Music discovery
Build a recognisable sound around a genre, city, era, scene, or mood. Add context through live links, artist interviews, and themed hours.
The independent station guide
Start and manage your own internet radio station
Build a station people return to: your music, your presenters, your local stories, and a dependable schedule. Wowzaradio keeps the controls understandable while automation covers the hours you are away.
No card for Hobbyist. Choosing a paid subscription? Use code WOWZA10 at checkout for 10% off an eligible paid subscription.
How do you start and manage an internet radio station?
Choose who your station is for, give it a clear identity, add music or spoken programmes you have permission to broadcast, build a weekly schedule, and go live when you have something timely to share. Wowzaradio gives you the station page, browser broadcasting, scheduling, AutoDJ, audience interaction, and reporting in one place, so you can begin free and add capacity as the audience grows.
- Free plan
- $0 forever
- Paid plans
- From $19 / month
- Paid trial
- 14 days
- Setup approach
- Live + scheduled + AutoDJ
A simple signal path
From an idea to an on-air routine
- 01
Create your station
Choose a name, describe the audience you want to serve, add your artwork, and apply for a public station page.
- 02
Build your sound
Upload music and spoken audio, arrange playlists, add station IDs, and decide what should play at different times of day.
- 03
Set your weekly rhythm
Schedule live shows, interviews, podcasts, repeats, and community updates. AutoDJ keeps your approved rotation playing between them.
- 04
Go live when you are ready
Broadcast from your browser or connect familiar software. When you stop, the station hands back to AutoDJ so listeners do not hear dead air.
- 05
Invite participation
Use chat, polls, requests, call-ins, events, and share links to turn one-way listening into a recurring local gathering.
- 06
Learn and improve
Review listeners, popular programmes, play logs, and audience sources, then adjust your schedule around what people return for.
What your station can become
Primary and practical uses
Talk, stories, and podcasts
Run interviews, local news, sports discussion, faith programming, public-interest shows, or recorded episodes inside one continuous station.
Community connection
Give local groups, schools, charities, artists, and small businesses a shared place for announcements, conversations, and event coverage.
Creator and DJ growth
Develop a regular show, publish a host profile, promote original work, collect listener feedback, and build an audience around your own voice.
Events and live moments
Cover festivals, club nights, school showcases, sports, fundraisers, town halls, and cultural celebrations before, during, and after the event.
Organizations and niche groups
Keep members informed with scheduled programmes, recurring updates, specialist conversations, and an audio channel that works while people do other things.
What it costs
Start at $0, then pay for the scale you need
You do not need to buy a large plan before proving your idea. Start on Hobbyist, establish a programme people return for, and upgrade when storage, listening hours, live tools, team access, or earning features justify it.
Save 10% on an eligible paid subscription
Enter WOWZA10 at checkout. Paid plans include a 14-day trial; Hobbyist remains free.
Hobbyist
$0 forever
Try your idea with one real station and no card.
Starter
$19/month
Add scheduling, play logs, more storage, and 5,000 listening hours.
Creator
$29/month
For artists and creators who want live shows, selling, fan clubs, and audience tools.
Pro
$69/month
For established broadcasters managing automation, monetization, and up to five stations.
Network
$199/month
For labels and networks operating many stations from one account.
Station subscriptions cover the broadcasting platform. Music licensing is a separate paid responsibility, is not bundled into these plan prices, and varies by country and the music you use. Equipment, internet access, commissioned artwork, and paid promotion may also add optional costs.
Local participation
Use events to turn listeners into a community
The strongest community station is not only a playlist. It creates regular reasons for people to contribute, hear familiar voices, discover nearby work, and meet around a shared moment.
- Invite a local artist for a live session, then turn the recording into an on-demand episode.
- Give schools and youth groups a monthly showcase for music, debate, interviews, and media skills.
- Run a weekly small-business spotlight with practical information rather than a long advertisement.
- Broadcast from a festival, market, sports match, charity drive, or cultural celebration.
- Host a town-hall programme where residents submit questions before the show and respond through polls or call-ins.
