Gearit
Podcast equipment for beginners, with UK prices
To start a podcast you need one microphone that plugs into your computer by USB, a stand that keeps it close to your mouth, and a pair of headphones. In the UK that is roughly £100 to £250 for everything, and it will sound better than most podcasts you listen to. The most common mistake is buying a mixer or an expensive XLR microphone first, which costs three times as much and sounds the same in an untreated room.
What you actually need
A dynamic USB microphone: £60 to £150. The Shure MV7+ is the one you’ll see on most desks and sits at the top of that range; there are sound options at the bottom of it. Dynamic matters more than brand: it hears your voice and not your room.
A stand or boom arm: £20 to £40. The mic needs to be a hand’s width from your mouth, and you won’t hold it there for an hour. A desk stand is fine; a boom arm clamped to the desk keeps the desk clear and lets you push it away between takes.
Headphones: £0 to £60. Closed-back, so the sound doesn’t leak back into the mic. Any pair you own will do to start.
A pop filter or foam windscreen: £5 to £15. Stops the hard “p” sounds thumping. Often comes in the box.
That’s it. Roughly £100 to £250 all in, recorded into free software on the computer you already have.
What you don’t need yet
An audio interface (£80 to £150) is only needed with an XLR microphone. A mixer or podcast console (£250 to £600) earns its place when you have two or more mics, guests on a call and sound effects to fire, and a solo show never gets there.Acoustic foam does less than a rug, curtains and a bookshelf, which you may already have. A camera is a separate question; if the podcast is audio-only, skip it entirely.
The mistake that costs the most
Buying up. A £300 condenser microphone into a £150 interface into a bare spare room sounds worse than a £90 dynamic USB mic in the same room, because the condenser faithfully records the room and the dynamic ignores it. The money went on the wrong part. Sound is a chain, and the room is a link in it.
Spending in the right order
Gearit treats a setup as five parts that multiply rather than add: Audio, Lighting, Video, Room & Position and Workflow. For an audio-only podcast the two that matter are Audio and Room, and the app scores each one so you can see which is actually holding you back. A setup with Audio at 74 and Room at 40 needs a rug, not a new microphone.
When something is worth buying, Gearit checks it against what you already own first. A RØDECaster Pro II at £600 scores 92 out of 100 as a product, and the comparison shows the honest trade: two mic sockets and a lot of money per point. Then it gives plug-by-plug instructions for connecting what you bought to what you had. The scanning happens on your iPhone and stays there; the unlock for the plan and the check is £24.99 once, not a subscription.
Questions people ask
What's the cheapest podcast setup that sounds good?
A USB dynamic microphone around £60 to £100, a desk stand or boom arm around £20 to £40, and any closed-back headphones you already own. Record into free software on your computer. That's a complete, good-sounding setup for well under £150.
USB or XLR microphone?
USB to start. It plugs straight into a computer and needs nothing else. XLR needs an audio interface (£80 to £150) and gives you more flexibility later, which is worth it when you have two or more people in the room, not before.
Do I need a mixer?
Not for one or two people. A mixer or an all-in-one podcast console like a RØDECaster is a studio in a box, and it's wonderful at £600 when you have guests, sound effects and phone calls to manage. For a solo show it's the most expensive way to add nothing.
Dynamic or condenser microphone?
Dynamic, for almost everyone recording at home. It picks up what's close and ignores the room, the fridge and the traffic. Condensers are more sensitive and sound beautiful in a treated studio and awful in a spare bedroom.
How do I know what to upgrade next?
Score what you have. Gearit scans or searches for your gear, scores the setup as a whole and names the weakest part, then lists upgrades cheapest first with real prices. If the room is the weak link, it'll say so before you spend £300 on a mic.