The 25 Best D&D Podcasts (2026)

Critical Role is the show that turned a group of professional voice actors rolling dice around a table into a full-blown cultural phenomenon. What started as a home game between friends like Matthew Mercer, Laura Bailey, Travis Willingham, and Sam Riegel has grown into something with over 410 episodes, four major campaigns, and a dedicated streaming platform called Beacon. The format is straightforward: long-form, unscripted D&D sessions where the cast plays completely in character, often for three to four hours at a stretch. These are trained performers, so the emotional range is staggering. One moment you are laughing at Sam Riegel's absurd ad reads, and the next you are genuinely tearing up over a character's sacrifice. Campaign 4 shook things up in a big way by bringing in Brennan Lee Mulligan as Game Master, stepping away from the familiar world of Exandria into Mulligan's own setting of Araman. The cast expanded too, adding Robbie Daymond, Aabria Iyengar, Whitney Moore, and Alexander Ward alongside the original crew. Episodes now drop in two parts each week. The production quality is top-tier, with professional sound mixing that translates surprisingly well from the video format to audio-only listening. If you have never experienced actual play D&D before, this is the gold standard that everyone else gets measured against. Fair warning though: each campaign is a massive time commitment. Start with Campaign 1 or jump straight into Campaign 4 for a fresh entry point.

The McElroy family turned a bonus episode of their comedy advice show into one of the most beloved actual play podcasts ever made. Justin, Travis, and Griffin McElroy play alongside their dad Clint, and the result is this wonderful collision of genuine family dynamics and absurd fantasy storytelling. The first campaign, Balance, is widely considered a masterpiece of the genre. Griffin's DMing builds from goofy monster-of-the-week adventures into this sweeping emotional epic that had listeners openly sobbing by the finale. It is genuinely one of the best stories told in any medium, and the fact that it emerged from improv dice rolls makes it even more impressive. Since Balance, the show has become more experimental. They have rotated DM duties, tried different game systems, and explored shorter arcs. Recent campaigns include Versus Dracula, a vampire hunter story, and various Marvel-inspired crossover adventures. Not every arc hits as hard as Balance, but the family chemistry never gets old. Clint McElroy rolling terribly and then somehow saving the day is a recurring joy. The podcast drops biweekly on the Maximum Fun network and has racked up over 400 episodes and 35,000 Apple Podcasts ratings. The tone leans heavily comedic with genuine heart underneath. If you want actual play that prioritizes story and character over rules accuracy, and you do not mind a dad who still confuses his spell slots, this is your show. The Balance arc alone is worth the listen even if you never touch another episode.

NADDPOD, as the fans call it, is what happens when CollegeHumor alumni decide to take D&D extremely seriously while also being extremely funny about it. Brian Murphy runs the game as DM, and he is absurdly good at building interconnected worlds with callbacks that pay off dozens of episodes later. Emily Axford plays with a tactical brilliance that regularly catches Murphy off guard, and she also composes the original music for the show, which adds a surprisingly cinematic layer. Jake Hurwitz and Caldwell Tanner round out the party with characters that range from lovable idiots to genuinely compelling heroes. The first campaign set in Bahumia is a fantastic starting point, running about 100 episodes with a complete and satisfying arc. Since then, they have completed campaigns in Eldermourne and the space-fantasy setting of the Third Mates, plus shorter side campaigns like Trinyvale and the recent Trinyvale x Strahd crossover. The humor is sharp and improvisational, but the show never loses sight of real storytelling. Big emotional moments land hard because you actually care about these characters. They also produce D&D Court episodes where listeners submit disputes to be settled through dice rolls, which are genuinely hilarious standalone listens. With over 820 episodes, 38,000 Patreon subscribers, and a Radio City Music Hall live show announced, NADDPOD has earned its spot near the top of any D&D podcast list. The Headgum production keeps everything sounding clean and professional.

Dungeons and Daddies has one of the best elevator pitches in podcasting: four dads from our world get transported into a fantasy realm and have to rescue their sons. That premise alone is funny, but the execution is where this show really shines. Anthony Burch serves as DM, joined by Freddie Wong, Matt Arnold, Will Campos, and Beth May as players who lean way more into comedy and character work than strict rules adherence. And honestly, that is what makes it so good. The show barely follows D&D mechanics half the time, treating the game system more as a loose framework for collaborative improv storytelling. Season one follows the dads on their rescue mission and builds to a genuinely emotional conclusion. Season two flipped the script with the dads' kids as protagonists. Season three departed from D&D entirely, using Call of Cthulhu rules for a horror-comedy campaign. The newest season, Grandpas and Galaxies, launched in early 2025 and sends grandfathers into space using the Dark Matter sci-fi D&D conversion. Each season works as a standalone story, so you can jump in anywhere, though starting from season one gives you the full emotional payoff. With a 4.9 rating from over 10,000 reviews, the audience clearly agrees this is something special. The episodes release semimonthly and are tightly edited compared to most actual play shows, keeping the pacing snappy. If you want actual play that treats D&D as comedy scaffolding rather than a strict ruleset, this is your best bet.

