How to advertise on The Bill Simmons Podcast: what it costs, who buys, and how to book

The Bill Simmons Podcast sells its host-read inventory through The Ringer, Spotify's podcast arm, and it's quoted per campaign rather than off a public rate card. Spotsnow data shows roughly 8 in 10 of the show's tracked ads are direct-response reads, and its top host-read buyer, LinkedIn, has run roughly 16 to 19 ads. That mix tells a buyer this is a feed built to move product, not just build a logo. Spotsnow estimates all of this from tracked advertiser activity, not audience surveys.

You can see the full profile for The Bill Simmons Podcast on Spotsnow, including its advertiser roster.

Why The Bill Simmons Podcast is built for host-read direct response

Bill Simmons hosts, and he's not a rented voice. He founded Grantland and The Ringer, wrote as ESPN's "The Sports Guy" for years, and now runs content strategy for The Ringer inside Spotify.

The show sits in the sports category, and Spotsnow attributes a direct-response posture to it: roughly 8 in 10 tracked ads carry codes, URLs, or an offer the host can hand off cleanly. That matters because attribution is the whole game for a DR buyer. When Simmons reads a coded URL, the click traces back to him. Spotsnow estimates the show reaches roughly 670,000 listeners per episode, and that number is an estimate, not an audited count.

The format argument here is about attention. Simmons and his rotating crew run long, loose, conversational episodes, and the ad breaks land inside that rhythm rather than interrupting it. A listener who stays for a 90-minute NBA breakdown is still there when the read starts. That sustained attention is exactly what a host-read borrows, and it's why a coded offer converts better in this feed than the same script cut as a produced spot elsewhere.

The engagement shows up off the feed too. Spotsnow data shows an Apple Podcasts average around 4.4 stars across roughly 28,000 to 31,000 ratings, an Instagram following near 550,000, and roughly 270,000 YouTube subscribers. Simmons's influence is spread across the feed and social alike, and a coded read gets amplified on both.

Who is advertising on The Bill Simmons Podcast

The roster runs deep and skews toward brands chasing a US, male, higher-income audience: fintech, insurance, travel, telecom, and betting all show up. Recognizable recent names include FanDuel, State Farm, Expedia, Mint Mobile, and Netflix.

The anchor advertisers, broken down

PayPal

PayPal, a digital payments platform, has run roughly 37 to 43 ads on the show, with estimated total spend over $400K. Spotsnow classifies the buy as direct-response, split between host-read and produced spots. Fintech fits here because the audience is large, US-heavy, and already living on their phones, so a coded read meets them where they transact.

Michelob Ultra

Michelob Ultra, an active-lifestyle beer brand, has run roughly 26 to 30 ads, with estimated total spend over $350K. Spotsnow shows a mixed classification, host-read plus produced. A beer that markets itself around sport meets sports fans where they already are, and the sponsorship-style read fits that.

LinkedIn

LinkedIn, a professional networking platform, has run roughly 16 to 19 ads, with estimated total spend over $400K, and every one of them a host-read. Spotsnow classifies the buy as direct-response. It's a bet on Simmons's endorsement voice reaching a career-minded, higher-income male audience, and the all host-read pattern says LinkedIn wants his credibility, not just the impressions.

FanDuel, the category-native outlier

FanDuel runs roughly 23 to 27 ads as the show's on-air betting partner, tied into segments like "Guess the Lines." It's proof a partner-style objective works here too, not just a coded DR offer. When the show is already talking spreads, the sponsor becomes part of the content.

All spend figures are Spotsnow estimates.

Why sports brands cluster here

The advertiser mix is the tell. A payments platform, an insurer, a beer brand, and a sportsbook all writing checks at scale points at one thing: the audience is a US, mostly male, higher-earning sports fan who buys. Simmons brings the authority a category buyer can't manufacture. He's covered these leagues since the print days, he built two media companies on that credibility, and listeners treat his opinion as a signal. That authority transfers to whatever he reads. A sportsbook wants his spread talk, a fintech wants his coded URL, and a beer wants to sit next to the game. Spotsnow's roster shows well over 100 brands tracked in the recent window, and the repeat rate is high, which is the clearest sign the math works: brands don't come back to a read that doesn't pay.

How your ad could sound

FanDuel host-read on The Bill Simmons Podcast

The FanDuel read is a clean template for this feed. What works: Simmons frames it personally, calling the playoffs "one of my favorite times of the year," which ties the offer to a live seasonal moment and adds urgency. The coded URL, "fanduel.com/bs," is short, memorable, and traceable straight back to him. And the handoff back into the episode is natural, so the break never feels like a hard stop.

What's worth tightening: the "build the bet that fits your play, your way" line repeats itself and dilutes the hook. And the ask, "get started," is soft. A specific incentive attached to that same coded URL would give the listener a reason to act now instead of later. Best-practice host reads keep one clear offer and one clear code, and let the host's voice carry the rest.

View what a great sample ad looks like here.

What makes a show like this convert

1. The format holds attention. Long conversational episodes keep listeners through the break, so a host-read lands with the audience still tuned in.
2. The host is the credential. Simmons built The Ringer and Grantland and covered the leagues for decades, so his endorsement reads as a recommendation, not a rented slot.
3. The audience buys. Spotsnow estimates a US, mostly male, higher-income sports audience, exactly the profile fintech, insurance, and betting brands chase.
4. Buyers come back. FanDuel's roughly 23 to 27 ads is the kind of repeat volume that only happens when the coded reads pay for themselves.

The Bill Simmons Podcast in a nutshell

This feed reaches an estimated 670,000 mostly male, US-heavy, higher-income sports listeners per episode. LinkedIn, PayPal, and Michelob Ultra all buy here at scale, most of it host-read, and FanDuel runs as the show's betting partner. It's sold per campaign through The Ringer at Spotify, not off a rate card. If you're a direct-response brand with a coded offer and a US sports audience in mind, this is a conversion buy first and an awareness buy second.