Should You Include Episode Numbers in Podcast Episode Titles? We Say Yes and Here’s Why

This blog post was originally published on 23/05/2023. It was updated on 24/01/2026.

There are a lot of debates in the world of podcasting. But one of the biggest ones has to be whether or not you should include episode numbers in podcast episode titles.

Some podcasters argue that including episode numbers in podcast episode titles helps listeners to keep track of what they’ve listened to and what they haven’t.

On the other hand, other podcasters others argue that including episode numbers in podcast episode titles clutters up the title and can be confusing for new listeners.

In fact, one quick Google of the question ‘Should I include episode numbers in podcast title?’ gives a lot of opinions that come down very hard of one side or the other of this debate.

In this blog post, we’ll explore the pros and cons of including episode numbers in your podcast titles and help you make an informed decision that aligns with your goals and target audience. Long-term listeners of Podcasting for Indie Podcasters will know already where I fall on this side of the debate, but I promise that I’ll give you a balanced exploration nonetheless.

The Pros of Including Episode Numbers in Your Podcast Episode Titles

For me, the pros of including episode numbers in podcast episode titles far outweigh the cons, and so, this is where we will start.

This list might be short, but it’s pretty weighty, so let’s get into it.

1. Episode Numbers in Podcast Episode Titles Help Listeners Find Your Episodes

This is the main benefit of including episode numbers in your episode titles and I swear that I will die on this hill.

Because having episode numbers in your episode titles means that your content is incredibly searchable, especially if you refer to previous episodes within the episode your audience is listening to.

You’ll notice that throughout Podcasting for Indie Podcasters, I will regularly say things like:

• ‘We covered this in episode XYZ’
• ‘If you want to dive deeper into that topic, check out episode XYZ’

And although these episodes are linked down in the show notes so that listeners can simply scroll down and click a link, it’s remembering that this doesn’t work for everyone.

I’ll be honest that as a podcast listener, I’m not sure if I’ve ever (or if I have done, it’s been incredibly rare) that I’ve scrolled show notes to find a link buried down there.

This goes back to how I, along with a lot of other people, listen to podcasts. Most people are doing something else whilst listening, and so scrolling through the show notes isn’t an easy task for them.

However, remembering to listen to episode 23, or an episode somewhere in the 20’s, might be easier for someone to remember to mark as a ‘listen next’ on your podcast when they can.

And no, I’m not suggesting you stop linking episodes in your show notes. I’m just saying that you need to consider that ‘listen to episode 23 next, it’s linked down in the show notes,’ is a bit more useful to your listener than ‘we covered this topic in an earlier episode, it’s linked down in the show notes.’

In short, when your podcast episode titles include episode numbers, it’s easy for listeners to identify which episode they’re currently listening to and which ones they want to listen to next.

It’s particularly helpful for listeners who are catching up on an older podcast or bingeing on a new one. And it’s far easier to direct listeners to an episode number than a title (or, in my opinion, the show notes). And to be honest, we can’t disagree with him there. Especially if you’ve got an extensive back catalogue of episodes with similar titles for multiple episodes.

We’re time-poor in 2026 and want everything as quickly as possible, so if you can scroll to an easily identifiable numbered episode, this is a lot easier than searching for a title which could be similar to another episode title.

2. Episode Numbers Add a Sense of Continuity

Ok, that was a big explanation for the first pro of including episode numbers in podcast episodes. The second isn’t quite as big, but is still pretty important.

And that is that including episode numbers in your podcast titles can adds a sense of continuity to your show.

Some podcast directories might already include episode numbers for you, but many don’t.

And having a list of numbers can help to not only direct listeners through your show, but also to add a sense of continuity, a little like having episode numbers in a TV series. It helps you, as a consumer of the content, see where you’re up to within a series.

Including episode numbers in podcast episode titles can help listeners understand the order in which episodes were released and can provide context for ongoing discussions or storylines.

Related Post >> 5 Ways to Make Your Podcast Episode Titles SEO-Friendly

The Cons of Including Episode Numbers in Your Podcast Episode Titles

While including episode numbers in podcast episode titles has its benefits, there are also cons to consider.

Here are some of the downsides of including episode numbers:

1. It Can Make Titles Too Long

Including episode numbers in podcast titles can make them unnecessarily long, which can be a turnoff for some listeners.

Long titles can be difficult to read and may not display properly on smaller screens. Additionally, long titles can make it challenging to fit in additional information, such as guest names or topics covered in the episode.

This is because there is limited space on a phone screen (where most people will listen to a podcast) and therefore, anything that doesn’t fit in the allocated space on that screen will be chopped off and your listener will need to do some extra work to go into that episode and read the rest of the title.

And let’s face it, a lot of people just aren’t going to do that.

