Important up front: Apple — not Disctopia — controls all pricing for Apple Podcasters Program subscriptions. Apple handles billing, refunds, free trials, tax, and payouts directly. Disctopia has fields where you can note your pricing for your own reference, but they do NOT auto-sync to Apple. All the pricing that listeners actually see and pay lives in Apple Podcasters Connect (PCC).
This article walks through the steps in PCC, plus a quick note on the Disctopia-side fields.
The Disctopia-side fields are notes only
When you enroll a show for Apple Premium on Disctopia, the Edit your podcast dialog shows three pricing-related fields underneath the "Premium subscription show on Apple" checkbox:
- Monthly price (your notes) — dropdown of common price points
- Free trial (your notes) — 3, 7, or 14 days
- Offer annual plan — 10× monthly, ~17% off (your notes) — checkbox
These are stored on Disctopia so you have one place to remember what you charge — the numbers do not flow to Apple. Apple always wins. To change what listeners actually pay, do the rest of this article in PCC.
Click Open Apple PCC Subscription → on the card to jump straight to the right page in Apple Podcasters Connect.
Before you start (Apple side)
You need:
- An active enrollment in the Apple Podcasters Program
- A show that's already enrolled in Apple Premium on Disctopia (see article)
- Your Money & Banking info set up in PCC (Apple won't let you publish pricing until you've completed their tax/banking forms)
Set pricing for a new subscription
Step 1 — Open the Subscription page in PCC
- Sign in to Apple Podcasters Connect.
- Open the show you want to price.
- Click Show at the top, then Subscription in the show's left-side menu.
- Click Get Started to add your first subscription tier.
💡 If the panel says "To include multiple shows in one subscription, you'll need to create a channel," you're on the right page. Channels are only for creators bundling several shows under one subscription — skip that for now if you're starting with a single show.
Step 2 — Add a subscription tier
A "tier" is a single price point. Most shows use one tier (e.g. "$4.99/month"). You can have multiple tiers if you want to offer different benefit levels, but Apple recommends keeping it simple at launch.
- Give the tier a name listeners will see (e.g. "Members" or "All Access").
- Add a short benefits description (one to two sentences — what subscribers get).
- Pick a subscription duration: Apple supports monthly and annual. Most shows offer both.
- Pick a price point from Apple's published tier list (Apple has a fixed set of price points — you can't enter an arbitrary number like "$3.27"). Common picks: $0.99, $1.99, $2.99, $4.99, $9.99.
- Optionally enable a free trial (3, 7, or 14 days) or an introductory offer (discounted first month).
- Click Save.
Step 3 — Submit for Apple review
New pricing must be approved by Apple before listeners see it. Most reviews complete in 24–48 hours. You'll get an email from Apple when it's approved (or rejected with a reason).
Step 4 (optional) — Update your Disctopia notes
Once Apple has approved the tier, come back to the Edit your podcast dialog on Disctopia and update the Monthly price, Free trial, and Offer annual plan fields to match what's live on Apple. This is bookkeeping only — Disctopia never uses these values to talk to Apple.
Change an existing price
Apple lets you change prices, but only in the listener-friendly direction (down) without their consent. To raise a price on existing subscribers, Apple requires:
- You initiate the price increase in PCC.
- Apple emails every existing subscriber at least 30 days before the new price takes effect.
- Subscribers can opt out (keep the old price by cancelling) or accept (auto-renew at the new price).
To change a price
- PCC → your show → Subscription.
- Click the tier you want to change.
- Click Edit Price.
- Pick the new price point (from Apple's published tier list).
- Apple shows you a summary screen:
- For new subscribers: the new price applies immediately on approval.
- For existing subscribers (price up): 30-day notice email, then auto-renew at new price unless they cancel.
- For existing subscribers (price down): applies on next renewal; subscribers get a one-line "good news" email.
- Click Submit for review.
Apple reviews price changes the same way they review new subscriptions — typically 24–48 hours.
Add a new tier (without removing the old one)
Common pattern: launch with one tier at $4.99/month, then later add an annual tier at $49.99/year as a discount.
- PCC → your show → Subscription → Add Subscription.
- Configure the new tier (annual, $49.99, etc.).
- Important: leave the old tier as-is. Adding a tier does not remove or affect existing tiers — your current monthly subscribers stay on monthly until they choose to switch.
- Submit for review.
Once approved, both tiers appear in the Apple Podcasts app, and listeners can pick (or upgrade).
Remove or sunset a tier
You can stop offering a tier to new subscribers without affecting existing subscribers.
- PCC → your show → Subscription.
- Click the tier you want to retire.
- Click Stop Offering.
- Confirm.
What happens:
- The tier disappears from the Apple Podcasts app for new listeners.
- Existing subscribers on that tier keep their current price and benefits indefinitely (until they themselves cancel).
- You can re-enable the tier later if you change your mind.
Pricing across regions
Apple sets exchange-rate-adjusted equivalents for each price point in every country they operate in. When you pick "$4.99/month" in PCC, Apple automatically publishes prices in 100+ currencies (e.g. £3.99, €4.99, ¥600, ₹399).
You don't price these individually unless you want to. Most creators leave Apple's auto-conversion as-is.
To override regional pricing:
- PCC → your show → Subscription → the tier.
- Click Edit Regional Pricing.
- Apple shows you the auto-calculated price in every market.
- Override any market you want (e.g., bump the US tier higher, drop India pricing for affordability).
- Submit for review.
How pricing flows to Disctopia
The short answer: it doesn't automatically, and that's by design.
Disctopia is the delivery layer for your premium audio. Apple owns the storefront, the price, the listener relationship, and the payout. We never see how much you're charging, who's subscribed, or what your revenue is. The Disctopia-side pricing fields are notes for your own bookkeeping — Disctopia does not use them to talk to Apple and Apple never sees them.
If you want to track Apple Premium revenue alongside your other Disctopia income, pull it from Apple's PCC reporting (PCC → Trends) or your Apple payout statements.
Common questions
Can I offer a price below Apple's tier list (like $0.49/month)?
No. Apple's tier list is fixed; you pick from it. The lowest available tier is currently $0.49/month in the US.
Can I offer a "pay what you want" or "name your price" model?
Not through Apple. Apple only supports the published tier list. For pay-what-you-want, consider keeping the show free on Apple and offering tipping/donations through your Disctopia direct page or a third-party tool.
What's Apple's cut?
Apple Podcasters Program currently takes a percentage of subscription revenue (Apple publishes the current rate at podcasters.apple.com/program). The rate drops after a subscriber has been with you for more than a year. We do not republish Apple's specific percentages here because they change; check Apple's site for current numbers.
Do I owe sales tax / VAT?
Apple acts as merchant of record and handles tax collection and remittance in most jurisdictions. You receive a tax-adjusted payout. Talk to your accountant about how this maps to your books in your country — it's not legal advice from us.
Why does Disctopia have pricing fields at all if they don't sync?
So you can remember what you charge in the same place you configure everything else about your show. Without the notes fields, you'd have to keep a separate spreadsheet or dig into PCC every time you needed to check. Apple is still the source of truth for what listeners actually pay.