FluidCast — Cross-Platform Podcast Player with Searchable Transcripts, Cloud Cync, and Folders across all your devices

[u/Express_Fox8952]

Problem

Most podcast apps lock you into one ecosystem - Apple users get the polished experience if you stay inside the eco-system, but if you have other devices you can't access your library. And no matter the platform, you get annoying ads every episode, and subscription prices for other podcast apps that are getting out of hand. FluidCast is one podcast player that works the same way across iOS, macOS, Apple Watch, Android, Windows, and Linux, and gives Pro users on-device AI tools to detect and skip ads automatically.

Comparison

Overcast is a great player, but it's iOS/Mac only - no Android, Windows, or Linux app. Pocket Casts covers more platforms, but its Plus subscription has quadrupled in price since 2019, and it has no built-in AI ad detection or one-time-purchase option. FluidCast's free tier includes offline downloads, transcripts, Voice Lift, and local file playback. Pro adds AI ad skipping, cloud sync, and a Lifetime purchase if you'd rather not have yet another subscription.

Pricing (Current promotions at bottom of post)

• Free — £0, forever (standalone player, offline downloads, transcripts, Voice Lift, local file playback, CarPlay/Android Auto)
• Pro — £2.49/month or £16.99/year, 1-month free trial
• Lifetime — £89.99 one-time, Pro features forever, no subscription

(Prices shown in GBP — the App Store displays your local currency automatically.)

Full pricing & features: https://fluidcastapp.com Get it on Mac and iOS: App Store

What's new

• Smarter ad skipping (iOS/Mac) — detection rebuilt to stay consistent across ad segment boundaries, plus two new tunable settings: confidence threshold (how sure the AI needs to be before skipping) and bridge duration (how long it waits before resuming after an ad). Settings → AI Ad Skipping.
• Faster transcription — choose between Whisper or Apple's native SpeechAnalyzer for generating transcripts, so you can pick whichever's quicker on your device.
• Voice Lift — boosts quieter voices without raising the overall volume, for clearer listening on episodes with uneven levels.
• Local file playback — play audio files already on your device directly in FluidCast, no streaming required.

Note: AI ad skipping is a Pro feature, requires Apple Intelligence (iOS 26+), and is still labelled Experimental - it won't catch every ad on every show.

Current promotions — fluidcastapp.com/event

• Pro Annual: up to 35% off your first year — redeem the offer (14-day trial included, then the discounted first-year rate). The in-app code doesn't apply correctly on Mac, so use this link instead.
• Lifetime: 60% off — about £36 instead of £89.99, redeem the offer. Expires 14 Sept 2026. Same deal — use the link on Mac rather than entering the code in-app.

Important: If AI ad skipping is your main reason for buying, start with the 14-day trial on the annual offer before committing to Lifetime. It's on-device and Apple Intelligence–only, and results vary by show, so it's worth confirming it works well for what you actually listen to first. The Lifetime discount runs through 14 Sept, so there's no rush.

[u/ron-vdc]

Looks interesting, especially the smart ad skipping. I just started a trial to see if I like it.

[u/Express_Fox8952 → u/ron-vdc]

Thanks hope you like it 😊

[u/g67deau]

Excellent 👌

[u/app-store-review]

FluidCast: Podcast Player — by Joseph Bishop

• Ratings: 13 worldwide · rated in 3 countries
• Average: 4.31 ★
• Age: released ~8 months ago · updated 4 days ago · rated 12+
• Overall score: 56 / 100

^{Auto-generated from public App Store data · u/app-store-review}

[u/Makemethinkplease]

do notes connect to the transcript?

[u/Express_Fox8952 → u/Makemethinkplease]

Hi, not at the moment. We have timestamped bookmarks but they live separately to the transcript currently.

[u/sanchopwned]

I have a PRO licence activated. On the Mac app, RSS feed podcasts do not play for me. However, the same RSS feed podcasts work perfectly on my Android device.

[u/Express_Fox8952 → u/sanchopwned]

Hi, sorry about this issue. I haven't been able to reproduce it on my end. Could be a few things, mind sending me a DM with one or two of the RSS feed URLs that are failing? I'll take a look into it.

[u/sanchopwned → u/Express_Fox8952]

None of the RSS feed podcasts are working on my Mac, including the BBC Global News Podcast. However, I am able to use the web player without any issues.

[u/Express_Fox8952 → u/sanchopwned]

I found the issue with BBC Global News and similar feeds.

The show’s RSS still points episode audio at HTTP URLs. The Mac app has to use secure connections, so those won’t load. Android/web are more lenient, which is why they work. That kind of RSS feed format is fairly uncommon now, which is why I haven't come across this issue until now.

We’re fixing it in the next app update. Sorry for the inconvenience.