If you recently migrated your podcast to Riverside, you may notice your analytics look different from what you saw with your previous host. This is expected, and it usually comes down to differences in how platforms measure listening activity, not lost data.
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Platforms use different measurement methods
There is no single universal definition of a “play” or “stream.”
For example:
- Some platforms count a play as soon as someone presses the play button.
- Others apply minimum listening thresholds before a stream is counted. For example, Spotify only counts a stream if playback exceeds 1 minute.
- RSS-based listening is measured according to how podcast apps report activity through your feed.
Because measurement standards vary, numbers are not always directly comparable between hosting platforms.
Listening may happen in different places
Some hosting platforms are also listening platforms. In those cases, plays inside their app, website, or embedded player are included in their analytics.
Riverside podcast hosting distributes your show via RSS to podcast apps such as Apple Podcasts and Spotify. Riverside aggregates listening data reported by those platforms.
A change in where your audience listens can naturally affect how totals appear.
Analytics may be standardized differently
Podcast analytics systems may:
- De-duplicate repeated requests
- Filter automated or invalid traffic
- Apply industry reporting standards
Good to know
- Your previous host's analytics don't transfer when you migrate. Riverside starts counting from the moment you redirect your RSS feed.
- You can download your Riverside analytics as a CSV and filter by custom date ranges to track trends going forward.