Import YouTube videos as a podcast

Use YouTube import when your recordings are already on a channel you manage. Choose Audio podcast to bring the sound from those videos into Listenbox. This brings content from YouTube into your podcast; publishing episodes back to YouTube is a separate workflow.

Before you begin

YouTube import is experimental. You need an Audio or Video plan and access to the Google account that manages the channel. An Audio plan imports the audio; keeping video requires a Video plan.

Use recordings you have the rights to publish as a podcast. Keep your original recordings available while you check the import. If YouTube import cannot complete, you can upload an audio file or upload the original video instead.

Connect your YouTube account

1. Open the dashboard and select your team.
2. Open Podcasts, then Import podcast → YouTube channel.
3. Select Connect YouTube. If your team is on the free plan, the page will ask you to choose a paid plan first.
4. In Google, choose the account and channel that manage the videos and review the requested access. You will return to Listenbox afterward.

Import requests read-only access to check the channel and its playlists. It does not grant permission to upload videos to YouTube. Connecting a YouTube publishing destination separately requires additional access.

Choose the source and format

On Choose videos to import:

1. Under Source, choose the channel or one of its playlists. Choose a playlist if you want only a particular series in this podcast.
2. Enter the Podcast language, such as en or en-US.
3. Under Podcast format, select Audio podcast for a listening feed or Video podcast if your plan includes video.
4. Select Import selected videos to start.

The source selection applies to the channel or playlist, so check it before starting. Connecting Google alone does not start the import.

Follow the import

The import page shows progress and how many videos are ready. You can reopen an active import from Podcasts to follow it. Wait for the completed result before treating the catalog as ready.

If you need to stop it, use Cancel import on the import page and wait for the resulting status. If it fails, read the displayed error and send the page URL and message to hello@listenbox.app. Repeatedly starting new copies is not a useful way to check a stalled import.

Check the podcast and audio feed

Open the imported podcast. Check its episode list, titles, descriptions, and playback. For an audio import, play an episode and seek within it to confirm that the sound is complete.

Open Feeds, select the audio feed, and copy the RSS URL. Check the feed items and try that URL in a podcast app before sharing it. Follow Set up and share your podcast feed for the next steps.

If you used an older Listenbox feed, confirm its handoff with us before replacing it. A successful import does not by itself verify where your existing listeners are subscribed.