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Top 50 Documentary Podcasts
Jun 4, 2025
The Best Documentary Podcasts from millions of podcasts available on the Goodpods platform and ranked by listens, ratings, comments, subscriptions and shares.
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Episodes missing from the free feed are premium "+PLUS" episodes, and can be found at swordandscale.com.
Every scandal begins with a lie. But the truth will come out. And then comes the fallout and the outrage.
Scandals have shaped America since its founding. From business and politics to sports and society, we look on aghast as corruption, deceit and ambition bring down heroes and celebrities, politicians and moguls. And when the dust finally settles, we’re left to wonder: how did this happen? Where did they trip up, and who is to blame? From the creators of American History Tellers, Business Wars and Tides of History comes American Scandal, where we take you deep into the heart of America’s dark side to look at what drives someone to break the rules and what happens when they’re caught. Hosted by Lindsay Graham.
Need more American Scandal? With Wondery+, enjoy exclusive seasons, binge new seasons first, and listen completely ad-free. Start your free trial in the Wondery App, Apple Podcasts, Spotify or visit wondery.app.link/IM5aogASNNb now.
Subscribe to Throughline+. You'll be supporting the history-reframing, perspective-shifting, time-warping stories you can't get enough of - and you'll unlock access bonus episodes and sponsor-free listening. Learn more at plus.npr.org/throughline

609 Episodes
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Avg Length 51m
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Latest episode 1 day ago
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The Generation Why Podcast released its first episode in 2012 and pioneered the true crime genre in the podcasting world. Two friends, Aaron & Justin, break down theories and give their opinions on unsolved murders, controversies, mysteries and conspiracies.
Need more Generation Why? With Wondery+, enjoy exclusive episodes and always listen ad-free. Join Wondery+ in the Wondery App, Apple Podcasts, or Spotify. Start your free trial by visiting wondery.com/links/generation-why/ now.

305 Episodes
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Avg Length 44m
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Latest episode 2 days ago
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206 Episodes
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Avg Length 53m
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577 Episodes
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Avg Length 71m
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Somewhere in the Skies is a weekly podcast covering UFOs and the unexplained. New episodes every Monday. Learn more at: http://www.somewhereintheskies.com
Support this show http://supporter.acast.com/somewhere-in-the-skies.
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

319 Episodes
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Avg Length 27m
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Latest episode 2 days ago
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The Whispering Woods Paranormal Podcast
Do you like to get scared to death by real life ghost stories?
The Whispering Woods is a podcast devoted to the darker side of life. Join us every Sunday as we discuss and share true, scary stories of the paranormal from ancient folklore to modern hauntings.
Using immersive audio, The Whispering Woods transports listeners to another time, or even realm. Join us as we explore the unimaginable and terrifying, relaying tales of the supernatural from poltergeists to cryptids, The Hat Man to skinwalkers.
Visit our website www.thewhisperingwoodspodcast.com
Contact us at [email protected]
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Each season of Island Crime delves into an unsolved murder or missing person case on Vancouver Island. Host/Producer Laura Palmer updates the cases when she finds new evidence or fresh perspectives. Original journalism, leaving no stone unturned.
Season 7-'Evaporated' explores the disappearance of Victoria's Ian Indridson. Season 6: ‘Sweethearts’ examines the unsolved cases of three teenage girls who were murdered in Victoria, Canada between 1990 and 1991. Season 5: ‘Whiskey Creek’ is the untold story of a Halloween night massacre. Season 4: ‘Finding Amber’ follows the case of a Port Alberni woman who disappeared on July 8, 2022. Season 3: ‘Missing Michael’ is the story of Michael Dunahee, a little boy from Victoria, BC, who vanished from a playground in 1991 at the age of 4. Season 2: ‘Gone Boys’ follows the mystery of men who have gone missing in recent years on Vancouver Island. Season 1: ‘Where is Lisa?’ digs into the disappearance of 21-year-old Lisa Marie Young.
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

977 Episodes
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Avg Length 47m
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Latest episode 2 days ago
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253 Episodes
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Avg Length 49m
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Latest episode 5 days ago
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3 Episodes
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Avg Length 19m
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Latest episode 8 days ago
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Away Days Podcast is an episodic documentary series focused on unreported stories from the fringes of society. We’re compassionately documenting the underground without watering it down or editorially obscuring it. This is independent journalism with no filter. Real, raw, and ugly. Journalist Jake Hanrahan, the host and creator of Away Days has spent the last 10 years embedded in places he’s not meant to be. With unique access and a straightforward style of on-the-ground reporting, the listener will be taken deep into the places they didn’t know existed.
Watch Away Days documentaries at youtube.com/@awaydaystv

