Listen Notes
Search, monitor, and build on podcasts
What is Listen Notes
Listen Notes indexes podcasts and episodes across the internet and exposes that data through a REST API, letting developers query, fetch audio files, generate clips, and monitor mentions by keyword. It's built for developers and founders at SMBs and mid-market companies who need structured podcast data without crawling RSS feeds themselves. The standout capability is keyword monitoring with notifications — you set a term, and Listen Notes alerts you when new episodes mention it, with native Slack delivery and Zapier routing available. The free tier includes 5,000 API requests at no cost and requires no credit card to start, which makes prototyping low-friction. The honest limitation: once you cross into paid territory, the base fee jumps to $200/month before any overage, which is a steep step for teams with light or irregular usage.
Key features
pulls structured data from any public source
first-party connectors, no middleware required
official SDK
fits any iPaaS or workflow chain
Vanderbuild take
We see Listen Notes as a niche but genuinely useful data scraping utility for developers and founders who need structured podcast data without building their own crawler — it's one of the few APIs that covers podcast search, episode metadata, audio access, and keyword monitoring in a single endpoint surface. On the agentic readiness front, MCP status is unconfirmed, but the REST API is clean enough that you can wrap it into your own MCP layer or agent pipeline without much friction — it's a capable building block, not a finished agent. Pricing is approachable at the free tier, but the jump to a $200/month base fee the moment you make any paid request is a real consideration for teams with sporadic usage patterns. If your use case is continuous monitoring or high-volume episode scraping, the math works; if you're building something experimental or low-frequency, that flat base fee will feel disproportionate.
Agentic stack profile
APIRESTProgrammatic access available.
REST API — straightforward to call from any agent or workflow tool. Rate limits and auth vary by plan.
API docs →Agentic readinessCapableSolid API access — wraps cleanly for agent use.
Solid REST or SDK access. No MCP server yet, but easy to wrap in custom agent tooling. Most modern SaaS tools land here.
Stack roleData sourceWhere this tool slots into an agentic pipeline.
Plays the role of Data source in an agentic pipeline. Use it to source contacts, companies, and the raw inputs an agent needs to act.
Listen Notes alternatives
Tools that solve a similar problem — compared at a glance.
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- Freemium
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- Founder
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- GTM Engineer, Founder
- Readiness
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- API
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- Freemium
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- Best for
- GTM Engineer, Founder
- Readiness
- Native
- MCP
- Yes
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Frequently asked questions
Does Listen Notes have a public API?
Yes — Listen Notes ships a REST API. Docs: https://www.listennotes.com/api/docs/.
How much does Listen Notes cost?
Listen Notes: pricing is freemium, expect mid tier ($$) spend. Full pricing page: https://www.listennotes.com/api/pricing/.
Who is Listen Notes best for?
Listen Notes is built for Founder. Fits SMB (1-50), Mid-market (50-500)-sized teams.
How well does Listen Notes fit an agentic sales stack?
Tier: Capable. Solid public API, no MCP yet — straightforward to wrap in your own agent tooling.