This is a post about how to find podcast guests.
Quick answer
Finding podcast guests comes down to knowing what you want from the conversation and then going to get it rather than waiting for it to come to you. The best guests aren’t necessarily the most famous ones but the ones who have something useful to say to your audience. Once you have them booked, the questions you ask matter more than any production detail.
This guide covers where to find guests, how to reach out, what to ask on the day and whether you need to pay them.
READ MORE: How to Start a Podcast for Beginners: The Ultimate Guide for 2026
Why Your Podcast Guests Matter More Than You Think
There’s a version of podcasting where you chase the biggest names you can find, hope a few say yes and build your show around their schedules. It’s exhausting and it doesn’t necessarily work.
The podcasts that actually grow, the ones that convert listeners into loyal fans or clients into paying customers, are the ones where every guest adds value. Not because they have a huge following but because they have something specific to say to a specific audience.
I actually learned that from experience. I once had a guest with over 100k followers and one with around 1k. The smaller account ended up being one of our most streamed episodes, while the big name was fine. Her audience followed her for an entirely different reason than the topic we were talking about, so that’s that! (I still would’ve had her on knowing this piece of advice though…she was one of my best friends and we had gone through an experience together and that’s what we talked about. For MY audience, it worked really well! We just didn’t get the cross-pollination we hoped for)
So before you start searching for guests, get clear on this: what does your audience actually need to hear and who is genuinely qualified to say it?
READ MORE: Podcast Format: How to Choose the Right Structure for Your Show (With Examples)
Where to Find Podcast Guests (That Are Actually Worth Having On)
There is no shortage of places to look. The trick is knowing what you’re looking for before you start.
Your Own Network First
Start here. Who do you already know who would be interesting to your audience? Former colleagues, collaborators, people you’ve worked with or learned from. These conversations tend to be the most natural and easiest to book. Don’t overlook them in favour of chasing strangers.
Listeners and Community Members
Some of your best guests are already listening to you. If you have a community, a mailing list or even just engaged followers, ask. You might be surprised who’s in the audience and what they know.
Other Podcasts in Your Niche
Find shows with a similar audience to yours and look at who they’ve had on. If someone was a great guest on a related show, they’ll probably make a great guest on yours too. This also gives you a natural in as you can reference the other episode when you reach out.
Social Media
I’m talking Instagram, YouTube, Facebook…even LinkedIn! Search for people who post consistently and knowledgeably about topics relevant to your show. Consistent, opinionated content creators tend to make better guests than people who are just well-known. They’re used to articulating their ideas clearly and they already know how to hold an audience’s attention.
Pro tip: one thing that was very important to me was not just finding guests who knew what they were talking about. For me, it was imperative that they were good speakers but also had great personalities and good values, which is something you can gauge from social media, especially if they do talking head videos. I didn’t want a guest to come on my show and suddenly start saying something bigoted! My platform was not going to be used to spill hate. I also didn’t want false information on my pod.
Guest-Matching Platforms
PodMatch, Podmatch, Matchmaker.fm and similar platforms exist specifically to connect podcasters with potential guests. They vary in quality but they’re worth exploring if you’re actively trying to grow your guest roster. I think they can be a good start to find guests but you should definitely look into their discourse to make sure they’re the right fit.
Authors and Newsletter Writers
People who’ve recently published a book or launched a newsletter are often actively looking for opportunities to talk about their work. They’re usually well-prepared guests because they’ve been thinking about their topic deeply and they’re motivated to share it.
Podcast Guest Pitch Template
Most podcast guest pitches fail for the same reason: they make the ask about you, not about them.
A good pitch is short, specific and shows you’ve actually paid attention. It tells them who your audience is, why you think they’d be a great fit and what the conversation would be about. It doesn’t need to be a long email. In fact, shorter is usually better.
Something like:
“Hi [name], I host [show name], a podcast for [audience description]. I’ve been following your work on [specific thing] and I think a conversation about [specific topic] would be very useful for my listeners. Would you be open to joining me for an episode? It’s usually around [length], recorded on [platform + format – some people don’t like video] and I’ll send all the details in advance.”
That’s it. Specific, respectful of their time and clear about what you’re asking. No need to oversell yourself or write three paragraphs about your download numbers. If they want more information, they’ll ask.
READ MORE: 7 Podcast Mistakes to Avoid (That Nobody Really Talks About)
Questions to Ask on a Podcast: How to Actually Prepare
The questions you ask are what make or break an interview. Good questions make guests sound their best. Bad ones make them sound like they’re filling in a form.
The most common mistake is over-preparing a rigid list of questions and then sticking to it no matter what. Listeners can tell when an interview is being read off a script. The best podcast interviews feel like a conversation and that means being genuinely curious and willing to follow the thread wherever it goes. Listen to the answers and engage with them rather than just running through your question list like an interrogation.
Here’s how to prepare questions that actually work:
Do Your Research Properly
Read their book, listen to their other podcast appearances, look at what they post about. The best questions come from honest curiosity and you can’t be genuinely curious about someone you know nothing about. This also stops you asking questions they’ve answered a hundred times before, which no guest enjoys.