Mark Hulmes runs one of the longest continuously running D&D campaigns on the internet, and High Rollers is the result. The show began back in 2015 as a Yogscast offshoot and has since grown into a sprawling saga spanning multiple campaigns and hundreds of episodes. Hulmes is the kind of DM other DMs study. He builds detailed NPCs, tracks consequences across dozens of sessions, and gives his players enough rope to either save the world or hang themselves with style. The main cast, including Kim Richards, Chris Trott, Katie Morrison, and Tom Hazell, have been playing together long enough that their characters feel less like roleplaying exercises and more like old friends you are catching up with. The current flagship campaign, Aerois, has been running for years and features some of the most earned emotional payoffs in actual-play audio. What makes the podcast version work is how cleanly it is edited down from the video streams. You get the character voices, the dice drama, and the music cues without the awkward pauses. Combat encounters are tense without becoming tedious. Roleplay scenes get room to breathe. If you want a group that clearly loves the hobby and takes it seriously without getting precious about it, give the first few episodes a shot. The hook sets in fast.

Tales from the Stinky Dragon started at Rooster Teeth but went independent in 2024 when the company shut down, and the transition actually made the show stronger. The cast includes Gustavo Sorola as Game Master, with Barbara Dunkelman, Blaine Gibson, Chris Demarais, and Jon Risinger as players. What makes Stinky Dragon stand out in the crowded actual play space is the production quality. This is not a raw recording of people sitting around a table. Every episode features fully voiced NPC characters, immersive sound design, original music, and careful editing that keeps the pacing tight. It feels closer to an audio drama that happens to use D&D rules than a typical let's-play podcast. The show is rated clean, which is unusual for the genre and makes it genuinely accessible to younger listeners or anyone who does not want explicit content mixed into their fantasy adventure. With around 208 episodes released biweekly, the back catalog is substantial but not overwhelming. The independent team launched a Patreon to fund production and also partnered with Critical Role Productions to distribute through Beacon. That partnership makes sense given the overlap in audience. The comedy leans on the cast's natural chemistry, which goes back years to their Rooster Teeth days, and the stories balance humor with enough dramatic stakes to keep you invested. If you are looking for a family-friendly actual play show with professional-grade audio production, this is one of the best options available.

Oxventure started as a YouTube series from the Outside Xtra and Outside Xbox crews and grew into one of the most approachable D&D actual play podcasts around. The cast -- Jane Douglas, Andy Farrant, Mike Channell, Ellen Rose, and Luke Westaway, with Johnny Chiodini as DM -- play like a group of friends who happen to be funny, not comedians performing for an audience. That distinction matters. The humor comes naturally from the characters and situations rather than from anyone trying to land bits.

The format leans toward shorter, self-contained adventures rather than sprawling multi-year campaigns, which makes Oxventure a good pick if you want complete story arcs without committing to 300 episodes. Each session runs at a comfortable length, and the DM keeps things moving without bogging down in mechanical minutiae. The party includes standout characters like Prudence the tiefling warlock and Dob the half-orc bard, who have become fan favorites for their unpredictable decisions and genuinely funny roleplaying moments.

With over 230 episodes in the catalog, there is plenty to binge, and the show has expanded beyond D&D into Deadlands and Blades in the Dark for variety. The production is clean, the audio is solid, and new listeners can jump into any story arc without needing prior context. If you have been looking for a D&D podcast that feels like sitting in on game night with people who actually enjoy each other's company, Oxventure delivers exactly that. It is part of the Geek Media Podcast Network and available on all major platforms.

Three Black Halflings is hosted by Jasper William Cartwright, Olivia Kennedy (Liv), and Jeremy Cobb -- three friends who bring strong opinions, sharp humor, and genuinely thoughtful perspectives to their conversations about Dungeons and Dragons and pop culture. Jasper trained at London’s Royal Central School of Speech and Drama and has credits with the BBC; Liv writes and produces video content for Dicebreaker; Jeremy is an actor and writer who has appeared on Not Another D&D Podcast. Together they create a show that feels like eavesdropping on the best table talk you have ever heard.