2. It’s Not Great for SEO

In SEO, ‘Ep XYZ’ is not what your listener is going to be searching for, and therefore, having this episode number at the beginning of your title, you’re losing prime real estate where you could be including a solid SEO keyword that your listener is searching for.

In my opinion, listener usability and a good listener experience are super important and therefore (only very slightly) trump the negative side effect that having episode numbers in your podcast titles will have on your show’s SEO.

Focus on other SEO practices to support your show being found and cut your losses with this one by leaning towards providing listeners with a good experience.

3. Apple Podcasts Advises Against It

Apple Podcasts actually advises against including episode numbers in podcast episode titles, instead recommending podcasters to lean towards the series and episode number tag information.

However, as a podcast listener, my experience is that Apple Podcasts doesn’t display podcast numbers as standard for all shows, making it difficult to navigate between episodes if you’re looking for a particular one. I’ve also found the same on Spotify.

Related Post >> Finding the Sweet Spot: How Often to Release Your Podcast Episodes

Best Practices for Using Episode Numbers in Podcast Episode Titles

If you do decide to go down the route of numbering your podcast titles, here are some best practices to consider:

1. Don’t go with the approach of writing ‘Episode 457: INSERT TITLE HERE.’
   • You’re clogging up valuable space on a sometimes small screen (remember, a lot of people listen to podcasts on their phones!) and potentially losing the actual title to your listener. Stick to ‘Ep XYZ’ or just the number.
2. Don’t exchange the word ‘episode’ for an acronym of your podcast name.
   • It’s just confusing and doesn’t mean much to anyone.
3. Do use the episode number followed by the episode title.
   • This keeps your episode titles searchable and scannable for your listeners to find your episodes.

Here are some examples using the above advice in practice:

✅ 635: The best podcast episode in the world

❌ Episode 635: The best podcast episode in the world

❌ PFIP 635: The best podcast episode in the world

(If you didn’t guess, PFIP is Podcasting for Indie Podcasters. But it looks messy and is unnecessary.)

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4 Tips on Creating Effective Podcast Titles

Whether or not you decide to include episode numbers in your podcast titles, it’s essential to create titles that are engaging, memorable, and relevant to your target audience. Here are my top tips on creating effective podcast titles:

1. Keep it Short and Sweet

As mentioned earlier, long titles can be a turnoff for listeners and risk being lost on smaller screens.

Keep your titles short, sweet, and easy to skim read when your listener is choosing an episode to listen to.

2. Reflect the Content of the Episode

Your podcast title should accurately reflect the content of the episode.

Avoid misleading titles that don’t accurately represent what listeners can expect to hear in the episode.

On this note, it’s ok to include the name of a guest in your title (if you had a guest!), but don’t just call the episode title the guest’s name. Why? Because this doesn’t tell the listener what the episode is about at all.

For example, if I interviewed Jon Bon Jovi for my podcast (I can wish, eh?), titling the episode ‘Jon Bon Jovi’ doesn’t mean much.

Did we talk about his career in rock music?

His political opinions?

His charity work?

What would make more sense is having a title that tells the audience what they will be listening to and with whom. For example: ‘Ep 42: Looking Back on a Career in Music – with Jon Bon Jovi.’ It tells you what to expect in the episode, plus who will be interviewed.

The title also includes an episode number for you to refer to the episode and it be easily found when mentioning it on social media, your newsletter, or in future episodes.

3. Use Keywords

Using relevant keywords in your podcast titles can help improve search engine optimisation and makes it easier for listeners to find your episodes.

And the keyword here (no pun intended) is ‘relevant.’

Don’t keyword stuff to try to rank higher, as this can make your work confusing to listeners. Using keywords needs to be natural; otherwise, you could end up having the opposite effect with your content not ranking because it doesn’t make any sense.

Related Blog Post >> 10 Podcast Episode Ideas For When You Don’t Know What to Podcast About

Final Thoughts on Including Episode Numbers in Podcast Episode Titles

Including episode numbers in podcast titles has both pros and cons.

While including episode numbers in podcast episode titles can help listeners keep track of episodes and find episodes you’ve referred them to, it can also make titles long and not the best for SEO.

As I said right at the start of this article, if you’ve listened to Podcasting for Indie Podcasters, you’ve likely noticed that I’m a huge fan of including episode numbers.

This is because within my show, I present a lot of information that links between episodes and I find it a really good way of directing listeners to different episodes. As well as having a linked episode in the show notes, I’ll also tell listeners within the episode which other episode they should listen to next if they want more information on a topic, and I’ll guide them with an episode number.

I haven’t always done this. And with my previous podcast, I couldn’t see the point, until I started looking at the accessibility of my content from the listeners’ point of view and not my own as the podcast host.

It’s fair to say that no two podcasts are the same, and therefore, including episode numbers in podcast titles may not be necessary for all podcasts and podcasters. Ultimately, it’s for you as the podcaster to decide whether or not to include episode numbers in your podcast episode titles.