Delightful current event snapshot format of economic "high points." One of my favorite podcasts while at the gym. The hosts and guests cover both headline subjects and obscure, arcane economic data and factors. The presenters are particularly qualified to deal with the subject matter. Sometimes opportunities are missed to pass on worthwhile info - the recent piece on student loan changes mentioned a payback option of making the minimum payment. The hosts could have added that doing so may extend the loan for decades, and cost an astonishing amount of interest. A personal thing - Ms. Wong is a respected and well-experienced reporter/journalist, but her voice is made for print media, especially when she's excited. Just my opinion.

There’s no better way to get small, daily, smart economy news than the Indicator. Making learning fun and easy in about the time it takes to make my lunch is much appreciated.

I have learned sooooo much from this show! Other podcasts like this are sorta boring but I get to learn about life and economics in a fun yet educational way! I’m only a kid but this shows is fantastic! Definitely recommend!

No economics here just poorly educated opinion. Sadly the show has lost its way. Topics are good but writing is poor, conclusions cloudy, hosts and their delivery are a big negative to the show. Was a 4, and has lowered itself to a 1.

More precisely, 16th of January. That was when the conflict in the region was quite different, The Indicator spelled out the oil price if Iran decided to choke off the Strait - which played out with precision when this happened 14 months later. I have been listening to Planet Money for very long and they put The Indicator in their feed from time to time but I only begin to follow and binge this little show after most people in the US learned to spell Hormuz. I like the high dynamic in a shorter form.

April 2026 It pains me greatly when something so well worn as January 6th 2021 is handled either so lazily or as continued propaganda. Summarizing the events as “2,000 Trump supporters ransacked the United States Capital” and “pepper sprayed, bludgeoned, stabbed, and tasered people including police officers. They smashed windows. All told rioters caused about $3 million in damage to the Capital Building. Seven people died.” I’m not a fan of Trump. You can hate Trump more than the worse humanitarian atrocities in history. You can love Trump more than as an anti-hero pushing back on The Blob. None of that changes who died during the Capital Insurgency. - 1 protestor was shot and killed breaking through a window at the scene - 2 protestors had some form of a heart attack at the protests - 1 protestor died of “amphetamine intoxication” - 1 police officer died the next day from a stroke. He had been pepper sprayed. - At least 4 officers at the protest killed themselves within a short period after January 6th 1) An objective person simply trying to navigate their world must learn facts irrespective of subjective interest. Up until the “7 people died”, the summary was fine enough. Following that introduction, which described that detailed violence, immediately with “7 people died” clearly suggests they died at the hands of the protestors. That is obviously untrue. It could be made clear in a short sentence. It wasn’t made clear out of atrocious journalism or intentional deception. It's either incompetence or insidiousness. Stupid or liar? Either are not what you want from a journalistic platform purporting to be of the highest ideals. 2) Anyone who has put in a guest bathroom in their house or bought a mid tier minivan of late knows, $3 million is nothing in terms of grand scales. I’m not absolving anyone of guilt or belittling $3 million. If I had $3 million, I'd be free of financial shackles and work-a-day requirements. $3 million gets you a Starbucks in a gentrified area. This ain't your grandfather's $3 million. I LOVE the subject of this episode. I want to learn. I want to be aware. I don't want to patronize tribal bias sellouts. And so made difficult are the many choices of life. I hate the double standard with the solemn introduction of the January 6 events, including mentioning $3 million in damages juxtaposed to the hundreds of millions in damage to cities, many small businesses, and government buildings some of which were occupied for months, Planet Money/The Indicator framed those events were framed as rational good-faith citizen protests with first person humanizing accounts. (See BLM Minneapolis protest episode.) I’m not taking sides on any of the protester's views or motivations. I’m taking a side against The Indicator and NPR‘s framing. Because they clearly have taken sides, and not on the side of journalism. It is their right to do so, and it is my right to call out that they are an organization solely motivated by political agenda. And that’s fine. But they are not objective truth tellers. They do not speak truth to power. They are propagandists who speak for a certain group of power brokers and their acolytes. They are not journalists. They may practice journalism at times. But there are not journalists by nature. I came back to The Indicator and Planet Money after the trend of making everything about race ended because people got treatment for that mental illness/mania - or it’s just dormant. I like being alive. The world is complex. I’m comfortable living in the gray. I’m unsure of many things. I accept some bias from everyone including people, professions, and institutions claiming not to be. I know what NPR is. We all do. Planet Money and The Indicator are fringe podcasts on NPR - in a good way - because the observable world doesn’t care about Ivy Tower baked racial and gender ideology. Consequently, those interested in economics and finance - no matter political leaning - have a penchant for objectivity first. Original Comment October 2021 I subscribed after being a long time Planet Money listener. Over the last year I powered through the “as the wind blows” episodes and the holding out of vowels to finish sentences. (Is a Valley girl speech impediment on par with vocal fry?) Irritations can be suppressed. I can go to my safe space and focus on the content. However, the content is now just fluffing the echo chamber. I can’t take the lack of self-awareness. Why does making a blockbuster franchise movie like Bond mean YOU MUST use a male actor of color? That implies, if there’s only one choice, every modern choice must be a person of color. That’s obvious nonsense. Use whoever you want for whatever you want. If you think today’s market or morality dictates only BIPOCs, you’re either engaging in discrimination or - more likely - treating BIPOCs as a trend. Moreover, why is it difficult to think an audience likes a male 007? It’s not that a female 007 movie couldn’t be great. Of course it could. But the franchise has been a hit for six decades with a formula. To change it under the guise of “half the world is female” is mind-blowingly dense rationalization. You CAN reinvent pizza but people like the basic conceit of pizza as is. It’s ok. People might like what they like. Why isn’t there a female NFL? Why isn’t female MMA, pro/college basketball, boxing as popular as male version? The answers are obvious. Well, obvious unless you don’t believe in science. And NPR doesn’t believe in science anymore …or leaving big coastal cities. Journalism is dead.