The podcast regularly mixes formats. Some weeks you get deep discussions on topics like trust and trauma at the gaming table, or roundtable episodes featuring indie actual-play creators talking about production and storytelling. Other weeks the hosts run one-shot adventures -- their recent BEASTS series showcased original worldbuilding with the kind of energy and character work you would expect from three performers at the top of their game.

A big part of what makes Three Black Halflings stand out is its commitment to exploring diversity in tabletop spaces. The hosts talk openly about representation in the hobby, from character design to community culture, without ever making it feel like a lecture. It is a show that manages to be both entertaining and important, treating its audience like adults who can handle nuance. Published weekly through Headgum, new episodes land on Thursdays.

Unprepared Casters solves one of the biggest problems with actual play podcasts: the commitment. Instead of one sprawling campaign that runs for hundreds of episodes, hosts Haley Whipjack and Amelia Som structure their show around short, self-contained arcs of six to eight episodes each. Every arc brings a new story, new characters, and often new guest players from the broader TTRPG content creator community. Haley and Amelia trade off as Game Master between arcs, and their DMing styles are different enough that each swap feels like getting a fresh show. The format means you can jump in at any arc without needing to know what happened before, which is incredibly refreshing in a genre where most shows expect you to listen to 200 episodes of backstory. Each arc explores a different corner of D&D and tabletop gaming, from classic dungeon crawls to more experimental narrative setups. The guest rotation keeps the energy varied and introduces you to creators you might not have discovered otherwise. With about 189 episodes and a perfect 5.0 rating on Apple Podcasts from 400 reviews, the show has found an audience that appreciates the anthology approach. Episodes drop biweekly and are available on the Realm podcast network. The production is clean, the chemistry between the two hosts is warm and playful, and the shorter arc structure means every story has real stakes because there is an actual ending coming. If you love the actual play format but cannot commit to a 400-episode campaign, Unprepared Casters is exactly what you need.

Cast Party starts with a premise that hooks you immediately: four cast and crew members from a Hollywood film set find themselves transported to the fantasy world of Fendraeya, gaining new powers in a reality none of them really know how to process. It is a fish-out-of-water setup that creates natural comedy and genuine character development as modern-day people try to navigate a traditional fantasy setting. The show is produced by Pickaxe (the same UK network behind High Rollers) and has been running since October 2020, building up over 250 episodes across five seasons. The current campaign features a second group of characters in what functions as a prequel to the original story, which is a bold structural choice that adds depth to the world without requiring you to have heard everything that came before. Episodes run anywhere from 47 minutes to nearly two hours and release weekly, giving you a steady stream of content. The production includes edited audio with sound design elements that enhance key moments without losing the spontaneous feel of actual play. Reviews consistently praise the blend of comedy and tragedy, and with a 4.9 rating it is clear the balance works. The cast brings real emotional investment to their characters, and the longer episode format gives scenes room to breathe. If you are looking for a serialized D&D podcast with a creative premise and strong character work that flies under the radar compared to the bigger names, Cast Party deserves your attention.

Pork Fried Dice is the kind of actual play podcast that makes you feel like you pulled up a chair to someone's home game. The show has been going strong since 2017 with over 400 weekly episodes, and that longevity is a testament to how well the group works together. The cast includes Alex, K.T., Erick, and Abby, playing through long-form D&D campaigns with a heavy emphasis on roleplay and character interaction. The humor runs toward crude jokes, anachronistic references, and an impressive quantity of puns, which either sounds like your ideal Friday night or your worst nightmare, and you probably already know which camp you fall in. What separates Pork Fried Dice from the slickly produced bigger shows is the rawness. This is not heavily edited. You hear the table talk, the side conversations, the moments where someone forgets what their character can do. For some listeners, that is the whole appeal. It feels authentic in a way that polished productions sometimes lose. The group takes the story seriously even when they do not take themselves seriously, and over 400 episodes of character development means the emotional stakes are real when things go sideways. The show updates weekly on Castos and has a dedicated Discord community and Ko-Fi subscription for bonus content. The Apple Podcasts rating sits at 4.7, which reflects a loyal but smaller audience compared to the heavy hitters. If you have already burned through the major actual play shows and want something that captures the messy, hilarious reality of a long-running home game, Pork Fried Dice delivers exactly that energy.

Girls Who Don't DnD started with a premise so simple it practically sells itself: three women who have literally never played Dungeons & Dragons sit down with a DM named Cory, who owns all the books but hasn't really read them, and they just... figure it out together. What makes the show special is how genuinely they stumble through the rules while accidentally creating a campaign that longtime players would envy. The learning curve is part of the entertainment. You get to hear real "wait, I can do THAT?" moments that veterans forgot they once had.