213 Episodes
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Avg Length 41m
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Latest episode 3 days ago
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147 Episodes
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Avg Length 47m
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Latest episode 2 days ago
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297 Episodes
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Avg Length 54m
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Latest episode 6 days ago
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793 Episodes
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Avg Length 41m
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323 Episodes
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Avg Length 34m
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Latest episode 6 days ago
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475 Episodes
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Avg Length 68m
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Hosts Mike Ferguson and Mike Gibson guide you through the most interesting true crime stories. This is a true crime podcast that spares none of the details and delves into what makes these killers tick. Join us for a good mix of lesser known cases as well as our take on what we call the "Big Timers". We don't take ourselves too seriously but we take true crime very seriously.

332 Episodes
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Avg Length 80m
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Latest episode 6 days ago
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19 Episodes
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Avg Length 24m
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Latest episode 4 days ago
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11 Episodes
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Avg Length 47m
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Latest episode 1 day ago
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Everywhere around us are echoes of the past. Those echoes define the boundaries of states and countries, how we pray and how we fight. They determine what money we spend and how we earn it at work, what language we speak and how we raise our children. From Wondery, host Patrick Wyman, PhD (“Fall Of Rome”) helps us understand our world and how it got to be the way it is.
Listen to Tides of History on the Wondery App or wherever you get your podcasts. You can listen to bonus episodes available exclusively and ad-free on Wondery+. Join Wondery+ in the Wondery App, Apple Podcasts or Spotify. Start your free trial by visiting wondery.com/links/tides-of-history/ now.

131 Episodes
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Avg Length 29m
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Latest episode 5 days ago
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11 Episodes
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Avg Length 44m
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Latest episode 5 days ago
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Solving JFK examines each issue in the JFK Assassination by looking at the arguments from both those who believe Oswald acted alone and those who believe there was a conspiracy to kill president Kennedy. Host Matt Crumpton analyzes each tree in the forest and then zooms out to look at the big picture. Objective truth is the paramount goal of the podcast, with every factual proposition cited. In season one, we look at whether the Warren Report got it right that Lee Harvey Oswald was the lone assassin, and if not, what the open questions are that still need to be resolved.

35 Episodes
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Avg Length 35m
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Latest episode 1 day ago
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Join paramedics as they dive into the highs and lows of real-life emergency medical services. From gripping stories on the front lines to candid discussions about the challenges and triumphs of life as a first responder, this podcast offers a raw and authentic glimpse into the world of EMS. Whether you're in the field or just curious about the life of a paramedic, these real-life experiences and insights will keep you informed and inspired.
Check out lifeandsirens.com for episode blog posts, upcoming events, and to submit your own story to be featured on the show.
Exes. We’ve all had one and we’ve all been one. And while breakups can be painful and heart-breaking, a complete surprise or a total relief, there’s always a story to be told.
This documentary-style series, narrated by Georgia Love, brings you a collection of unconventional stories about relationships past, through the eyes and the hearts of the very people who lived them.
Tales of public humiliation and prison to forbidden love and funerals; we bring you the good, the bad and all the juicy details in between.
Everyone Has An Ex explores the deep intricacies of relationships, the curve-balls life throws at you and overcoming adversity through resilience, honesty and a few glasses of wine.
Submit your story: [email protected]
One July night in 1995, Deputy Sheriff William G. Hardy was shot behind the Crown Sterling Suites hotel in Birmingham, Alabama. At the same time as the murder, at least ten people saw Toforest Johnson four miles away, at a popular nightclub called Tee's Place. But detectives zeroed in on him as a main suspect in Deputy Hardy’s murder anyway, ultimately resulting in Toforest being tried, convicted, and sentenced to death. For over a quarter century, Toforest has been confined to a 5’ by 8’ cell on Alabama’s death row.
In 2019, investigative journalist Beth Shelburne began covering the case, going down a disturbing rabbit hole revealing many unsettling facts that cast grave doubts about Toforest’s guilt. The facts she found tear at the very foundation of the American criminal justice system: No eyewitnesses or physical evidence tied Toforest to the murder; the state tried to convict a different man for the same crime; and perhaps most disturbing of all, Toforest’s conviction relied on an ‘earwitness’ – a woman who claimed to have eavesdropped on an incriminating phone call, a woman whom prosecutors paid for her testimony, in secret. That payment was not disclosed to the jury, Toforest, or his lawyers until after he had been on death row for 17 years.
From the team behind the award-winning hit podcast Bone Valley, Lava for Good’s Earwitness is an 8-episode docuseries that asks the question, “How did an innocent man end up on death row — and why is the state still trying to execute him over the objection of the prosecutor who put him there?” Shelburne’s unprecedented access to key players—the lead detective, lead prosecutor, witnesses, jurors, and the earwitness herself— illuminate a story filled with disturbing twists, frustrating ambiguities, and shocking admissions. The story of Toforest Johnson and the state's enthusiasm for the death penalty in the face of such troubling evidentiary flaws brings to light the failings of a criminal justice system run amok.
Earwitness is available every Tuesday wherever you get your podcasts. To hear episodes 1 week early and ad free, subscribe to Lava for Good+ on Apple Podcasts.

