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🍎iTunes API vs Taddy API - Which is better?
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iTunes API vs Taddy API - Which is better?

What Does Each API Do?How to use iTunes API to get Podcast detailsHow to use Taddy’s API to get Podcast details Feature BreakdownSummary

What Does Each API Do?

  • iTunes API is a podcast directory service that returns RSS feed URLs and basic metadata for podcasts available on Apple Podcasts.
  • Taddy API is a complete podcast data API that provides podcast and episode details, search, episode transcripts, and real-time updates through webhooks.
They both try to accomplish different goals, so understanding these difference will help you choose the right tool for your project.

How to use iTunes API to get Podcast details

There are 2 main endpoints in the iTunes API:
  • Search - You can search for a piece of content from the iTunes API by passing in the title or artist name.
  • Lookup - You can lookup a piece of content by already knowing its ID.
Let’s take an example of using the first endpoint (Search) and searching for a podcast called “This American Life”:
{
	"wrapperType":"track", 
	"kind":"podcast", 
	"artistId":364380278, 
	"trackId":201671138, 
	"artistName":"This American Life", 
	"feedUrl":"http://feed.thisamericanlife.org/talpodcast", 
	"artworkUrl600":"https://is1-ssl.mzstatic.com/image/thumb/Podcasts123/v4/4e/b9/bb/4eb9bb9b-ed19-f0b7-7739-1177f1b35207/mza_8452563123961176873.png/600x600bb.jpg", 
	"genres":["Personal Journals", "Podcasts", "Society & Culture", "Arts"]
},
Full response: https://itunes.apple.com/search?term=This+American+Life&entity=podcast&attribute=titleTerm
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Here are the useful properties you get back:
  • trackId - a unique iTunes ID for this podcast
  • feedUrl - a link to the RSS feed for this podcast
  • artwork - iTunes artwork for this podcast
  • genres - iTunes genre categories for this podcast
The most useful property you get of all of these is the feedUrl. It is the link to the podcast’s RSS feed where you can get more details on the podcast and all episodes. But that is also the main difference between the iTunes API and Taddy’s API, you would then have to go to the url for each podcast to get the current details and constantly check it for new or updated episodes.
That is why the iTunes API is more a directory of all the podcasts vs an API for you to build your next podcast app on. However, if all you need is a list of all RSS feeds, iTunes is exactly what you need.

How to use Taddy’s API to get Podcast details

The goal of Taddy’s API is to make it easier for you build a great podcast app. The API lets you to do all the following:
  • Search for a particular podcast or episode.
  • Return the latest episodes for the a list of podcasts
 
Let’s take an example of getting back details on the “This American Life” podcast:
{
  "data": {
    "getPodcastSeries": {
      "uuid": "d682a935-ad2d-46ee-a0ac-139198b83bcc",
      "name": "This American Life",
      "itunesId": 201671138,
      "description": "This American Life is a weekly public radio show, heard by 2.2 million people on more than 500 stations. Another 2.5 million people download the weekly podcast. It is hosted by Ira Glass, produced in collaboration with Chicago Public Media, delivered to stations by PRX The Public Radio Exchange, and has won all of the major broadcasting awards.",
      "imageUrl": "https://files.thisamericanlife.org/sites/all/themes/thislife/img/tal-name-1400x1400.png",
      "itunesInfo": {
        "uuid": "d682a935-ad2d-46ee-a0ac-139198b83bcc",
        "publisherName": "This American Life",
        "baseArtworkUrlOf": "https://is1-ssl.mzstatic.com/image/thumb/Podcasts123/v4/4e/b9/bb/4eb9bb9b-ed19-f0b7-7739-1177f1b35207/mza_8452563123961176873.png/640x640bb.png"
      },
      "episodes": [
        {
          "uuid": "7eb7759a-ece5-4ff3-ac8c-2d39a295f436",
          "name": "672: No Fair!",
          "description": "Stories of very small injustices and also one very big one.",
          "audioUrl": "https://dts.podtrac.com/redirect.mp3/chtbl.com/track/8DB4DB/pdst.fm/e/nyt.simplecastaudio.com/bbbcc290-ed3b-44a2-8e5d-5513e38cfe20/episodes/5a12fc83-9bf1-40df-8726-aef5f7610917/audio/128/default.mp3?awCollectionId=bbbcc290-ed3b-44a2-8e5d-5513e38cfe20&awEpisodeId=5a12fc83-9bf1-40df-8726-aef5f7610917"
        },
        //... Plus 9 more episodes
      ]
    }
  }
}
 
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Here are some of the useful properties you get back:
  • name - name / title of the podcast from the RSS feed
  • description - description of the podcast from the RSS feed
  • imageUrl - podcast artwork from the RSS feed
  • itunesInfo - iTunes information for the podcast
  • episodes - a list of the 10 latest episodes (you can pass in parameters to get different episodes back)
Notice that this time you get back information about the podcast. Specifically you get information from the podcast’s RSS feed, like name, description, imageUrl and episodes.
Taddy API is constantly checking feeds for updates, so you also be sure that the information is up-to-date without you having to constantly do those checks yourself. If that is something you need, then using the Taddy API is a the right choice for you.

Feature Breakdown

Feature
Taddy API
iTunes API
Podcast directory
✅
✅
Get details on a podcast
✅ - See getPodcastSeries
❌
Get details on an episode
✅ - See getPodcastEpisode
❌
Search for podcasts
✅ - See search
✅
Search for episodes
✅ - See search
❌
Episode transcripts
✅ - See transcripts
❌
Webhooks
✅ - Get a webhook notification whenever a new podcast or episode is released.
❌
API Requests Limit
Limit of 240 per minute
Limit of 20 per minute
Price
Free - 500 API Calls per month. Pro - $75/month for 100,000 API Calls per month. Business - $150/month for 350,000 API Calls per month.
100% Free
Keep in mind iTunes API just gives you the url of a RSS feed for the podcast, it doesn't give you any other podcast details, you have to go to the url to get those details yourself.

Summary

In summary, which API you use will depend on your specific business use-case. If all you need is a directory of all the podcasts, iTunes API is 100% free and may be all you need, if you need some more features to help you build out your podcast app, you should check out Taddy’s API.
Make sure to check our list of the 🥇Top 5 Podcast APIs if you would like a summary of all the different Podcast API options available.
 
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If you are new to using Taddy’s API, Get Started with our 🤖 Intro to Taddy’s API.
 
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Article by: Daniel Mathews
Updated on September 12, 2025
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