I cant believe they did a pro-data center episode.

Who knew I loved economics! Down to earth Econ podcast that anyone can get into. Highly recommend!

I truly enjoy the show, this review would be a 5 but they retired the air horn. If it comes back I will make it a 5

Still a good show - I’ve listened to every episode and I still enjoy it. If these get read I hope that NPR will refocus on what made the show great originally. Unbiased observation and explanation of interesting and topical economics. I concur with some of the comments about the hosts - it may be time for a shake up. Overall - hope this encourages NPR to tighten up the show some.

One of my favorite daily podcasts. Quick, informative and easy to understand - what else do you need? The hosts are great. It’s wonderful to have Adrian back too.

Used to be a good short podcast to escape political news and learn about economics and a quantitative take on the state of the world. Now nearly every episode has an extremely non-subtle and non-neutral political message.

The show is simply too short to actually dive into its delightful topics. Each episode is nominally 10 minutes. Take out the ads, intro, and credits, and you're left with ~5 minutes to explore a complex economics issue. I really wish this wasn't the case, but I'm unsubscribing because the curiosity I get about the episode titles, followed by the unsatisfying shallowness of the content, is a real letdown and just bums me out now.

Great podcast without the typical economist jargon. Tending to focus more on social issues, and issues of economic fairness within the democratic republican systems. While the social issues are often subjective, and sometimes missing key points, they also go into great detail on US history and the formation of the legal system that has created the economy we have today.

As a guy, I have yet to hear the author insist on accountability for men. It’s more “you’re not listening to the other side and that’s why they are taking away women’s rights.” You can’t have a serious discussion about men’s issues without first treating the lack of accountability and self-introspection of men. The economic hardships we endure are because of angry men who hate the world they find themselves in voting for men just like themselves. Men who look just like themselves but hate them as much as any immigrant. And still, we’re not listening to men. men in our society need to change their behavior and their narratives if they want to see improvements in their material condition.

