The 9 Best Usmle Step 1 Podcasts (2026)

If you spend any time in medical school study groups or online forums, you have probably heard someone mention Divine Intervention. It is one of those resources that gets passed down from upper-year students like a prized set of notes. Creator Divine-Favour Anene has been producing episodes since 2018, and the archive now spans over 630 installments covering everything from biochemistry fundamentals to complex clinical integrations across USMLE Steps 1 through 3 and shelf exams.

What sets this podcast apart from most board review audio is the emphasis on pathophysiology and actually understanding why things happen, rather than just memorizing isolated facts. Episodes range from quick 4-minute targeted reviews to longer 50-minute deep sessions on topics like travel medicine or integrated clinical cases. The pacing is steady and lecture-like, which makes it easy to follow along even when you are half-asleep on a treadmill.

The show earns a 4.8 rating from nearly a thousand reviewers on Apple Podcasts, which is pretty remarkable for a medical education resource. New episodes still drop regularly, and the website organizes everything by topic so you can find exactly the organ system or subject you need. Some students use it as a primary study companion alongside First Aid and UWorld, while others treat it as supplementary review. Either way, it is hard to overstate how much ground this podcast covers for free.

Medbullets built its reputation as a free online medical education platform, and their Step 1 podcast takes that same approach to audio. With over 1,700 episodes and counting, this is easily one of the largest collections of USMLE Step 1 review content in podcast form. New episodes drop daily, each running about 8 to 16 minutes, which makes them perfect for slotting into a commute or a quick study break between classes.

The format follows a consistent structure. Each episode opens with a clinical vignette-style case, walks through the relevant topic, then presents a board-style question with a full explanation of the answer choices. Topics span every organ system and subject you would expect: gastrointestinal, endocrine, cardiology, pathology, pharmacology, you name it. Think of it as having a study buddy who reads you a focused Medbullets page out loud and then quizzes you on it.

The podcast holds a 4.9 rating from 88 reviewers, and students consistently praise how digestible the episodes feel. Because each one targets a single concept, like diffuse esophageal spasm or Sheehan syndrome, you can build a study playlist around whatever topics you are weakest on. The short episode length also means you can easily re-listen to tricky subjects without a huge time commitment. For daily passive review that actually sticks, this one is hard to beat.

This podcast is essentially the complete Crush Step 1 textbook by Dr. Ted O'Connell, Ryan Pedigo, and Thomas Blair, narrated as an audio course. That alone makes it unusual. Most Step 1 review books just sit on your shelf collecting highlighter marks, but here the entire text has been adapted specifically for listening, with 49 episodes organized by chapter covering every major subject tested on the exam.

The content was curated by a review board of medical students and residents who scored in the 99th percentile on Step 1, so the material is genuinely high-yield rather than just comprehensive for the sake of it. Episodes run between 30 minutes and over an hour depending on the chapter, with topics split into parts when they get particularly dense. You will find everything from pulmonology and reproductive systems to cardiology and GI, presented in a clear, textbook-lecture style.

The podcast carries a 4.6 rating from 82 reviewers. One thing to note: the last episode dropped in September 2022, so there will not be new content. But Step 1 fundamentals do not change that dramatically, and having a complete textbook available as free audio remains incredibly useful. Many students use it for initial passes through material or as background review during workouts and chores. If you learn well by listening and want structured, chapter-by-chapter coverage, this fills that niche perfectly.

USMLE-Rx is the team behind the popular Rx Bricks interactive learning modules, and this podcast brings those same bite-sized lessons into audio form. Each episode covers a specific basic science or clinical topic, from renal tubular physiology to shock to neurology question labs, and the production quality reflects the fact that this comes from a well-established test prep company rather than a solo creator.

The format has a built-in interactive element that works surprisingly well for audio. The hosts present embedded knowledge check questions throughout each episode and actually encourage you to pause, commit to an answer, and then listen to the explanation. It turns what could be passive listening into something closer to active recall practice. The 102 episodes vary in length: standalone topic reviews tend to be shorter, while the Question Lab sessions, which walk through full USMLE-style question sets by specialty, can run about an hour.

With a 4.9 rating from 116 reviewers, this is one of the highest-rated USMLE podcasts on Apple Podcasts. The show is still actively publishing new episodes as of early 2026, with recent additions covering Step 2 CK cardiology and neurology question labs. For Step 1 specifically, the basic science brick episodes are gold. The presentation is polished, the explanations are thorough without being overwhelming, and the question-embedded format genuinely helps things stick.

InsideTheBoards has been a fixture in the USMLE prep space for years, and their Study Smarter Podcast distills that expertise into a conversational question review format. The show features hosts like Swati and Eva alongside guest physicians and educators, including Dr. Maxwell Cooper from DaVinci Academy, who break down board-style questions in real time. It is less lecture and more like eavesdropping on a really productive study session.

Across 164 episodes, the team covers topics ranging from biochemistry and ethics to bone tumors and pleural effusions. Episodes run anywhere from 13 to 50 minutes, and the conversational style means you actually hear the reasoning process behind each answer, not just the final correct choice. One reviewer called it the audio equivalent of UWorld, which is about the highest compliment you can give a USMLE resource.