Cory turns out to be a surprisingly talented storyteller and voice actor, building a homebrew world that grows more intricate with each session. The players bring an infectious energy -- they care about their characters in ways that feel unforced, and their tactical decisions range from brilliant to hilariously catastrophic. Episodes run around two and a half hours, released monthly, which gives each session room to breathe.

The production quality is genuinely impressive for what started as a casual actual play. Sound design, music cues, and clean audio make this a polished listen. With 89 episodes across two seasons and a 4.8-star rating from 380 reviewers on Apple Podcasts, the show has built a dedicated following. If you started playing D&D during the pandemic boom or you've always been curious but intimidated, this is the show that meets you exactly where you are. It proves you don't need decades of experience to tell a great story around a table.

The Dungeon Dudes -- Monty Martin and Kelly McLaughlin -- are already well known for their D&D YouTube channel, but Dungeons of Drakkenheim is where they really flex their storytelling muscles. The show follows a party navigating the meteor-blasted ruins of a once-great fantasy city, and the setting alone sets it apart from most actual plays. Drakkenheim feels lived-in and dangerous, with factions competing for control of corrupted magical resources that warp everything they touch.

Monty runs a tight ship as DM. His worldbuilding is detailed without becoming a lecture, and he has a knack for putting players in situations where every choice has real consequences. The cast -- including Jill Danaitis and Joe O'Gorman -- bring distinct characters with conflicting motivations, which creates natural tension that doesn't feel manufactured. Combat is well-paced and tactical, but the roleplay moments carry genuine emotional weight.

With 248 episodes across three seasons and a 4.9-star rating from 362 reviews, Drakkenheim has earned serious credibility. The first campaign is a complete 52-episode arc, which makes it a perfect entry point -- no commitment to hundreds of hours before you know if you like it. The show was popular enough that it became an official D&D Beyond campaign module, meaning you can actually play through the same story at your own table. New episodes stream live on Tuesdays before hitting podcast feeds. If you appreciate actual plays that balance dark fantasy atmosphere with moments of genuine comedy, Drakkenheim delivers consistently.

Seven self-described chuckleheads playing D&D 5e and laughing way too loud -- that's the pitch for Legends of Avantris, and honestly, that energy carries across every one of their 372 episodes. The show runs multiple interconnected campaigns set in the world of Avantris, including their well-known "Once Upon a Witchlight" series based on the official Wild Beyond the Witchlight module. What makes them stand out is the sheer variety: different campaigns spotlight different players and tones, so you can find your preferred flavor without leaving the same podcast feed.

The cast has real chemistry. They commit hard to their characters while never taking themselves so seriously that the comedy suffers. Improv chops are on full display, and the voice acting ranges from surprisingly good to intentionally absurd -- sometimes within the same scene. The production values reflect a group that has been doing this for nearly six years and keeps improving their craft.

With 919 ratings and a 4.8-star average on Apple Podcasts, Avantris has built one of the larger actual play communities you might not have heard of yet. Their interconnected storytelling means recurring characters and callbacks reward long-time listeners, but each campaign works as its own starting point. The "Once Upon a Witchlight" arc is probably the best entry -- it follows a published adventure, so the structure is tight. If you want an actual play that feels like a group of close friends having the best game night of their lives, week after week, this is it.

Fumbling 4 and the All Mighty Crit is a live-play D&D 5e campaign set in Altaris, a homebrew world that's been carefully built across three seasons and 114 episodes. The name tells you everything about the vibe: these players fumble, they crit, and the space between those two extremes is where the comedy lives. It's improv-heavy actual play with professional audio production that punches above its weight class.

The show leans into the comedic side of D&D without abandoning the story. You'll get genuine dramatic beats and character development mixed in with moments of absolute absurdity -- the kind where someone rolls a natural 1 at the worst possible time and the whole table loses it. Episodes run about an hour, landing monthly, which makes the pacing digestible. Season 3 is currently in progress, with the party dealing with demons, chaos shards, and golden demons that sound exactly as wild as they are.

At 4.9 stars on Apple Podcasts and three seasons deep, Fumbling 4 has quietly built a loyal audience. The production quality -- clean audio, good mixing, thoughtful editing -- makes it clear the team takes the craft seriously even when the gameplay gets ridiculous. They maintain an active community across Twitter, Discord, YouTube, and Patreon. If you're looking for a mid-length actual play that balances genuine laughs with a homebrew world worth caring about, this one rewards the investment from episode one.