The economy in interesting bite-sized chunks as told by hosts with a great sense of humor

This podcast is great. It helps me with economy.

I appreciate this podcast because it helps me feel like I’m staying informed on current events, but the tone is light enough, and it’s not catastrophize, so it doesn’t feel like I walk away with a feeling of dread like a lot of news sources might.

In less than 10 minutes, The Indicator makes us smarter about economic topics that are impacting us today. With a little history and lots of frontline interviews, The Indicator shares the practical side of economics.

From my first year in college to my office at work. The indicator has been my source of knowledge for a third of my life. I really appreciate the work everyone on staff accomplishes week after week.

Life without The Indicator would be like a day without sunshine, which is why I can’t wait to listen to every episode and I don’t move to Seattle.

More than ever this podcast is essential. Thank you for making information accessible and keeping people informed. Please never stop!!

Thank you for making this awesome podcast! The Indicator is the best podcast with the best hosts! BTW: your latest episode (Mon Nov 17) only plays ads. :)

So informative! Love it.

Many years ago when I was an English major studying poetry, I never would have dreamed of studying economics—it’s so soulless! But this podcast showed me just the opposite. It’s the science of people, in a much more insightful way than sociology or psychology.

I’m a founder for a company now in operating for 6 years. I knew I had to really start to understand economics to thrive or at least survive in business. Anticipating rate changes, understanding talent shortages, and more would have been confusing at best without this podcast! Bite-sized episodes grounded in fact, explanation with a balance of conversational and analytical. Every episode helps me round out my econ knowledge!

This podcast used to be really good and enjoyable to listen to. The content is great but the current hosts are horrible. Like giggly teenagers. I have resorted to simply reading the transcript for the content. Please replace Wailin Wong and Darian Woods and utilize serious journalists. Updated. Have unsubscribed and have found other better options.

Love this podcast! It spurred my interest in economics, which led me to read more about economics outside of this podcast. They make subjects I’d otherwise consider boring, interesting. And I love the personalities of the hosts! Never thought I’d be so happy listening to people talk about economics, but this podcast brings me joy. Episodes are short, but I feel like they cover the topics well.

I have been listening to the indicator for years. It is always entertaining and so very interesting. I have learned a ton about microeconomics and macroeconomics and how it all overlays with politics. Really fantastic show.

I’m not in the bag for any econ podcast but I love this one. 10 minutes for informed takes on relevant topics from hosts that seem to for real love this particular kind nerdery, it works for me.

NPR is allowing itself to be used to spread Israeli government propaganda. Go look at NPR’s instagram post on October 6th, 2025 at 9 AM for one example of many. DO NOT SUBSCRIBE OR DONATE TO NPR or any of their sister stations/channels!

Immigrant and former H1B visa holder here. To do an episode about the H1B program and not even mention the exploitation practices of the Indian IT consulting firms who game the lottery every year is a disgrace. Everyone knows that this is the main problem with the program. Why would you not mention this? Nobody trusts and respects you as journalists because you’re captured by your extreme political positions. You are part of the problem in our political extremism. Do better.

Excellent show every time but the best is when we get some good laughs from Waylin. Best guest is the dude from the Chicago Fed.

Lol…no

I do actually really like this podcast. However,, it is so surface. There is no depth. I understand. NPR caters to the Centrist view. Centrists, literally, can only be captivated by sensationalism (it’s an addiction). So NPR caters to the Centrist, and therefore leaves out any real meat to the arguments for humanity and actual change on the country and global level.

I love this show but why😭

I’ve listened to the indicator for years and have rarely missed an episode including Cardiff Garcia’s long running obsession with the yield curve. The commercials have taken over the parts of the podcast not occupied by Trump bashing. There are about 2.5-3 minutes of mostly commercials before the podcast begins and another minute or more of commercials at the end resulting in a podcast that’s at times 40%+ ads. While the podcast (as all of NPR certainly) leans left, since Trump took office the podcast has turned to a daily podcast of bashing Trump instead of focusing on education like it used to. Maybe it will get back to being an economics podcast with a moderate political lean as opposed to bashing listeners over the head with why Trump is terrible daily.

