What is an audiogram in podcasting?
A short video of a piece of audio, usually cover art with an animated waveform and captions, made so a podcast or radio clip can be shared where only video plays. It isn’t related to the hearing-test audiogram.
Guide · free tool included
How to make an audiogram, step by step
An audiogram is only as good as the moment you choose. Here is how to pick it, design it and size it for every feed, with or without this tool.
To make an audiogram, choose 30 to 60 seconds of your recording that makes sense on its own, put it over your cover art with a moving waveform and captions, and export it in the shape each platform wants: square for feeds, vertical for Reels, TikTok and Shorts, landscape for YouTube. The audio carries the story, the captions carry it for people watching muted, and the waveform shows there is sound to turn on.
In podcasting and radio, an audiogram means exactly that short video, not the hearing-test chart that shares the name. The steps below use the studio on this page, but the advice about the moment, the captions and the sizes applies whatever you use. For a ready-made design for your show, start with the podcast audiogram maker.
Make an audiogram in four steps
Pick 30 to 60 seconds
Open the recording with Choose audio. In Audio, Best 30 s or Best 60 s jumps to the liveliest talking; then drag the window, or nudge Clip start and Clip end with the arrow keys, until it starts on the first word of a strong sentence.
Choose a template
In Text, add your Cover art, a Title and the show in Show or speaker. Then open Templates: every design is drawn with your own art and words, and the colours follow the cover.
Check the captions
In Captions, press Make captions; the clip’s sound is sent to our speech provider to be written out. Read every line and type over names or words it misheard.
Export the sizes you need
Press Export, Export video, Download video. Then switch the format in Templates (Square, Vertical, Portrait, Landscape) and export again; the clip and captions stay put.
Choosing the moment
Most weak audiograms fail before any design is chosen: the clip starts with context nobody has, or ends before the point lands. Listen for a moment that would make sense to a stranger.
- A strong opinion or a surprising fact. “Most people get this backwards” is a hook; “so, as I was saying earlier” isn’t.
- A complete thought. Start on the first word of the sentence and end just after the last. Silence at either end loses viewers.
- A short story with a turn. Setup, twist, punchline. These are the clips people share.
- One voice, or a clean exchange. Crosstalk is hard to follow and hard to caption.
How long should an audiogram be?
For feeds and short-video apps, 30 to 60 seconds is the sweet spot: long enough for one idea, short enough to finish. Go as low as 15 seconds for a single quote. Longer clips can work as a trailer on YouTube or your website, but on X a standard account is limited to 2 minutes 20 seconds, and Instagram says Reels over 3 minutes aren’t recommended to new audiences.
Design that survives the scroll
- Captions first. Most social video is watched without sound, so the words do the work. Big, high-contrast captions that light up as they’re spoken (Highlight or Pop) beat small subtitles.
- The wave is a signal, not the show. It tells people there is audio. Keep it clear but not dominant; Size in Wave controls that.
- One title line. The episode’s hook or the question being answered, not “Episode 147”. The tag line can carry “Full episode out now”.
- Consistent branding. Use the same template and colours every time so followers recognise your show before they read anything. Save it under My styles in Templates.
Examples of audiogram styles
- Classic podcast card: cover art, mirrored wave, captions underneath (the Night show template).
- Captions-first vertical: huge words in the middle, cover small at the top (Big captions).
- News lower third: white background, strong headline, speaker name (Newsroom).
- Music teaser: artwork on a spinning record (Vinyl) or with a ring of sound around it (Visualiser).
Audiogram sizes for each platform
- Instagram and Facebook feed: Portrait 4:5 (1080×1350) fills most of the screen; Square 1:1 also works.
- Reels, TikTok, YouTube Shorts and Stories: Vertical 9:16 (1080×1920). Shorts can be up to 3 minutes.
- LinkedIn: Square 1:1 for the feed. LinkedIn accepts videos up to 15 minutes, but short clips do better.
- X: Square or Landscape; up to 2 minutes 20 seconds on a standard account.
- YouTube and websites: Landscape 16:9 (1920×1080).
Vertical clips have a problem the others don’t: the apps cover the bottom and right edges with captions and buttons. In the studio, press G to show those zones; the vertical layouts keep text out of them.
Do audiograms still work?
Honestly, an audiogram alone won’t grow a show. Feeds favour video, and a static cover with a small wave struggles against people talking to camera. What still works is the version that behaves like short video: a strong first line, big moving captions, vertical for Reels, TikTok and Shorts, and posted consistently. For audio-only shows that is often the only video they have, and it is far better than posting a link.
- Post a clip from every episode, not just the launch.
- Pair each clip with the episode link in your bio, a pinned comment or the post text.
- Watch which moments get finished and shared, and pick more like them.
For a whole show on YouTube, see how to start a podcast on YouTube. For a captions file as well as the video, see audio to SRT.
Making audiograms: frequently asked questions
What is the best audiogram maker?
The one that makes your workflow fast and keeps captions accurate. Look for word-by-word captions you can edit, all four shapes from one project, a style you can save, and no watermark. This site does those things for free in your browser; paid tools add team features and automation.
Do I need cover art to make an audiogram?
No. Templates such as Studio wave, Big captions, Newsroom and Pulse look complete without a picture. Cover art makes the clip recognisably yours, though.
Should audiograms have captions?
Yes. Most people scroll with the sound off, and captions are what make them stop. Always read them before posting; names are where speech recognition slips.
Can I make an audiogram on my phone?
Yes. The studio works in Safari on iPhone and Chrome on Android. Choose the recording from Files, and use Share after exporting to save or post the video.
Can I make an audiogram from a video?
You can open a video file and use its sound. The picture isn’t kept; the audiogram is built from your cover art, wave and captions.