9 Episodes
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Avg Length 27m
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Latest episode 10 days ago
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236 Episodes
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Avg Length 71m
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Latest episode 5 days ago
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104 Episodes
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Avg Length 42m
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Latest episode 17 hours ago
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We discuss all things paranormal and spooky! Join your hosts, Heaven and Jonathan, as we dive into the paranormal and discuss our own ghostly experiences, haunted locations, and all the spooky lore you could ever want. Please follow or subscribe to be sure you get the newest episodes.
Maybe it’s just a quiet annoyance you’ve grudgingly learned to put up with, or a life defining issue that makes it hard to move forward. Whatever it is, Alex Goldman — reporter, radio producer, and overconfident idiot — will get to the bottom of it (if there’s a bottom to be found. Results may vary). Follow Alex as he figures out not only the vast hidden mechanisms that create these problems, but works with you, the listener, to find a solution. Or at least enough of an explanation that you’re ok with the annoyance. He’s not perfect. Hyperfixed is a proud member of Radiotopia from PRX, a network of independent and listener-supported podcasts. Discover audio with vision at radiotopia.fm.
Submit your problems and sign up for bonus episodes and much more at hyperfixedpod.com
Documentary Podcasts
Documentary podcasts have become increasingly popular in recent years, offering listeners a deep dive into a wide range of topics and issues. These podcasts explore real-life stories, events, and people, using audio to transport listeners to different places and times and allowing them to experience the world in a new and fascinating way. Documentary podcasts can cover a broad range of topics, from history and politics to culture, science, and beyond. They often feature interviews with experts, witnesses, and those directly involved in the events being discussed, offering listeners an intimate and often emotional perspective on the subject matter.
Related Society & Culture Podcast Leaderboards
Top Documentary Podcasts
Our listeners have taken the liberty of rating the top documentary podcasts for you. Documentary podcasts offer a valuable resource for those who are looking to learn something new, broaden their horizons, or simply be entertained. With their engaging storytelling and immersive soundscapes, they provide a unique and powerful listening experience that can leave a lasting impact on listeners.
What's the best documentary podcast now in 2025?
Goodpods aggregates the best documentary podcasts people are choosing to right now. From documentary-favorites to new releases, these shows are guaranteed to be entertaining and informative. Check out the top-rated documentary podcasts in 2025 according to the Goodpods list. Explore our popular categories like Society & Culture Podcasts, Sustainability Podcasts, and Pop Culture Podcasts.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is a documentary podcast?
A documentary podcast is a podcast that tells a non-fiction story, often through interviews, archival footage, and narration. The topics of documentary podcasts can range from true crime, politics, history, science, and more.
What are some popular documentary podcasts?
Some popular documentary podcasts include "Serial," "Radiolab," "This American Life," "S-Town," and "The Daily."
Can documentary podcasts be educational?
Yes! Documentary podcasts can provide an educational and informative experience by exploring topics in-depth and providing insights from experts or those involved in the story.
What makes a good documentary podcast?
A good documentary podcast has a compelling story, interesting and well-researched subject matter, a clear and engaging narration, and a unique perspective or angle on the topic. It should also have high-quality production values and use a variety of audio elements to enhance the listening experience.
How can I find documentary podcasts to listen to?
You can find documentary podcasts on Goodpods by searching with relevant keywords such as "documentary," "true crime," "history," or "investigative journalism." Many documentary podcasts are also featured in "best of" lists, curated playlists, or on social media by fans and podcast networks.