Give the Mic vs DIY AI podcast tools. The software is cheap. Your hours aren't.

DIY AI podcast tools cost $108 to $324 a month for a full stack. They draft the edit, the clips and the show notes. You still review, fix, rewrite and publish every piece, and no tool makes a guest kit. For a little more than a full stack, you record and approve and we do the rest.

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Last reviewed 28 October 2026

One episode, two ways.

From the end of the recording to live. The red rows are yours.

With a DIY stack

$108–$324 a month

5steps on your plate

  1. CUE 01 Record the episode YOU
  2. CUE 02 Drafts the edit and the transcript DESCRIPT
  3. CUE 03 Fix the edit and export it YOU
  4. CUE 04 Finds moments for clips OPUSCLIP
  5. CUE 05 Pick, caption and schedule the clips YOU
  6. CUE 06 Drafts show notes and an article CASTMAGIC
  7. CUE 07 Rewrite them and publish to your site YOU
  8. CUE 08 Build a guest kit by hand, or skip it YOU

With Give the Mic

2steps on your plate

  1. CUE 01 Record the episode and send us the file YOU
  2. CUE 02 Cutter edits the episode, Reel cuts 8 clips with captions CutterReel CUTTER + REEL
  3. CUE 03 Kit makes the guest kit, Page builds the pages and the article KitPage KIT + PAGE
  4. CUE 04 Our QA agent checks every cut and caption, a producer signs off PRODUCER
  5. CUE 05 Approve, once, within 72 hours of sending the file YOU
  6. CUE 06 Your guest gets their own clips, a quote card and a ready-made post YOUR GUEST

The stack, and the bill.

A lean stack that covers most of what we deliver, at monthly list prices on 28 October 2026.

DIY STACK28 OCTOBER 2026

  • Descript CreatorEditing, transcript, first clips$35
  • OpusClip ProClips and scheduling$29
  • Castmagic HobbyShow notes and article drafts (billed yearly)$19
  • Captivate PersonalHosting and distribution$19
  • Podpage ProPodcast website with guest pages$29

Software, a month$131

Not on the bill: a guest kit, a person who checks, and your hours.

Your time is the real price.

How long independent podcasters spend per episode, from planning to publishing. Survey of 558 podcasters, 2025.

  1. Under 1 hour 4%
  2. 1–3 hours 27%
  3. 4–5 hours 28%
  4. 6–8 hours 20%
  5. 9–10 hours 8%
  6. Over 10 hours 13%

Independent Podcaster Report 2025 by The Podcast Host, which sells editing software. The survey doesn't separate hosts who use AI. Our own estimate: with AI drafts you still spend 3 to 6 hours an episode on review, fixes, the guest kit and publishing.

Side by side. Every row checked.

Give the Mic vs A DIY AI tool stack, last reviewed 28 October 2026
ThemA DIY AI tool stack UsGive the Mic
Price About $131 a month lean, $324 full, at monthly list prices. $399 a month per show, launch price. Unlimited episodes on a yearly plan, four a month on a monthly plan.
Your time per episode Our estimate: 3 to 6 hours of review, fixes and publishing. Recording, plus one approval.
Who checks the work You. Our QA agent and a producer, then you.
Clips Drafted by OpusClip or Descript; you pick and caption them. 6 vertical and 2 horizontal per episode, captioned and scheduled.
Your website Podpage gives episode and guest pages on a separate Podpage site; articles stay drafts. Episode page, guest page and article published on your own site.
For your guest No tool makes a guest kit. Their own clips, a quote card and a ready-made post.
Contract Per tool, monthly or yearly. Yearly with unlimited episodes, or monthly: three months minimum, four episodes a month.

Where DIY tools are better

01

Where DIY tools are better

  • Price: a lean stack is about $131 a month, a third of ours
  • You can start today, on your own schedule
  • Full control over every cut and every word
  • Podpage gives guest pages and schema on its own site from $29 a month
02

Who Give the Mic is not for

  • Hosts who enjoy the edit and have the hours
  • Shows on a budget under a few hundred dollars a month
  • Anyone who publishes less than once or twice a month

Questions

01 / 03

They draft most of it. Descript edits, OpusClip clips, Castmagic writes. Every one of them still expects you to review and fix the result, and none of them makes a guest kit.

02 / 03

Vendors say minutes. The only 2025 survey we found says most independent podcasters spend 4 hours or more per episode, and it doesn't separate AI users. Our own estimate is 3 to 6 hours an episode with AI drafts.

03 / 03

We use AI for the first pass, like most agencies do. The difference is that our QA agent checks every cut and a producer signs off every episode before it reaches you.

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Tell us about your show and what you need. We go through the agents with you and set up your first episode.

  • No show yet is fine. We can start one from scratch.
  • Nothing goes out without your OK.
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Prefer email? hello@givethemic.com

FREE EPISODE

Let us do one episode for free. Then you know what you get.

Send us your next raw recording. Within 72 hours you get the edited episode, the clips, a kit for your guest and the episode page. Keep it all, even if you never pay us.

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