4 routes compared

Starting a Podcast: Buy the Mic, Hire the Editing

Every guide sells you either gear or a service. They solve different halves: the microphone decides how the raw file sounds, and no editor on earth can undo a bad room. So we priced both routes against the same job: one 48-minute two-host episode, crosstalk and all.

Three ways to spend the money

These are different units, on purpose. We don't convert them into one number — which shape fits you is the whole decision.

Buy itAmazon

Buy the gear

$45–$200

One-time

You own it. Every episode after the first is free, and you learn the software.

Hire itFiverr

Hire an editor

$50–$400

Per episode

Recurring forever, but you skip the learning curve entirely.

Do it yourself

Edit it yourself

$0–30/mo

Per month

Cheapest in cash, most expensive in hours. Fine for weekly, brutal for daily.

Bottom line

Buy the microphone, then decide about the editor — not the other way round. Editing costs recur; the mic is a floor you only pay for once, and it's the part nobody downstream can fix.

Show

Shure MV6 USB Gaming Microphone for Streaming, Podcasting & Recording - Dynamic USB-C Mic with Voice Isolation, Auto Level Mode, DSP Audio Control & Headphone Monitoring, Black | Voice Isolation, Digital Popper Stopper and Denoiser, 3.5mm Monitoring, Includes Stand and USB-C Cable

#1Buy itAmazonStep up

The mic that ends the upgrade cycle

Shure MV6 USB Gaming Microphone for Streaming, Podcasting & Recording - Dynamic USB-C Mic with Voice Isolation, Auto Level Mode, DSP Audio Control & Headphone Monitoring, Black | Voice Isolation, Digital Popper Stopper and Denoiser, 3.5mm Monitoring, Includes Stand and USB-C Cable

4.6 ★★★★½1,200 ratings1,000 bought last month

Best combined standing on the two signals we can verify — rating (#2) and units sold last month (#1) — among 7 products in this price band.

Public Amazon data

Rating: 4.6 / 5
Ratings counted: 1,200
Bought last month: 1,000
Beat: 6 others in band

$140–200

One-time · checked on Amazon, not shown live

Check price on Amazon Why this one

FIFINE AmpliGame AM8 USB/XLR Dynamic Microphone for Gaming Streaming | Podcast Mic with RGB Light, Mute Button, Headphones Jack, Desktop Stand, for Vocal Recording Singing YouTube

#2Buy itAmazonEntry

Good enough to publish

FIFINE AmpliGame AM8 USB/XLR Dynamic Microphone for Gaming Streaming | Podcast Mic with RGB Light, Mute Button, Headphones Jack, Desktop Stand, for Vocal Recording Singing YouTube

4.6 ★★★★½11,600 ratings10,000 bought last month

Best combined standing on the two signals we can verify — rating (#5) and units sold last month (#1) — among 19 products in this price band.

Public Amazon data

Rating: 4.6 / 5
Ratings counted: 11,600
Bought last month: 10,000
Beat: 18 others in band

$45–70

One-time · checked on Amazon, not shown live

Check price on Amazon Why this one

#3Hire itFiverrNo learning curve

Hire an editor per episode

Send the raw file, get back a mixed episode. The cost never stops, and neither does the convenience.

What it gets you

+ No software to learn, at any point

+ Pause it any week you don't publish

+ Someone else owns loudness compliance

What it costs you

– Recurring forever — it tracks your output

– Cannot fix a bad recording, only a messy one

– Quality varies by seller, and we haven't tested sellers

Route analysis · not tested

Cost shape: Per episode, indefinitely
Price source: Fiverr's published range
What it can't fix: Room reverb, wrong mic
Rough break-even: ~6–8 episodes vs buying the mic

$50–400

Per episode · per episode · Fiverr's published package range

Compare on Fiverr What it costs

DIY

#4Do it yourselfCheapest in cash

Edit it yourself

Cheapest in money, most expensive in hours. Fine at monthly cadence, punishing at daily.

What it gets you

+ The free options are genuinely capable

+ Full control over pacing and tone

+ The skill carries into every future episode

What it costs you

– 1.5–2× episode length while you're learning

– Loudness compliance is easy to get wrong unnoticed

– The cost is your evenings, which no invoice shows

Route analysis · not tested

Cost shape: Free, or a monthly subscription
Time per episode: Under 1× to 2× episode length
Hidden cost: Your evenings
Makes sense at: Monthly or fortnightly cadence

$0–30/mo

Per month · Audacity is free; transcript-based editors sit at the top of that range

What it costs

The bit the budget forgets

You'll need these too

microphone boom arm

A desk stand transmits every keyboard thump into the mic. This is not optional.

$45–70Check on Amazon

Audio-Technica ATH-M50X Professional Studio Monitor Headphones, Black, Professional Grade, Critically Acclaimed, with Detachable Cable | Closed-Back, 45mm Drivers, 3 Detachable Cables Included, 6.3mm Adapter, Foldable Swivel Earcups, 38ω Impedance

closed back studio headphones

Open-back headphones bleed into the mic. You find out in the edit, which is too late.

$130–190Check on Amazon