Prepare a Loose Framework, Not a Script
Think about what you want the conversation to cover in broad terms: their background, the main topic, something practical for your audience, something personal or unexpected. Then prepare 2 or 3 questions for each area. You won’t ask all of them, that’s fine. They’re there so you’re never stuck.
Ask Open Questions
Questions that can be answered with yes or no are conversation killers. “Did you always know you wanted to do this?” is a closed question. “How did you end up here?” is an open one. The second one gets you a story and stories are what listeners remember.
Questions to Ask Podcast Guests: A Starting Framework
These are just starting points, not a template to follow rigidly. Adapt them to the guest and the topic:
- Tell me how you got into this; what’s the actual story?
- What do most people misunderstand about [their area of expertise]?
- What’s the thing you wish someone had told you earlier?
- Has your opinion on [specific thing] changed over time? How?
- If you were starting from scratch today, what would you do differently?
- What’s the most common mistake you see people making in this space?
- What’s something you believe that most people in your industry would disagree with?
- What do you want listeners to actually do with everything we’ve talked about today?
Send the Questions in Advance (But Not All of Them)
Send your guest 3 or 4 broad topic areas or themes ahead of the recording so they know roughly what to expect and can prepare. Don’t send them every question. If they’ve pre-rehearsed every answer it tends to flatten the conversation. You want them prepared but not scripted.
READ MORE: The Ultimate Podcast Marketing Strategy: How to Grow Your Show in 2026
Do Podcast Guests Get Paid?
This is one of the most googled questions about podcasting and the honest answer is: it depends on the show, depends on the guest.
The majority of podcast guests, particularly on independent and small business podcasts, are not paid to appear. The value exchange is different: they get exposure to a new audience, a piece of content they can repurpose and usually a backlink from your show notes. It’s like giving an interview to a magazine or TV show; it’s press.
Where payment does come in:
- Large commercial shows with significant budgets sometimes pay high-profile guests or cover travel costs for in-person recordings.
- Some speakers and consultants charge an appearance fee, particularly if they’re in high demand and the show is clearly commercial in nature.
- Sponsored or branded podcast content may involve payment if the guest is essentially acting as a brand ambassador.
If you’re running a small or independent podcast, paying guests is not expected. What is expected is that you’re respectful of their time, well prepared, make the process easy and give them something worth showing up for. That means sending a clear briefing in advance, starting and ending on time and following up with the episode link and any assets they can share.
The shows that get the best guests aren’t necessarily the biggest ones but the ones that have a reputation for being well-run, having a clear audience and making their guests look good.
After the Recording: Making Sure Your Guest Actually Promotes It
Recording a great episode is only half the job. If you want your guest to actively share it (and you really do!) you need to make that as easy as possible for them.
Send them a short, ready-to-use package when the episode goes live. Include the episode link, 2 or 3 suggested social captions they can copy and paste, a shareable graphic or audiogram and their headshot or brand photo if you used it in the artwork (with their permission). The easier you make it, the more likely they are to share it.
Most guests want to share a good episode. They just don’t always have time to write their own captions or dig out the link. Remove those barriers and you’ve dramatically increased the chance of them posting it.
And, of course, tag them on your own posts!
READ MORE: Best Ways to Promote a Podcast: Why Pinterest is Your Secret Weapon for Growth
One Last Thing: Quality Over Quantity, Always
You don’t need a packed guest calendar to have a great podcast. Two or three really good guest conversations a season will do more for your show than ten mediocre ones published weekly out of obligation. Besides, you can’t show off YOUR expertise if you’re always the one asking the questions but not answering.
Be selective, be prepared and remember that the best podcast interviews are the ones where both people are interested in the conversation. Listeners always know the difference.
FAQ
Start with your own network, then look at listeners and engaged followers, other podcasts in your niche, LinkedIn, Instagram, Facebook groups and guest-matching platforms like PodMatch or Matchmaker.fm. Authors with recently published books are also often actively looking for podcast opportunities.
Prepare a loose framework rather than a rigid script. Good starting points include asking how they got into their field, what most people misunderstand about it, what they’d do differently if starting again and what they believe that their industry would push back on. Open questions that invite stories are always better than yes/no questions.
Most podcast guests on independent shows are not paid. The value exchange is audience exposure, a piece of repurposable content and usually a show notes backlink. Large commercial shows sometimes pay guests or cover travel costs. If you’re running a small or independent podcast, payment isn’t expected but being well-prepared, respectful of their time and making the process easy absolutely is.
Make it as easy as possible. When the episode goes live, send them the link, 2 or 3 ready-to-use social captions, a shareable graphic or audiogram and any artwork featuring them. Most guests want to share but don’t have time to create assets from scratch. Remove the friction and they’ll share.
Send 3 or 4 broad topic areas or themes rather than every question. You want them prepared and comfortable but not so scripted that the conversation loses its energy. A brief with the show overview, audience description, rough format and main themes is usually enough.
This was a post about how to find podcast guests.
