Earmark

There are three ways to add podcasts to Earmark:

• Search: Tap the Discover tab and type a podcast name, topic, or author. Tap a result to preview the show — artwork, description, and a sample of episodes — before subscribing.
• Add by URL: Go to Settings > Add Podcast by URL and paste any RSS feed link.
• OPML Import: Open an .opml file from the Files app or another podcast app. Earmark will offer to import every feed in the file.

Once subscribed, podcasts appear in your Library tab. New episodes are checked automatically in the background, and you can pull down on any podcast to manually refresh.

The Library tab is your home base for all subscribed podcasts and episodes.

• View modes: Switch between Grid, List, and Episodes views using the toolbar toggle.
• Sort: Sort podcasts by Unplayed Count, Recently Updated, or Alphabetical from the sort menu.
• Search: Use the search bar at the top to find podcasts and episodes across your entire library by title.
• Pin podcasts: Pin your favorites to the top of the library for quick access.
• Unplayed badges: Each podcast shows a count of unplayed episodes.

Episode indicators help you see status at a glance:

• Blue dot: Completely unplayed episode.
• Orange time remaining: Episode is in progress (e.g., "32m left").
• Checkmark: Played episode.
• Star: Starred/favorited episode.
• SmartFinish badge: Episode was auto-archived by SmartFinish.

Long-press any episode or tap "Show Details" from the context menu to open the episode detail sheet:

• Show notes: Full episode description with rich text.
• Metadata: Publication date, duration, file size, season/episode number, and episode type (Full, Bonus, Trailer).
• Action buttons: Play, Download, Star, Add to Queue, and Share — all in one place.

Swipe actions provide quick shortcuts directly from episode rows:

• Swipe right: Mark as Played / Unplayed, Archive.
• Swipe left: Download or Remove Download, Star, Play Next.

Bulk actions: In a podcast's detail page, use the toolbar menu to Mark All Played, Mark All Unplayed, Delete All Downloads, or Archive All episodes at once.

Tap the play button on any episode to start playback. A mini player appears at the bottom of every tab — tap it to open the full Now Playing screen.

Now Playing controls:

• Artwork: Shows episode or chapter artwork. Double-tap the artwork to skip forward.
• Scrubber: Drag to seek. Tap the remaining time to toggle between time remaining and total duration.
• Fine scrubbing: While dragging the scrubber, slide your finger downward to activate 1/10x precision mode — perfect for finding an exact moment in a long episode. A label appears to confirm the mode.
• Skip buttons: Configurable intervals (default 30s forward / 15s back). Change these in Settings.
• Star: Tap the star icon to favorite the current episode.
• Chapter navigation: If the episode has chapters, tap the chapters icon to browse and jump. Chapter tick marks appear on the scrubber bar.

Additional player features:

• Transcript: If available, tap the transcript icon to follow along with a synchronized text view.
• Clip share: Tap the scissors icon to select and export a clip from a downloaded episode.
• Share: Share the episode link with friends via the share button.
• Volume & AirPlay: A volume slider and AirPlay route picker sit below the transport controls — no need to leave the app.

Earmark processes audio through a real-time DSP pipeline when playing downloaded episodes. DSP controls appear as pill-shaped buttons below the transport controls.

• Speed: Tap the speed pill to cycle through presets (0.75x, 1.0x, 1.25x, 1.5x, 1.75x, 2.0x, 2.5x, 3.0x). Long-press to open a detailed speed picker with a precision slider (0.5x–3.0x in 0.05 increments).
• Trim Silence: Automatically detects and skips silence in the audio. A "time saved" label appears showing how much time trimming has saved in the current session.
• Voice Boost: Enhances vocal clarity and presence — great for interview and talk-heavy shows.
• Equalizer: Choose from presets (Flat, Podcast, Music, Bass Boost, Treble Boost). The pill highlights in orange when a non-flat preset is active. EQ presets beyond Flat require Earmark Plus.

Note: DSP features (Trim, Voice Boost, EQ) require the episode to be downloaded. Streaming episodes use a simpler audio pipeline with speed control only.

With Earmark Plus, you can set per-podcast audio overrides from a podcast's settings page — for example, always play a certain show at 1.5x with Voice Boost on, even if your global speed is 1.0x.

