The 22 Best Comedy Podcasts to Listen to Right Now

Let’s get his one out of the way: Probably the first comedy podcast that comedy podcast fans think about when they’re thinking about being comedy podcast fans, Comedy Bang! Bang! is hosted by Mr. Show with Bob and David and Between Two Ferns veteran Scott Aukerman, so it’s got some chops.

Comedy Bang! Bang!’s genesis is in an eponymous TV Show and the Comedy Death Ray stage show performed at the Upright Citizen’s Brigade, the show features improv games, interviews, and more, sometimes to the confusion or even chagrin of its guests. The format might seem deceptively simple, but after more than a decade of successes, it’s the very definition of “tried and true.”

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Though technically billed as a horror podcast, LPotL is packed with more jokes than any of its competitors—and possibly more than a few comedy casts as well. Thoroughly well-researched, hilarious, and definitely gruesome, it’s not for everybody, but if you can stomach it you’ll be delighted to discover that Henry Zebrowski is one of the finest improvisational joke crafters in the game, and might be the product of a team of scientists trying to grow the perfect podcast comedian in a lab (though they also got drunk) .Be warned: if the hosts mention that they’re starting a “gold star” episode, then things are about to get particularly gruesome.

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The premise is simple: Conan is lonely, and needs friends, but all he does is work. The solution? He makes friends with popular and notable celebrities, including the likes of Will Ferrell, Jason Segel, and countless others. If you’re already on Team Coco, you can imagine how this goes: Conan’s signature self-effacing style and rapid-fire voice work makes for engaging listening, and his willingness to get vulnarable at surprising moments makes this a worthwhile listen. Though it was created in 2018 while Conan’s show was being retooled into a 30-minute format, it’s continued to today, with episodes dropping nearly every week.

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Stand up veteran Marc Maron’s rambling, personal, borderline aggressive style can be equal parts off-putting and enticing, but if you count yourself among those who find him an addictive listen, you’ll find one of the most vulnerable, funny, and at times even beautiful podcasts out there. The most famous episodes involve Robin Williams discussing his thoughts about suicide, Mandy Moore revealing the abusive nature of her realtionship, Dane Cook discussing allegations of joke theft, and an obscure politician named “Barack Obama” who was apparently president for a little bit, but almost every episode features something special.

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Though it recently ended (The last episode was released on December 12, 2022), My Dad Wrote a Porno is definitely worth a listen from the beginning because of its absolutely incredible premise: Jamie Morton, the host’s father, wrote a porno, and Jamie read it. Jamie’s father is not a fiction writer, he’s a retired Irish builder who remains mostly anonymous and wrote the story under the pseudonym “Rocky Flintstone.” If you start at the beginning, you’ll hear Jamie read through, and discuss, each chapter of an erotic epic entitled Belinda Blinked that — it’s important to reiterate — was written by his father.

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Hosts Paul Scheer, June Diane Raphael and Jason Mantzoukas, as well as a guest, watch a notoriously terrible movie and wonder to themselves how it came to be—which I guess was communicated in the title, but what else is there to say? Whether it’s the 1995 Mortal Kombat (in which the guest amusingly asks “wait, is this based on a video game?”) or modern gems like Malignant, the four hosts will take us through the plot and highlight the “best” parts of the film they watched together, often sharing anecdotes from the viewing experience. And at the end, they always read positive reviews from the internet in a segment called “Second Opinions”—which often eclipses the rest of the episode as the unequivocal best part.

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Basically a vehicle for Pete Holmes to be as Pete Holmes as he can possibly be, potentially reaching hitherto uncharted realms of Pete Holmesiness, You Made it Weird has evolved over the years from a question-answer interview format to a more free-wheeling casual conversation with Holmes’ guest (usually a comedian or celebrity) about topics like comedy, religion, sexuality, or politics.

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More of a podcast for comedy nerds than an actual comedy podcast, each episode of Good One features host Jesse David Fox sitting down with a famous comedian, listening to one of their favorite jokes, and then explaining its genesis, revisions, and what it means. There’s an old saying that dissecting a joke is like dissecting a frog: In both cases, the thing being dissected dies—but this show sorta proves it wrong. If you’re an accomplished humorist or even just someone who’s fantasized about trying out your material at an open mic, this is definitely a show to check out.

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Uh oh, we’re getting classy: Wait Wait… Don’t Tell Me! is a National Public Radio show that predates the Podcast format, originally created as a radio show, and features host Peter Sagal and a collection of panelists like Paula Poundstone, Josh Gondelman, and Greg Proops poking fun at the news in a far more acerbic way than you would expect from a channel as classy as NPR. Check out the latest episodes to hear their takes on current events, or check out the archives (the show’s been running since 1998) to hear gags about the biggest events of the last quarter century.