The podcast holds a 4.7 rating from 178 reviewers on Apple Podcasts. The show wrapped its active run in mid-2022, but the question dissection content remains just as relevant because the reasoning principles behind USMLE questions have not fundamentally changed. Students who learn best through discussion rather than straight lecture tend to gravitate toward this one. Produced by Ars Longa Media with executive oversight from Patrick C. Beeman, MD, the production values are solid and the explanations are genuinely useful for building clinical reasoning skills.

MedPrepToGo takes a straightforward approach: each episode presents three USMLE Step 1 questions from a specific subject area, then walks through the answers in detail. The hosts are Dr. Raj Dasgupta, a quadruple board-certified physician and associate professor at USC, and Dr. Ted O'Connell, who directs medical education at Kaiser Permanente Northern California and has authored over 20 medical textbooks. So the credentials behind the explanations are substantial.

Episodes cover a rotating set of subjects including pathology, neurology, genetics, immunology, and biochemistry, with most running between 12 and 27 minutes. The three-question format keeps things focused and prevents that glazed-over feeling you get from marathon study sessions. You can realistically knock out an episode during a lunch break or while walking between classes and come away having actively worked through real exam-style problems.

The podcast has earned a perfect 5.0 rating from 17 reviewers, which is a small sample but reflects genuinely strong content. With 66 episodes and weekly updates, it is still growing. The connection to MedPrepToGo's broader ecosystem, which includes the Beyond the Pearls podcast and the Morning Report book series from Elsevier, means the content aligns with trusted published resources. For students who want question-based audio review without filler, this delivers exactly that.

Based on Elsevier's Morning Report book series, Beyond the Pearls takes clinical case presentations and turns them into engaging audio episodes. Dr. Raj Dasgupta, the series editor and a quadruple board-certified physician at USC, leads the discussions through 224 episodes that cover an impressive range of medical specialties from psychiatry and pulmonology to internal medicine and emergency cases.

The format mimics a hospital morning report or grand rounds session. Each episode presents a clinical scenario, works through the differential diagnosis, highlights must-know pearls, and wraps up with assessment questions. Episodes typically run 18 to 25 minutes for standard cases, though some comprehensive lectures stretch past an hour. The case-based approach is particularly effective for Step 1 students who want to see how basic science concepts actually apply to clinical scenarios, which is increasingly how the exam tests material anyway.

With 224 episodes and a 4.1 rating from 14 reviewers, the show has built a substantial library. Some listeners have noted occasional tangents, but the core clinical content is solid and well-organized. Dr. Dasgupta brings genuine enthusiasm and a knack for making complex cases feel approachable. If you are the kind of learner who remembers information better when it is attached to a patient story rather than an isolated fact, this podcast matches that learning style well. The connection to published Elsevier textbooks also means the content has been through formal editorial review.

Sam Smith writes, records, and mixes every episode of Step 1 Basics himself, and that solo production approach gives the show a distinctly personal feel. Across 116 episodes, he covers the major organ systems and subject areas tested on USMLE Step 1, from cardiovascular and pulmonary to microbiology, psychiatry, and rheumatology. The episodes are designed to be listened to repeatedly, almost like audio flashcards that you can loop while studying.

Most episodes clock in between 8 and 20 minutes, which keeps them tight and focused on a single concept. The organization is clean: episodes are grouped by subject with numbered entries within each section, so you can easily build a playlist for whatever block you are studying. Topics include things like gout versus pseudogout, rheumatologic emergencies, and antibody review, each tackled with enough depth to be useful but not so much that your attention wanders.

The podcast has a 4.6 rating from 27 reviewers. Listeners consistently praise Smith's clear and steady delivery, which makes the content easy to follow even on repeated listens. A few reviewers mention that some of the sound effects and mnemonics feel a bit forced, but the core teaching is solid. For students who want no-frills, concise audio lessons organized by system that they can play on repeat during commutes or workouts, Step 1 Basics fills that role reliably. It is the kind of podcast you keep coming back to when you need a quick refresher on a specific topic.

Chase DiMarco takes a different angle from most USMLE podcasts. Instead of reviewing specific medical topics, the Medical Mnemonist focuses on how to study more effectively. The show covers memory techniques like memory palaces and mnemonics, speed reading strategies, mind mapping, and study optimization methods specifically tailored for medical students and healthcare professionals preparing for board exams.

Across 98 episodes, DiMarco brings a practical, evidence-informed approach to learning science. Episodes range from 9 to 45 minutes and cover topics like board exam success strategies, self-assessment techniques, and methods for building long-term retention. The production comes from MedEd University, which also offers related courses and resources, so the podcast fits into a broader educational ecosystem. The tone is direct and practical without being preachy about study habits.

The podcast holds a 4.6 rating from 53 reviewers on Apple Podcasts. What makes it a valuable companion to content-focused Step 1 podcasts is that it addresses the meta-skills of studying itself. Knowing the Krebs cycle is important, but knowing how to actually commit it to memory and retrieve it under exam pressure is a different skill entirely. Medical Mnemonist tackles that second problem head-on. Students who feel like they are putting in the hours but not retaining material often find actionable advice here. It pairs well with any of the content-heavy shows on this list as a study strategy supplement.