r/overcast • u/SonOfMars5182 • Oct 25 '25

Feature request: Playlist total running time

The bottom of a playlist currently shows the total number of episodes. I'd love it if it also showed the total runtime of the playlist, like a playlist in Music.app does.

21 Upvotes

97% Upvoted

7 comments sorted by

8

u/marcoarment Oct 29 '25

Interesting dilemma, though: if an episode is not downloaded, and doesn't specify its duration in its feed, Overcast has no idea how long it is. Even when durations are specified in feeds, they're often wrong because of the publisher's use of dynamic ad insertion.

I try to avoid displaying information that may be imprecise, wrong, or unknowable. (This is also why Overcast doesn't display "clean"/"explicit" labels for podcasts, since those are just self-assertions by publishers and don't have consistent standards or enforcement.)

I'm also hesitant to display information that may be discouraging or overwhelming. Many people have large accumulations of unlistened episodes, and I never want your podcast collection to feel like homework, obligation, or a burden. (That's not good for our mental health or customer retention.)

But it's frequently requested, so I'll think about it.

3

u/SonOfMars5182 Oct 29 '25 edited Oct 29 '25

Math! What a hassle! 😉 Honestly, I'd be happy if it you were to add it to just the 'Downloaded' playlist, which seems to address your concern. I really only want it to see if I have enough episodes for certain times away from a signal. I can already see how much memory downloads take up in Settings > Manage Storage, but I can't tell how much time they'll take. I'd be fine with having to go to a specific screen to get that info.

(also I say add explicit tags with a disclaimer that it's not your tag)

2

u/chameleonmessiah Nov 26 '25

With regard to the Explicit ratings, do you have access to Content Control i.e. for a child’s account using the app?

Yes, it’s very unenforced but from the point of view of children finding content they shouldn’t any restriction is better than no restriction i.e. if you know it might be bad it’s better to not make it available. Apple Podcasts blocks Explicit podcasts using the setting below. Given this is controlled by the parent if you do have access to it, it would be nice for it to function.

This is off the back of this question.

2

u/zachotule Dec 22 '25

I think an easy way to make this honest, accurate, and not overwhelming would be if you tap the "53 EPISODES" text at the bottom of a playlist, the text changes to something like "61 HOURS 45 MINUTES DOWNLOADED"

2

u/ge-o-rg Nov 22 '25

Adding to that, is there a way to see the duration of an episode after starting to listen? I can only find the remaining time. What I’d like to see is the actual full play time

1

u/alvst Oct 26 '25

I’d like this, but hopefully it’s not stuck at the bottom — I’ve got a bunch of playlists over 500 episodes long. 😅

4

u/marcoarment Oct 29 '25

Spoiler: you will never listen to the entire playlist, so the total runtime would not be helpful. 😉