Nobex Radio vs Zeno.FM: which radio host fits your station (2026)

Pick Zeno.FM if you want a very large listening-hour allowance for the price — 400,000 hours a month on its Starter plan — and you are happy for Zeno’s own audio ads to run in your live broadcast in return for a share of the revenue. Pick Nobex Radio if you want a stream with nobody else’s ads in it, one-tap live broadcasting from your phone and adaptive HLS on every plan, from $19 a month. As of September 2026, Zeno’s Starter plan is $35 billed monthly, or about $28 a month billed yearly.

The short answer

• On sticker price, Nobex is lower: $19 vs $35 billed monthly (about $28 billed yearly) at entry, and $49 vs $60 for the next tier.
• On listening hours for the money, Zeno is ahead: 400,000 hours a month on its $35 Starter plan, against 20,000 on Nobex Starter and 500,000 on Nobex Business at $99.
• On what your listeners hear, they differ most: Zeno’s paid plans run Zeno audio ads in your live broadcast. Nobex inserts no ads; the only ads are sponsor spots you sell.
• On going live and delivery, Nobex does more at entry: its own one-tap phone app and HLS on every plan. Zeno recommends a third-party app for iPhone and adds HLS from its $60 Prime plan.

Nobex Radio and Zeno.FM, side by side

Where Zeno.FM is the better choice

• You expect a large audience on a small budget. 400,000 listening hours for $35 a month is far more than Nobex offers at that price; matching it on Nobex means Business at $99.
• You want ad revenue without selling ads. Zeno runs its own audio ads in your live broadcast and pays you a share, automatically. You do not control the ads and the share is not published, but you do not have to find sponsors.
• You run several stations. Prime includes three stations for $60. Nobex Pro includes two for $49, and three need Business at $99.
• You are a nonprofit. Zeno offers a 40% nonprofit discount.
• Your audience is diaspora or multicultural. Zeno markets directly to these communities, and says its platform reaches more than 40 million listeners worldwide.
• You are already there. Staying means no migration and no relinking, which is worth something real.

Where Nobex Radio is the better choice

• A stream nobody else advertises on. No ads inserted by Nobex. Your sponsors, your breaks, your placement — and listeners who are not hearing an unrelated brand in the middle of your show.
• Selling your own sponsors from $19. Sponsor spots with proof-of-play reports are on every Nobex plan; on Zeno, inserting your own ads starts at Premier ($280).
• Going live from a phone, in one tap. The free Nobex Broadcaster app is built for it, and AutoDJ takes over if your connection drops — see broadcasting from your phone.
• A real library and real rotation. No storage cap on your music and rotation rules on every plan, against 500 AutoDJ tracks on Zeno Starter — see rule-based rotation.
• HLS and geo-blocking on the entry plan. On Zeno both start at Prime ($60).
• A clear licensing position. Nobex says plainly that licences are yours, in your own name — which means they stay with the station whichever host you use.

Switching from Zeno.FM to Nobex

1. 1List every place your Zeno stream link appears — website player, directory listings, smart-speaker entries, social bios, show notes. Do this first; it is always longer than expected.
2. 2Build the Nobex station in parallel. Free test mode needs no card, so nothing has to be switched off to try it.
3. 3Upload and tag your library. Clean artist and title metadata makes rotation rules and royalty reports work properly.
4. 4Set up your rotation and schedule, then go live once from the phone app to hear the whole chain.
5. 5Switch the links, overlap for a week or two, then close the Zeno account.

Nobex Radio vs Zeno.FM, asked and answered