My first thought here is I hope I use the semi-colon correctly. Now that we have context, let me explain the value of this podcast. From economic dating, to a mild obsession with the inverted yield curve, this podcast helps explain in digestible portions the world around us. This podcast is a grocery store equivalent, Of that protein bar you grab on the way out after buying two weeks worth of groceries. It’s your treat now it’s your reward for doing the work. It brings context and balance to your world and it makes you feel better than the candy you could’ve grabbed. It’s bright, cheery, and healthy. My indicator of the week is 121. The number of words in this review.

I look forward to the Indicator as a little mental treat at the end of the day or binge them at the end of a busy week. Love the hosts and their outlook and attitudes. I think they would admit to being a bit “center-left” (particularly Darrien), but that doesn’t detract from the entertaining way they deliver well-researched stories.

Great, insightful, and quirky economics podcast. Also my condolences go out to Adrian for his loss. So sorry.

The last 4-6 episodes have been highly political in the short time of the entire podcast. As soon as Trump entered the Whitehouse, the announcers love to take little pop shots at Trump. There is one episode that was about 5 minutes of just going off on Trump. Please focus on the story and leave out your political opinions. I had to unfollow. At least planet money isn’t political and sticks to the story. You all need less politics and more stick to the content.

I’m very impressed with the quality of the stories this show pulls together each day. I always look forward to hearing their new stories

I have enjoyed The Indicator for awhile now. I always thought the reporting was smart and interesting and that the team had their finger on the pulse of what is of interest to a wide variety of people. The February 4th show reporting on the Trump tariff “battles” was a disappointment. The discussion of the tariff negotiations was …incomplete (inaccurate?). While “concessions” were made by other countries, multiple other sources have clarified that overall concessions were minimal, if any, and the net “win” on tariff negotiations does not squarely sit with the U.S. (e.g. Reference “Letters from an American” Feb 3rd, Heather Cox Richardson). I think at such a time as this, when our country is at such a crossroads and there is likely an impending season of struggle and discontent for many, it is important that news be accurate, impartial and uninfluenced by outside sources. I can understand it is easy to get caught up in the whirlwind of reporting by various media outlets but what we need is real news. Not repetition of spin, or superficial reporting but REAL NEWS.

I usually love your program. But the January 29 episode on federal government hiring signaled to me that you’re drinking the kool- aid. To treat about trump‘s “plan” to reform federal workforce like it’s a legitimate plan is egregious. He has no interest in merit-based hiring. Have you seen his nominees?? A drunken Fox News weekend host with zero military experience for DoD and an anti-science, conspiracy theorist lunatic for HHS? Thats just to start! Where is the merit? I am disappointed that you so badly you missed the obvious. His mission is to destroy agencies from within, he abhors expertise and merit. His proposals do not deserve to be treated as legitimate plans to improve our country so don’t talk to us like we’re idiots. Please don’t fold for this guy.

Lots of good ads and even some bits about the economy snuck in Information usually pretty good, just hard to listen to with the quantity of ads

I love outside in so it makes me happy when you guys have Nate or someone on. Even heard him on morning edition the other day! Love npr

I just started listening to The Indicator from Planet Money, and I really enjoy it! The hosts are great at making economics engaging and easy to follow. It’s informative and always interesting. Highly recommend it!

Why must every NPR based show lean so heavily left? Never any criticism or strong looks at liberal policies and thought. It's so blatant. I say this as someone with a degree from the best Jschool in the country and 25 years in the field.

I really enjoy the short snippets and various topics. Over the last few years it has been “leaning” more to the left/DNC/Democrat party. I would love it to be more neutral/informal, not political in either direction. Economics is a great way to look at the world, events, and situations - it doesn’t need to be political. I hope it moves more to the center and keeps on helping folks stay “in the know”.

You need to have the one guy use a normal voice before I will ever listen to another episode - come on seriously.