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The sometimes surprisingly contentious Always Sunny Podcast features the cast of the hit show It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia reliving old episodes and discussing how it was made, the genesis of jokes, and what they think the show means. The most fascinating moments involve the creators discussing disagreements about particular jokes and whether they should’ve been in the episode at all, with the stubborn creative minds frequently digging in their heels about tiny details most fans probably didn’t even notice, or never thought to question.

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Similar to the Always Sunny Podcast, Fly on the Wall is about SNL veterans Dana Carvey and David Spade reliving their experiences on what some consider to be the Golden Age of Saturday Night Live, often discussing how their experience shaped their careers and personal lives. A real highlight is the Chris Farley memorial episode, posted before Christmas of 2022, in which the regular hosts are joined by Adam Sandler to discuss their favorite memories of their deceased friend.

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In Armchair Expert, host Dax Shepard interviews people about their challenges, setbacks, growth, and failures, largely informed by Shepard’s decade of sobriety, degree in anthropology and (according to him) his four years of improv training. That last part might be a joke, it’s impossible to tell unless you also have improv training. Frequently hilarious and always emotionally honest, Armchair Expert drops new episodes on Mondays and Thursdays.

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The Comedian’s Comedian is similar to a lot of podcasts in that it features host Stuart Goldsmith interviewing a comic about what they do, how they do it, and why, but it stands out for two reasons: one, Goldsmith is a charming and insightful host, and two, since it’s been running since 2012, you’re all but guaranteed to find an episode featuring your favorite stand-up (and if you don’t have a favorite stand-up, what…. Why are you here? Are you lost?).

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Smartless may be the only podcast on this list built around the hosts pranking each other, with Jason Bateman (Arrested Development, Ozark), Will Arnett (Arrested Development, Murderville), or Sean Hayes (Will & Grace, Win a Date With Tad Hamilton!) surprising the other two with a mystery guest. The forced improv and inimitable spontaneity drives the personality of this podcast, which has featured everyone from filmmaker James Cameron to popstar Katy Perry.

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The Onion Public Radio, a subsidiary of America’s Finest News Source, presents A Very Fatal Murder, a story of true crime in smalltown America. Of course, since “America’s Finest News Source” is the world-renowned parody publication The Onion (and because the name A Very Fatal Murder is tautologically stupid) you’ve probably already guessed that this is a parody. Since it parodies tropes like “the hot dead girl” that plague most true crime podcasts, this is satisfying for people who both love and despise the genre it lampoons, and fans frustrated that Netflix never gave us a third season of American Vandal will have that particular itch nicely scratched.

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So, technically there is no such thing as a fish, in that (for example) a salmon is more closely related to a camel than to a hagfish (according to American paleontologist Stephen Jay Gould)—meaning there is no category of animal that could be conclusively called a “fish” that wouldn’t either exclude certain animals that we all believe to be fish (like hagfish, which have fish in the name), or include animals that definitely aren’t fish (like camels, which live in the desert). This fact led to the creation of No Such Thing as a Fish, a spinoff of the BBC Two show QI, that focuses on specific facts that the hosts feel are most worth sharing with their audience.

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Remember in our section on How Did This Get Made? when we discussed the “Second Opinions” feature? This is an entire podcast based on the opposite: dramatic readings of furious one-star reviews of things that shouldn’t inspire any level of fury or, frankly, reviews. Episodes feature titles like “Reviews of Mall Santas” and “Reviews of Hallmark Christmas Movies” and absolutely not a single one, ever, was written by someone that you would be comfortable sharing an elevator with.

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Hey, what made you queer? It’s an idiotic question, but hosts Caitlin Powell and Kate Butch (self described as a “flame-haired bisexual menace” and “drag trash”) have dedicated their lives—or at least this podcast—to finding the answer. In each episode, they choose a portion of their childhood, like the shows Glee or Hannah Montana, and try and figure out if this is the thing that made them queer. So far, the answer is “no” across the board, but hey, maybe the next episode is where they get to the bottom of the mystery! Only one way to find out.

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In Off Menu, hosts Ed Gamble and James Acaster invite guests to describe their ideal meal to the genies/servers of an imaginary “dream restaurant,” and then it’s described to them. The catch? If the guest mentions a secret, pre-determined ingredient, they are forcibly ejected from the establishment and disallowed from eating any imaginary food at all. Yes, it’s extremely goofy, but discussing imaginary food offers a unique window into that guest’s life, and creates opportunities to revisit old memories and explore what really makes them tick.

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If you’re lucky, you get to star in a hit sitcom, and if you’re really lucky, you get a best friend out of it at the same time. Zach Braff and Donald Faison (Scrubs) are really lucky, and in the podcast Fake Doctors, Real Friends, they relive the hit 2000s show Scrubs one episode at a time, offering memories, behind-the-scenes trivia, and heartwarming in-jokes.

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