SmartFinish detects when you're near the end of an episode and automatically marks it as played and archived. No more 98%-complete episodes cluttering your queue. Requires Earmark Plus.

• Threshold: Set the remaining time (e.g., 2 minutes) at which an episode is auto-finished. The SmartFinish zone appears as an orange-tinted region at the end of the scrubber.
• Countdown: When you enter the SmartFinish zone, a countdown appears in the player showing the remaining time before it triggers.
• Undo: A 30-second toast notification appears after SmartFinish triggers — tap it to undo and continue listening.
• Auto-advance: Optionally skip to the next episode in your queue when SmartFinish triggers.
• Per-podcast: Override the global threshold for specific shows (some podcasts have longer outros than others).
• Exclude starred: Optionally skip SmartFinish for starred episodes you want to finish completely.

Archive: SmartFinished episodes move to the Archive, accessible from the Playlists tab. Archived episodes show a retention countdown and are automatically cleaned up after the configured retention period (default: 7 days). You can unarchive or delete episodes from the Archive at any time.

SmartStart automatically skips the intro when you begin a new episode, saving you from hearing the same podcast jingle every time. Requires Earmark Plus.

• How it works: When you start an unplayed episode, Earmark jumps ahead by the configured number of seconds.
• Duration options: Off, 30 seconds, 1 minute, 2 minutes, 3 minutes, 4 minutes, or 5 minutes.
• Only new episodes: SmartStart only applies to episodes you haven't started yet — it won't skip ahead when you resume a partially-played episode.
• Global setting: Set a default skip duration in Settings > Playback > SmartStart.
• Per-podcast: Override the global setting for individual podcasts from their settings page.

Download episodes for offline listening and to enable the full DSP audio pipeline.

• Download: Tap the download arrow on any episode, or use the episode's context menu.
• Auto-download: Enable per-podcast in the podcast's settings to automatically download new episodes. Configure a limit (e.g., keep the 5 most recent).
• Downloads queue: View active and queued downloads from the Playlists tab > Downloads.
• Cellular policy: Control whether downloads are allowed on cellular data in Settings > Downloads.
• Auto-delete: Optionally auto-delete episodes after they've been played.

Storage management: Go to Settings > Storage to see a detailed breakdown of storage used by each podcast. You can:

• See total storage and per-podcast usage sorted by size.
• Expand any podcast to see individual episode sizes.
• Delete individual episode downloads or swipe to delete all downloads for a podcast.

An offline indicator banner appears at the top of the app when your device loses internet connectivity, so you know to play downloaded episodes.

The Up Next queue controls what plays after the current episode finishes.

• Add to queue: Long-press any episode and choose "Play Next" (adds to top) or "Play Last" (adds to bottom). You can also swipe left on an episode row for a quick "Play Next" action.
• Reorder: In the Up Next view, tap Edit or drag the handles to rearrange episodes.
• Remove: Swipe to delete individual episodes, or use the menu to Clear Up Next entirely.
• Queue summary: The top of the queue shows the total number of episodes and combined duration (e.g., "3 episodes · 2:15:00").
• Tap to play: Tap any episode in the queue to start it immediately (it's removed from the queue and begins playing).

When continuous playback is enabled (Settings > Playback), Earmark automatically plays the next episode in your queue when the current one finishes.

The Playlists tab organizes your episodes into collections. Earmark includes built-in default playlists and lets you create your own.

Default playlists:

• New Episodes: Unplayed downloaded episodes, newest first.
• In Progress: Episodes you've started but haven't finished.
• Downloaded: All downloaded episodes.
• Starred: Your favorited episodes.
• Archive: Episodes finished by SmartFinish.

Custom playlists: Tap the + button to create a new playlist. Choose between:

• Smart Playlists (Plus): Define filter rules — by podcast, played status, download status, genre, and more. The playlist auto-updates as new episodes match. Requires Earmark Plus to create.
• Manual Playlists: Curate your own collections by adding episodes from context menus. Free for everyone.

Playlists support sorting by publication date, duration, podcast name, or custom order.

