Mato Distribution connects your podcast to major listening platforms through a single RSS feed. You configure it once, from the podcast's Distribution settings.
Before you start
You can sync the show before the first episode is ready. Before you submit the feed to directories, confirm these details are final:
- Cover art uploaded and at least 1400x1400 pixels.
- Show title and description filled in.
- Owner name and a monitored owner email set. Spotify and YouTube use the RSS email for ownership verification.
Changing show metadata after submitting to directories can delay approvals or trigger re-review.
Open Distribution settings
Open your podcast and click Distribution in the sidebar, under Configure.
Set your publish rule
At the top of the page, When an episode is ready sets one rule with two options:
- Publish it right away. Episodes go live as soon as they're ready.
- Wait for my review. Episodes wait in Episodes, marked In review, until you publish them yourself.
Pick whichever matches how much you want to check before an episode reaches listeners. The rule waits for Save changes in the save bar. You can change it at any time; it only affects episodes that finish generating after the change.
If Mato hosting's own setting does not match the saved rule, a note under the options reads "Mato hosting doesn't follow this rule yet." Click Apply to Mato hosting to bring it in line.
Sync your show to Mato hosting
The Mato hosting section holds your RSS feed and public show page. It shows a status badge:
| Status | What it means |
|---|---|
| Not synced yet | The show has never been synced. No RSS feed exists yet. |
| Syncing | A sync is running. |
| Synced | The show is synced and its RSS feed is live. |
| Sync failed | The last sync attempt failed. |
Click Sync now to create or refresh the show's RSS feed and public listing. This runs immediately and does not wait for the page's Save bar. Use the same button to push updates later, such as new cover art or a changed description.
Once synced, an RSS feed row appears with the feed URL and a copy button. You will paste this URL into most directory submission forms.
Owner and show page fields
The rest of the Mato hosting card holds your show's owner details and show page settings:
- Owner name and Owner email. These feed your RSS metadata and, unlike syncing, wait for Save changes in the save bar. Spotify and YouTube send ownership verification to this email, so use one you can access.
- Start here episode. Which episode a new listener hears first on your public show page. The list only offers episodes that have already finished distributing.
A List in the Mato directory toggle controls whether people can find the show on heymato.com itself, separate from third-party directories below.
Submit to directories
Once the show is synced, scroll down to Directories and work through the platforms your show should appear on. See Send your show to podcast apps for the full submission and status-tracking flow.
How the publish rule affects episode visibility
Episode visibility on your public page and in embeds waits for the episode to finish the full distribution pipeline: audio uploaded to the Mato CDN, the episode added to the RSS feed, and the feed regenerated. Only that pipeline marks an episode as distributed and triggers downstream notifications.
If your publish rule is Publish it right away, Mato starts that pipeline as soon as generation finishes. If it is Wait for my review, the episode waits in Episodes until you publish it yourself. Unpublishing an episode reverses the process: it returns to draft and Mato removes it from the RSS feed.
What to do if a directory rejects your show
Check the common causes:
- Missing or undersized cover art.
- Description too short or containing placeholder text.
- RSS feed with zero episodes.
- Owner email that does not match the submission account.
Fix the issue, sync the show again, and resubmit from the directory's row. Most directories allow resubmission after a rejection.