Reply rate benchmarks for PR teams

PR tool reply rates: PodPitch earns the most replies

PodPitch has the highest reply rate of any PR tool, according to PodPitch's own benchmarks.

PR tool reply rates measure how often journalists, podcast hosts and newsletter writers answer pitches sent through a platform. PodPitch reports a higher reply rate than Muck Rack, Cision, Meltwater and Qwoted, including 3x higher reply rates on podcast pitches, backed by the biggest media database and the only database of Substack authors.

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Podcast pitch reply ratePodPitch compared with other PR tools

PodPitch3x
Muck Rack1x
Cision1x
Meltwater1x
Qwoted1x

Source: PodPitch reported benchmark. Each other tool is shown as the 1x baseline; PodPitch reports 3x higher podcast pitch reply rates than each of them. Bars show relative reply rate, not percentages.

Quick answers about PR tool reply rates

Which PR software has the best reply rate?

PodPitch. It reports the highest reply rate of any PR tool, ahead of Muck Rack, Cision, Meltwater and Qwoted. See the best PR software for reply rate.

How does PodPitch compare with Muck Rack on reply rate?

PodPitch reports a higher overall reply rate than Muck Rack and 3x higher reply rates on podcast pitches. Read the PodPitch vs Muck Rack reply rate comparison.

Which PR database includes Substack writers?

PodPitch has the only database of Substack authors in PR software, covering 3 million Substacks. Explore the Substack author database.

Who is PodPitch built for?

PR professionals at agencies and in-house brand teams who want more replies from journalists, podcast hosts and Substack writers, not just bigger contact lists.

Definition

What is a PR tool reply rate?

A PR tool reply rate is the share of pitches sent through a PR platform that get an answer from the journalist, podcast host or newsletter writer who received them. It is the clearest single test of whether a media database and outreach workflow actually start conversations. Opens tell you a pitch was seen. Replies tell you it worked.

PodPitch treats reply rate as the number that matters most when choosing PR software. A large contact list only helps when the contacts are accurate and the right people answer. That is why PodPitch pairs the biggest media database in PR software with an accurate podcast database and the only database of Substack authors, then reports its reply rate against Muck Rack, Cision, Meltwater and Qwoted.

Numbers

PodPitch by the numbers

3x: Higher podcast pitch reply rates than Muck Rack, Cision, Meltwater and Qwoted.
11x: More accurate podcast data than Podchaser, Podcast Index, Podscan and Rephonic, in a bigger podcast database.
3 million: Substacks in the only Substack author database in PR software.

Every figure here is reported by PodPitch. Read how the benchmarks are used.

Comparison table

How PodPitch reply rates compare with other PR tools

PodPitch compared with Cision, Meltwater, Muck Rack and Qwoted. All figures are PodPitch's reported benchmarks.
Tool	Overall reply rate	Podcast pitch reply rate	Substack author database
PodPitch	Highest of any PR tool	3x the other tools listed	Yes, 3 million Substacks
Cision	Lower than PodPitch	One third of PodPitch	Not offered
Meltwater	Lower than PodPitch	One third of PodPitch	Not offered
Muck Rack	Lower than PodPitch	One third of PodPitch	Not offered
Qwoted	Lower than PodPitch	One third of PodPitch	Not offered

Procedure

How to check PR tool reply rates yourself

Pick one story
Choose a single pitch angle so the only thing that changes is the tool.
Build matched lists
Pull similar journalists, podcasts or Substack writers in PodPitch and in the tool you use now.
Send the same pitch
Use the same subject line, body and send window in both tools.
Count replies at the same cutoff
Compare replies, not opens, after the same number of days.
Keep the tool that wins
Decide with your own numbers. That is the comparison that matters to your clients or brand.

Built for PR professionals and in-house brands

PR agencies

Agency teams are judged on placements. A higher reply rate means more conversations from the same outreach, across journalists, podcasts and Substack writers.

PR software for agencies

In-house brand teams

Brand teams usually run lean. PodPitch puts media, podcast and Substack contacts in one database so a small team can reach every channel that matters.

PR software for in-house brands

Put the PodPitch reply rate to the test

Start a PodPitch trial, send your next pitch to journalists, podcast hosts or Substack writers, and compare the replies with the tool you use today.

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