iHeartMedia has announced details for the 2026 iHeartPodcast Awards, which will take place at ACL Live at the Moody Theater in Austin, Texas, on March 16, 2026. The event is being held in partnership with South by Southwest (SXSW) and will be broadcast on select iHeartMedia radio stations and through the iHeartRadio app. Some SXSW badge holders will also have access to attend the ceremony in person.
Ego Nwodim, actress and comedian known for hosting the “Thanks Dad” podcast, will serve as emcee for this year’s awards. The ceremony will honor podcasts across multiple genres such as Comedy, Crime, Sports, News, Business, Pop Culture, and Food. Winners in most categories are selected by a panel of industry professionals; however, the Podcast of the Year award is determined by fan voting open from January 14 to February 22 at iHeartPodcastAwards.com.
Nominees for Podcast of the Year include “Good Hang with Amy Poehler,” “The Breakfast Club,” “The Mel Robbins Podcast,” “Pablo Torre Finds Out,” “The Daily,” “The Rest Is History,” “This Past Weekend w/ Theo Von,” “Call Her Daddy,” “Heavyweight” and “Giggly Squad.”
“Podcasting continues to be one of the most vibrant and fast-growing mediums in media today,” said Will Pearson, President of iHeartPodcasts. “We are thrilled to return to Austin and ACL Live at the Moody Theater to celebrate the storytellers who are pushing the boundaries of audio. We can’t wait to see which show the fans crown as their Podcast of the Year for 2026.”
In addition to genre-based awards and fan voting categories, three Icon Awards will be presented: Social Impact Award, Audible Audio Pioneer Award, and Innovator Award. Jay Shetty will receive the Social Impact Award for his work addressing mental health topics on his podcast “On Purpose.” Terry Gross is set to receive the Audible Audio Pioneer Award recognizing her long career as host of NPR’s “Fresh Air with Terry Gross & Tonya Mosley.” Hrishikesh Hirway will be honored with the Innovator Award for his creation “Song Exploder,” which explores music-making processes.
Peter Lewis, Chief Commercial Officer at SXSW said: “The Podcast Awards have become a defining moment for the audio community at SXSW, and we’re proud to continue building that momentum with iHeartMedia in 2026. Bringing this event back to ACL Live at the Moody Theater reflects how deeply podcasting is embedded in the cultural conversation at SXSW, and our commitment to creating meaningful stages for the creators shaping where audio goes next.”
Past editions have featured celebrity presenters such as Will Ferrell and Martha Stewart. Last year’s winners included “Las Culturistas” (Podcast of the Year), “New Heights” (Best Sports), and “Huberman Lab” (Best Wellness and Fitness).
Other categories this year include Best Business & Finance (“Earn Your Leisure”, “How I Built This”), Best Comedy (“Distractible”, “Handsome”), Best Crime (“Crime Junkie”, “Rotten Mango”), Best Pop Culture (“Las Culturistas”, “Therapuss with Jake Shane”), Best Wellness & Fitness (“On Purpose with Jay Shetty”, “10% Happier”), among others.
The awards are part of iHeartMedia’s portfolio of national events such as iHeartRadio Music Awards and iHeartRadio Music Festival.
Executive producers for this year’s awards are John Sykes, Tom Poleman, Conal Byrne and Bart Peters for iHeartMedia. Audible is a sponsor of this year’s event.
SXSW was founded in Austin in 1987 and is recognized globally for its annual conference celebrating technology, film & TV, music, education and culture.