The Glass Cannon Podcast is the flagship actual-play show from the Glass Cannon Network, and it has spent more than a decade proving that tabletop RPG audio drama can be every bit as gripping as prestige TV. Hosted by Troy Lavallee, the show follows a rotating crew of skilled improvisers and seasoned GMs as they bring Paizo's meatgrinder Pathfinder adventures to life with voice work, music, and sound design that sets the bar for the genre. The current campaign and earlier classics like Giantslayer have developed a loyal, packed-house live audience that regularly sells out theaters across the country. What makes the show work is the balance: the cast respects the rules and takes the dice seriously, but they never let mechanics crush the comedy or the heartbreak. You get real consequences, real character arcs, and jokes that land because the players know each other cold. Production values are polished without feeling sanitized, and the editing respects your time. New listeners can jump in with one of the many limited series the network runs alongside the main feed, and veterans get rewarded with callbacks going back years. If you want a long-running, high-craft D&D and Pathfinder show that treats actual play as a serious storytelling medium, this is the one to bookmark.

The Unexpectables began as a small group of friends streaming their weekly home game and quietly grew into one of the most beloved long-form Dungeons & Dragons actual plays on the internet. The party, a half-orc paladin, a bard, a rogue, and a warforged fighter among them, roams the city of Alivast and the surrounding world under the watchful eye of DM Monty, whose homebrew setting is rich with guild politics, monster hunts, and genuinely scary villains. What sets the show apart is how much the players care about their characters. Friendships form, grudges fester, and the in-character moments land because the cast has been together long enough to trust each other at the table. Combat is tactical and weighty without bogging down, and the downtime roleplay is where the show really shines, full of awkward flirting, guild drama, and small kindnesses that make the big fights matter. The audio versions are carefully edited from the live streams so podcast listeners get the story without the stream chatter. If you want a D&D show that feels like eavesdropping on a great home game rather than a produced performance, start here and prepare to binge hundreds of hours.

Join the Party is a collaborative storytelling show from the Multitude podcast collective that treats actual play as a craft project. DM Eric Silver runs a rotating cast through original campaigns built from the ground up, ranging from high-fantasy D&D to modern supernatural mysteries to cozy slice-of-life arcs. Rather than chasing the longest possible campaign, the team commits to finite seasons with clear beginnings, middles, and ends, which means new listeners are never more than a season behind and every arc actually pays off. The show also includes a short "afterparty" segment where the cast explains choices, teaches mechanics, and demystifies the hobby for people who have never touched a twenty-sided die. That educational streak runs through everything: Join the Party wants you to feel welcomed into tabletop gaming, not lectured. The players, including Brandon Grugle, Amanda McLoughlin, and Julia Schifini, bring warm comic timing and a genuine emotional generosity to their characters. Production is clean, music cues are thoughtful, and the pacing respects working adults with commutes. If you want an approachable, funny, queer-friendly actual play that takes its story craft seriously without drowning in lore, this is a great place to start.

Rude Tales of Magic is a long-form 5e comedy actual play hosted by writer and DM Branson Reese, who guides a party of unforgettable weirdos through the world of Cordelia with the energy of a cartoon villain and the soul of a storybook narrator. The show built its reputation on absurd character names, deeply stupid jokes, and a shockingly committed emotional backbone that sneaks up on you around the time you realize you actually care whether the Woolly Buddies survive. The cast leans into bits without ever letting the humor derail the stakes, and Branson's worldbuilding is dense enough to reward close listening while staying breezy enough for casual fans. Expect talking animals, cursed items, strange gods, and genuine tears at the end of most arcs. The production is stripped down and raw in the best way: it sounds like a group of comedians who love each other goofing around a table, which is exactly what it is. If Dungeons and Daddies and The Adventure Zone are in your regular rotation and you want another character-driven D&D comedy that rewards patience with payoff, Rude Tales of Magic belongs on the shortlist.

Worlds Beyond Number is the listener-funded passion project of game master Brennan Lee Mulligan alongside Erika Ishii, Aabria Iyengar, and Lou Wilson, four of the most recognized performers in modern actual play. Freed from network constraints, the team takes its time: sessions are long, prep is meticulous, and the pacing leaves room for quiet character moments that most shows would edit out. The flagship campaign, The Wizard the Witch and the Wild One, follows three childhood friends across decades of a richly imagined world called Umora, weaving fairy-tale logic, folk horror, and real political weight into a story that feels more like a literary novel than a game session. Composer Jasper William Cartwright scores the show live in post, and producer Taylor Moore's sound design turns every forest and firelit cottage into a place you can almost smell. In between the main campaign, the crew releases shorter Fireside Chats and side stories that let them play with new systems and tones. This is actual play at its most ambitious: slow, gorgeous, emotionally devastating, and worth every minute of the wait between episodes.