New Zealand Podcast Awards 2025 Winners
The New Zealand Podcast Awards, supported by Acast, have celebrated another year of exceptional local audio, with record fan engagement and a growing number of creators recognised across a wide range of categories. Since we started this mission several years ago, the Awards have attracted more than 30,000 fan votes, over 600 podcast submissions, and reached millions of Kiwi listeners, reflecting the rapid growth and diversity of podcasting in Aotearoa.
Created to recognise and celebrate the work of Kiwi podcasters at home and abroad, the New Zealand Podcast Awards shine a light on independent creators and established networks alike, championing high-quality storytelling and helping shows find new audiences and sponsors.
Across this year’s categories, a number of titles stood out. The Spinoff’s Fury of the Small enjoyed a breakout year, winning : Gold in both Best Fiction Podcast and Best New Podcast, and adding further recognition with Silver in The Creativity Award and Podcast of the Year. The Curve Podcast confirmed the strength of New Zealand’s independent scene, taking : Gold in both Best Education Podcast and Best Independent Podcast, alongside Bronze in Podcast of the Year.
Several shows picked up multiple awards. Heaven’s Helpline was recognised in factual, history, true crime and emerging talent categories, including : Gold in The Rising Star Award for journalist Murray Jones, while _The Dom Harvey Podcast backed up last year’s wins and collected top honours in both Best Arts and Culture Podcast and Best Interview Podcast, with further podium finishes across entertainment, independent and spotlight awards.
The coveted Listeners’ Choice title, decided entirely by public vote, went to #BHN Big Hairy News, reflecting the show’s highly engaged audience across subscriptions and social channels. True crime series GUILT led its category with : Gold in Best True Crime Podcast, while also featuring in documentary, history and spotlight awards.
Elsewhere, Unfiltered with Dave Letele took : Gold in Best Māori or Pasifika Podcast or Host, underlining the importance of Māori and Pasifika voices in the local audio landscape. The Flood was recognised with : Gold in The Climate Award for its focus on environmental issues, and Satanic Panic took : Gold in The Creativity Award, highlighting the innovation and craft at the heart of New Zealand podcasting.
Podcast of the Year
This year’s top honour, Podcast of the Year, went to Kelly Tarlton’s Final Treasure Hunt. The show was the night’s most decorated winner, also taking : Gold in both Best Documentary Podcast and Best History Podcast, plus Silver in Best Factual Podcast. Its success is recognition for locally grounded storytelling that connects New Zealanders with our history.
Thank you to our partners and judges
We would like to extend a huge thank you to everyone who entered, and our headline sponsor Acast, who will be giving winners free ad impressions across their network, helping them reach even more listeners in New Zealand and around the world.
We would also like to acknowledge the invaluable support of PodLab, who will be offering complimentary recording time to their category winners, and providing winners’ plaques, as well as category partners Generate KiwiSaver and AUT for their continued backing of the local podcast industry.
A massive thanks also to the 15 industry judges who generously contributed their time and expertise to listen, assess and celebrate the breadth of entries across all categories.
Full list of winners – New Zealand Podcast Awards
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BEST NETWORK OR PUBLISHER: Gold – The Spinoff
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The above list of podcasts is available as an OPML file for your podcast player
This is a press release which we link to from Podnews, our daily newsletter about podcasting and on-demand. We may make small edits for editorial reasons.