- Publish a dependable community calendar with short daily reminders and longer weekend previews.
Ideas for every generation
Let people participate in ways that suit them
Teens and young adults
Learn by making something real
Build confidence through presenting, interviewing, audio production, music selection, teamwork, and responsible storytelling. A school, youth centre, or group station can rotate roles so nobody needs to carry the whole schedule.
Working-age creators
Turn expertise or taste into a recurring show
Use a dependable weekly slot for a music scene, profession, sport, neighbourhood, or creative project. Record once, publish the best segments as podcasts, and let scheduled programming work between live appearances.
Families and community groups
Create a shared local noticeboard with a voice
Combine event listings, interviews, cultural programming, local music, fundraisers, and public-service updates. Invite trusted contributors instead of relying on one presenter.
Older adults
Share knowledge, memories, and companionship
Host oral histories, specialist music, community conversations, language programmes, or regular call-ins. Radio can feel familiar while still reaching family and neighbours through a simple web link.
Research has associated youth radio with creative agency, communication, compassion, and empathy, while studies of older listeners describe comfort, routine, and feelings of community. The right format depends on the people you invite, not their age alone.
Radio and video
Why manage a radio station instead of only posting to YouTube?
Radio is not a replacement for video, and video is not a replacement for radio. Use each for what it does best: radio for an ongoing, listen-while-doing relationship; video for visual demonstrations, highlights, and discovery clips.
| Consideration | Your radio station | Video platforms |
|---|---|---|
| Production | A live voice, music, and simple artwork can carry the experience. | Usually rewards continuous filming, lighting, editing, thumbnails, and on-camera presentation. |
| How people use it | Listeners can stay with a station while driving, working, studying, cooking, or relaxing. | Video usually competes for the viewer's eyes and active screen time. |
| Community rhythm | A schedule creates a shared appointment: the same host, show, requests, and local update at a known time. | Discovery is often driven by individual uploads and recommendation feeds. |
| Conversation | Live chat, requests, call-ins, polls, events, and familiar presenters can build an ongoing local relationship. | Comments and live chat are useful, but the relationship often centres on each separate video. |
| Best strategy | Use radio as the continuous home for your sound and community. | Use short video clips to show highlights and invite people back to the full station or programme. |
Experience for yourself what others are streaming
Browse live stations, notice how they name programmes and shape their sound, then return with three ideas for the station only you or your community could make.
Questions before you start
How much does it cost to start an internet radio station with Wowzaradio?
The Hobbyist plan is $0 forever and needs no payment card. Paid station plans currently start at $19 per month, with Creator at $29, Pro at $69, and Network at $199 per month. Paid subscriptions include a 14-day trial. Enter WOWZA10 at checkout for 10% off an eligible paid subscription.
Do I need expensive radio equipment?
No. You can prepare and schedule a station with a computer and internet connection, then go live from a supported browser with a microphone. If you already use broadcast software such as butt, OBS, or Mixxx, you can connect that instead.
Must I stay live all day?
No. Schedule approved music, recorded shows, station IDs, and podcasts, then use AutoDJ for the hours nobody is live. When a live show ends, the station can return to its scheduled rotation automatically.
Is music licensing included in the station price?
No. Music licensing is a separate paid responsibility and requirements vary by country and catalogue. Wowzaradio provides play logs and cue-sheet tools; station owners should use the country-by-country music licensing guide before broadcasting commercial music.
Can a radio station earn money?
Depending on the plan and audience, a station can use advertising, sponsorships, tips, super chats, fan clubs, ticketed shows, merchandise, paid data feeds, and other creator tools. Earnings are not guaranteed; useful programming and a returning audience come first.
Can I move an existing show or station?
Yes. You can bring your station identity, music and recordings, connect an existing stream where appropriate, and publish host and station pages for listeners. Keep copies of your original files and confirm that you hold the rights needed to broadcast them.
Your first broadcast can start free
Create the station, then learn by running it.
Start on Hobbyist without a card. If you choose a paid subscription, use WOWZA10 at checkout for 10% off an eligible plan.