Receiving

Most podcaster's websites allow the podcast episodes to be directly downloaded from the website to the computer or the multimedia player. Additionally, live podcasts may be broadcast through streaming media, where the sound is heard or video displayed as it is received. It can be downloaded automatically using feed reader software capable of reading RSS or Atom feeds.

A podcatching client is used for making full use of podcasts' syndication features. Apple's iTunes player is the most widely used podcatching client, but Microsoft's Zune Marketplace and the multiplatform Juice are some of the alternatives. Winamp, Mediamonkey and other audio players may offer limited podcatching client functions. For direct download, a link to the audio file is provided.