Explore Zencastr's remote recording, AI editing, transcription, and hosting features, plus its pricing plans, pros, cons, and best use cases for podcasters.
Zencastr is a remote recording platform purpose-built for podcasters, video creators, and interviewers. Rather than relying on a video call tool where quality depends on everyone's internet connection at the moment of the call, Zencastr records each participant's audio and video locally in the browser or app and uploads it separately, so the final file quality is not limited by the weakest connection in the room.
Founded in 2014 by Adrian Lopez and Josh Nielsen and based in Cottonwood Heights, Utah, Zencastr has grown from a recording-only tool into a broader production suite covering recording, AI-assisted editing, transcription, hosting, and monetization.
The platform serves podcasters running interview-style shows, video creators who need clean multi-track source files, and researchers or journalists conducting remote interviews that need a reliable, high-fidelity recording.
Recording quality is Zencastr's foundation: up to 4K video and 48kHz 16-bit WAV audio, captured per participant and uploaded separately so each track can be mixed and edited independently. Recording works from desktop browsers as well as mobile devices, letting guests join without installing special software.
On the editing side, Zencastr's ZenAI tools let users edit audio and video like a text document, cutting words or sections directly from a transcript instead of scrubbing a waveform. A live soundboard supports sound effects during recording, and AI clipping automatically generates short, social-ready clips from longer episodes.
Rounding out the workflow, Zencastr includes near-automatic transcription, hosting and distribution for finished episodes, performance analytics, and monetization tools that let creators earn directly through the platform.
Zencastr uses a freemium model. A free tier gives new users a way to try core recording features before committing to a subscription, and paid plans layer on more recording and mixing time, higher resolution, more transcription, and additional seats.
Reported paid tiers include a Standard plan around $20 per month, Grow around $30, Scale around $50, and Business around $100, with roughly 20 percent savings for annual billing over monthly. A 14-day free trial is available on paid plans.
Larger organizations with custom needs, such as media companies producing many shows, can request Enterprise pricing directly from Zencastr's sales team.
Zencastr is used to remotely record, edit, transcribe, and host podcasts and video content, letting hosts and guests record from separate locations at studio-level quality.
Yes, Zencastr offers a free tier for testing core recording features, alongside paid plans that unlock more recording time, higher resolution, and additional tools.
Zencastr supports up to 4K video recording and 48kHz 16-bit WAV audio, with each participant's track captured and uploaded separately.
Yes, Zencastr includes automatic transcription advertised at around 99 percent accuracy for English content, and transcripts can be used to edit recordings directly.
Yes, Zencastr supports mobile recording so hosts and guests can capture episodes from a smartphone.
Zencastr was founded in 2014 by Adrian Lopez and Josh Nielsen.
Yes, Zencastr's AI tools can automatically generate short clips from longer episodes for sharing on social platforms.
Yes, Zencastr supports 4K video recording and is used by podcasters, video creators, and professionals conducting remote interviews.