded episodes (from different shows).

Let’s look at each procedure:

How to delete a single podcast episode from iPhone

  • Launch your podcast app.
  • Select the Library tab and tap on Shows.
  • Tap on the show that you want to see its episodes.
  • Find the episode you want to delete, then touch and hold it.
  • Tap on Remove Download from the pop-up menu.
  • Ideally, you can swipe the episode from right to left, tap on Delete, or swipe it across the screen.

Delete all the episodes in one podcast show on iPhone

  • Open your Podcast app.
  • Go to your library tab and tap on Shows.
  • Find the show whose episodes you want to delete and tap on it.
  • Tap the more button at the top.
  • Tap on Remove Downloads/Delete from Library.
  • If you want to delete the Show directly, tap the Edit button in the top-right corner of the Library, then tap the minus icon (-) next to the show you want to delete. Select Delete to confirm your action.

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How to delete all the downloaded podcast episodes on iPhone

  • Open the Podcast app.
  • Go to your library tab and tap on Downloaded.
  • Tap the more button on the top-right corner.
  • Tap on Remove all downloads.
  • Tap Confirm Remove downloads on the prompt that appears.

How to manage podcasts on iPhone

There’re a few tips you can apply to avoid having a lot of downloaded podcast episodes on your iPhone. They include:

  • Turning off automatic downloads.
  • Deleting played podcasts automatically.
  • Limiting the number of episodes from a podcast.

When you follow or subscribe to a podcast, you may have set its new episodes to download automatically on your iPhone.

As a result, you end up with a backlog of downloaded episodes. It’s worse if the podcast episodes are released frequently. Fortunately, you can turn off the feature by following the guide below:

How to turn off automatic downloads for a podcast show

  • Open your Podcast app.
  • Choose a show from your library or search for a specific show in the search bar.
  • Tap on the show, then the more icon (…) next to it.
  • Tap on Settings and select Automatic Downloads to toggle it off.

Turn off automatic downloads for shows that you follow

  • Open Settings on your device.
  • Tap on Podcasts.
  • Under Automatic Downloads, toggle off Enable when following.

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How to delete played podcasts automatically

You can set your iPhone to delete already listened to podcasts automatically after 24 hours. Use this guide:

  • Open Settings.
  • Tap on Podcasts.
  • Toggle on Remove Played Download.
  • Once it’s turned On, this feature will apply to all your subscribed podcasts. If you want it to only apply to specific podcasts, go to Podcasts > Library > more icon (…) > Settings.
  • However, you should note that if you skip forward the episode, it won’t delete. So, you should allow the credits to run to the end rather than skip to the podcast’s next episode.

How to limit the number of episodes from a podcast

  • Launch your Podcast app.
  • Select Library.
  • Tap on the More icon (…).
  • Tap on Settings.
  • Select Limit Episodes.
  • Choose your preferred number of episodes or date range.

Hopefully, these solutions help anyone who can’t delete already listened to podcasts on their iPhone. Let us know how everything goes in the comment section below.

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