podpull CLI
A command-line tool that finds podcast episodes on Apple Podcasts, RSS or Xiaoyuzhou and saves them as files, with agent support.
- 147 ★ on the repository
- Last commit
- MIT
Minimal access
Why this level
- The tool downloads files from the internet and writes them to disk.
- Rights to downloaded audio belong to the publisher.
Install
- Works in
In your terminal, with SkillFoxx CLI
npx skillfoxx add cli/podpullDetects the agents on your machine, shows the access level and pins the version.
Other ways to install
Access and checks
How we reviewMinimal accessThe tool runs nothing and makes no network calls.
- The tool downloads files from the internet and writes them to disk.
- Rights to downloaded audio belong to the publisher.
This is third-party code. Review the repository files before installing.
What it does
podpull is a Python CLI that searches for podcasts and downloads episodes straight to disk. Apple Podcasts hosts no audio and only points at each show RSS feed. The tool walks that chain: it fetches the feed URL through the iTunes Lookup API, reads audio links from `<enclosure>` tags and downloads the file with resume. File names in `YYYY-MM-DD - title` form are safe for cloud folders and Windows. It has an interactive episode picker with a progress bar and a browser UI. Apple links, RSS, Xiaoyuzhou and Ximalaya albums are resolved. The `podpull skills install` command writes instructions for detected agents.
Who it is for. People who save podcast episodes for offline listening or transcription and want to hand search and download to an agent in one sentence.
Good fit when
- A whole season is needed in one run with a regex filter on titles.
- An agent downloads an episode from an Apple Podcasts link and hands the file to transcription.
- A Xiaoyuzhou podcast is saved from an episode page link.
- A long download broke and must resume from the same place.
Not a fit when
- The podcast is paid or locked behind login and DRM.
- You need a text transcript, while the tool only downloads audio.
- The publisher terms forbid saving episodes.
Example request
Find the Apple Podcasts show with id 1532755821, list the five latest episodes and download the chosen one into the project folder.Limitations
The tool takes only what the feed serves in the open: no login, no DRM. Audio is under copyright, so follow the publisher terms yourself. Older Apple episodes missing from the recent feed window need the optional `yt-dlp`. Python 3.9 or newer is required. Agents receive instructions only after an explicit `podpull skills install`, and nothing is written before that. Run it again after a Homebrew upgrade.
How to disable. Run `podpull skills uninstall` to remove agent instructions, then `pipx uninstall podpull` or `brew uninstall podpull`. Downloaded files stay on disk.
FAQ
Which sources does it understand?
Apple Podcasts ids and links, RSS URLs, Xiaoyuzhou episode pages, links to a single Apple episode and Ximalaya albums.
How do I install it?
Run `pipx install podpull` or `pip install podpull`. macOS and Linux also have Homebrew: `brew install xiaoleiy/tap/podpull`.
Where do agent instructions go?
For Claude Code and Codex they are skills in `~/.claude/skills/podpull/` and `~/.codex/skills/podpull/`. OpenCode gets a `/podpull` command and Cursor a project rule.
How do I find a show?
`podpull search "query"` prints the show id, episode count, name and author. Set the country with `--country`.
Is there a graphical interface?
Yes, a browser UI is available on the project page and runs locally. The console has an interactive picker driven by arrows and space.
Discussion
No questions or reviews yet.
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README in short
Apple podcasts act as a directory of feed links. podpull takes direct audio URLs from RSS and downloads them with resume, and gives agents ready instructions.