Tap the moon icon in the Now Playing screen to set a sleep timer:

• Duration presets: 5, 10, 15, 30, 45, 60, or 90 minutes.
• End of Episode: Playback stops when the current episode finishes.
• End of Chapter: Stops at the end of the current chapter (for episodes with chapters).
• Extend: When a timer is active, you can add 5 more minutes from the timer menu.
• Fade-out: Volume gradually reduces in the final 30 seconds before playback stops.

The remaining time appears below the moon icon while the timer is active.

The Stats tab gives you insight into your listening habits. Select a time period — Week, Month, Year, or All Time — to see:

• Listening time: Total hours and minutes spent listening.
• Episode & podcast count: How many episodes and unique podcasts you've listened to.
• Average completion: What percentage of episodes you typically finish.
• Top podcasts: Your most-listened shows ranked by time, with completion rates.
• Daily chart: A 14-day bar chart showing your daily listening minutes.
• Speed stats: Your average playback speed and total time saved by listening faster than 1x.
• Silence trimmed: Cumulative time saved by the Trim Silence feature across all sessions.

Stats are completely free — no Plus subscription required.

CarPlay: Connect your iPhone to a CarPlay-enabled vehicle and Earmark appears automatically on the car display.

• Browse your library, queue, and playlists.
• Full Now Playing controls including speed and skip.
• Default playlist access (New, In Progress, Downloaded, Starred).

Siri & Shortcuts: Earmark supports App Intents for hands-free control:

• "Hey Siri, play my podcast on Earmark" — resumes playback.
• "Hey Siri, skip forward" / "skip back" — skip intervals.
• "Hey Siri, play next in queue" — advances to the next episode.
• Shortcuts can be added to the Shortcuts app for custom automations.

Widgets: Add Earmark widgets to your Home Screen or Lock Screen:

• Now Playing: Shows the current episode with quick playback controls.
• Up Next: Preview your queue at a glance.
• Recent Episodes: See the latest episodes from your subscriptions.

Live Activity & Dynamic Island: When playing, Earmark shows playback controls in the Dynamic Island and on the Lock Screen as a Live Activity.

Tailor Earmark to your preferences from the Settings tab:

Playback:

• Default playback speed, skip forward/back intervals.
• Smart Resume: rewind a few seconds when resuming after a break (configurable: off, 5 min, 15 min, always).
• Continuous playback: automatically play the next episode in your queue.
• Mark-as-played threshold (e.g., 95%).

Downloads:

• Auto-download toggle, cellular download policy, max concurrent downloads.
• Download limit per podcast, auto-delete after playing, storage limit.

Appearance (Plus):

• Choose from five custom app icons (Default, Dark, Monochrome, Mint, Midnight).
• Theme selection (system, light, dark).
• Accent color customization with 10 color options.

Sync & Account:

• Sign in with Apple to enable iCloud sync.
• Toggle sync for subscriptions, playback progress, playlists, and settings independently.
• Manual sync trigger and last sync timestamp.

Notifications:

• New episode alerts, download complete, SmartFinish triggers.

Import & Export:

• Import subscriptions from OPML files.
• Export your subscriptions as OPML to share or back up.

Earmark is fully functional for free. Earmark Plus unlocks the full set of power-user features:

• SmartFinish — automatic episode archiving near the end, with configurable thresholds, undo, and per-podcast overrides.
• SmartStart — automatically skip intros when starting new episodes (30s to 5 minutes).
• EQ Presets — Podcast, Music, Bass Boost, and Treble Boost equalizer presets.
• Smart Playlists — auto-updating playlists with advanced filter rules.
• Per-Podcast Overrides — custom speed, silence trimming, Voice Boost, SmartFinish, and SmartStart per show.
• Custom App Icons — five icon designs to choose from.
• Accent Colors — personalize the app with 10 accent color options.

Pricing:

• Annual: $24.99/year (save 30% — almost 4 months free)
• Monthly: $2.99/month
• Free trial: 7-day free trial on both plans

No data loss on downgrade: If your Plus subscription expires, your data is preserved. SmartFinish and SmartStart are disabled, EQ resets to Flat, and smart playlists remain visible but can't be created or edited. Resubscribe at any time to restore everything.

Upgrade from Settings > Earmark Plus.