Best podcast episodes of all time
“Favorite podcast episode of all time?”
30 answers from 30 people · Updated Sep 25, 2026
Reply All was truly the most interesting podcast of all time. Since ended but the whole catalog is full of bangers. PJ has Search Engine but it’s not the same 😢
162
The Living Room (Love and Radio)
Listened to this ten years ago while on a road trip with friends. The story still haunts me to this day.
1
A gorgeous episode about a community responding in the best ways to a family’s tragedy. Like getting struck by lightning
2
Mystery Show, Case # 3 Belt Buckle (2015, Starlee Kine)
A whimsical, authentic and um, tactile story. Surprisingly moving ending, and a great theme song I still remember by heart. RIP
93
Recordings for Someone | This American Life
this is from 2002 and Act One of this episode - “Hi Fred” (also known as “The Little Mermaid”) is still one of the best podcast moments in history.
62
How To Become Batman (Invisibilia, 2015)
A mind-bending story about parenting, empathy and the way our brains “see.” It’s been over a decade and I’m still thinking about it.
2
24 Hours at the Golden Apple (This American Life)
Probably my favorite podcast episode of any podcast ever
2
The Testosterone episode of This American Life.
Utterly unexpected, I think about it alllllll the time.
364
Heavyweight is my favorite podcast. I adore Jonathan Goldstein in all his hilarious, neurotic glory. I’m not sure I can really choose a favorite episode, but I REALLY love this one. If you love older folks this one is for you. Super sweet. You may need your tissues.
10
This is an incredible and inspiring episode of Radiolab. After you listen check out Emilie's work in the Whitney Biennial
6
The Memory Palace Episode 109: The Year Hank Greenberg Hit 58 Home Runs
A perfectly told, tiny (10 minutes!) story featuring a piece of history I never would have discovered on my own.
Search Engine - berghain parts 1 and 2
This is why the podcast format was invented, not random dudes half forming opinions that are about as smart as just blowing raspberries into a microphone. This two-part episode attempts to explain the mythology and mystique of the most exclusive club in the world, Berghain. It ends up becoming a moving treatise about the very nature of techno culture, a historical survey of how it came to take hold in Berlin (and Detroit), and how the legal worlds attempt to regulate it is shaping its future. So good. Also some VERY helpful tips about how to get in if that’s your thing!
Normal Gossip - “The Bro Never Dies with Josh Gondelman”
i listened to this episode the first time, then listened to it AGAIN less than 24 hours later because i couldn’t stop giggling to myself about it. a weirdly wholesome story about college bros trying to find love and sleepwalking and pretending to have asthma. everything about it is chaotic good
467
Song Exploder: Closing Time, by Semisonic
There are a lot of great episodes, but this one, with Dan Wilson (from Semisonic) breaking down the song 'Closing Time' is my favorite. It's beautiful and surprising and so much deeper than you would expect for a classic
41
The Memory Palace - Episode 218, Olga
Nate Dimeo kicks up dust around people from the past, remembering their stories through sentences in newspapers or old tax documents. Whether or not these people made a significant impact on history, he honors their experience. The episodes are short, about 5 to 8 minutes each (skip the ads). Here is one of my favorites, Olga.
2
Memory Palace 115: A Brief Eulogy for a Commercial Radio Station
Revisit the feeling of being a teenager, newish drivers license, when freedom felt like it was within your grasp, and driving felt like you were the main character in a movie.
1
Traumageddon 2: Hallucinogenic Hell
I had to pause multiple times to catch my breath in this episode. Julia and Eliza usually host this very informative (always funny) podcast, but Julia invites her friend nick on to talk about a mushroom trip that went horribly wrong.
2
Listening to this podcast gives me the same vibes when I listened to the ‘Serial’ podcast years and years ago #mailkimp. Last year, I heard about this couple in LA hiring dozens of surrogates to have their kids and when child services came to their house, they thought it was a daycare. I’m excited to hear the update!
Zora Neale Hurston + Langston Hughes: Best Friends Forever
This podcast has been my favorite discovery of the year tbh … As a lover of history, drama, and black people, I cannot get enough of this show. Who would’ve thought that drama and mess could humanize the ancestors so thoroughly? This episode (and the 2nd part) especially never fail to make me gasp and giggle. I love Zora. I love Langston. I love that they knew and laughed and fought with each other. the ancestors were, indeed, messy but they were also incredibly funny and righteous. I wish nothing but success for Nicole Hill and her collaborators.
9
All The World Is Roller Blades
This particular episode is especially delightful for English majors and theatre kids. Just enough low-stakes drama to make the story irresistible. Highly recommend!
1
Hyperfixed - "ReTell All" (August 13, 2026)
surprisingly moving
The Best Radiolab Podcast Episodes of All Time
(according to me) Nitabel’s Official List of Epic Radiolab Episodes Loops (Feb 2019) Unraveling Bolero (May 2018) Colors (May 2012) The Internet Dilemma (June 2023) Juicervose (Sept 2014) Heavy Metal (Sept 2021) Playing God (April 2016) Seeing in Tongues (Oct 2014) Parasites (Sept 2009) Blame (Sept 2013) + Revising the Fault Line (June 2017) The Fellowship of the Tree Rings (July 2023) Deception (Nov 2020) Numbers (Nov 2009) Placebo (Dec 2009) Baby Blue Blood Dive (July 2020) Escape! (Feb 2012) La Mancha Screwjob (Feb 2015) All the CRISPR episodes All the Gonads episodes, but especially X & Y (June 2018) In the Dust of This Planet (Sept 2014)
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