WDR 2 - Pocket radio & more

The official WDR 2 app lets you carry your favorite radio station with you wherever you go. Enjoy live broadcasts, connect through our messenger, stay updated on traffic and weather, catch the news, follow Bundesliga matches, participate in soccer betting games, listen to podcasts, and so much more.

Experience WDR 2 live and rewind:

Simply tap to start our live stream. Unlike a traditional kitchen radio, this app allows you to rewind the live show up to 30 minutes whenever you want. You can also set the app to play your WDR 2 local time based on your region. Additional details like the current song title and the name of the host are readily available.

Connect directly:

Engage with us through our messenger, sending voice messages, images, or videos to WDR 2. Your data privacy remains our highest concern.

WDR 2 traffic and weather updates:

Avoid traffic jams with our app, which offers reports from the WDR 2 traffic department or allows you to view congestion on your route. You will also find weather updates for cities across the region.

Stay informed with WDR 2 News:

You have the option to listen to the latest edition of WDR aktuell anytime.

Live Bundesliga coverage:

Our reporters bring you comprehensive coverage of all matches from the 1st and 2nd Bundesliga as well as the DFB Cup straight from the stadiums.

Participate in WDR 2 football betting games:

The WDR 2 app always keeps you in touch with the popular sports betting game "All against Pistor." You can enter predictions, review results, and manage your betting group effortlessly.

Explore all WDR 2 Podcasts:

Beyond the live programming, we offer even more content. The app includes every episode of our various podcasts, ranging from "Ask yourself fit," conversations with Jörg Thadeusz, to "Love sex - Ohjaaa!" All WDR 2 podcasts are available for offline listening too.

Enjoy playlists curated just for you:

Access specially compiled playlists at any time with just a click, including our mix designed for your WDR 2 house party.

Family-friendly audio stories:

The WDR 2 app caters to the whole family. Discover thrilling children's radio plays featuring the mouse and tune into "The show with the mouse" whenever you wish, providing some valuable downtime for parents.

Absolutely free:

We appreciate your support for this app. To prevent high mobile phone bills, we suggest using WLAN or a data plan for extended listening sessions. Through the settings, you can configure the app to stream audio and video only over WLAN.

In addition to the playlist and live radio, the app offers you the best of WDR 3's programming: current cultural reports and documentaries, classical music, and other exciting music scenes. You can subscribe to audio files, share them via social media channels, and even listen offline. The messenger function gives you direct contact with the editorial team.

Search function in the WDR 3 app

Find articles and broadcasts

Long-awaited, finally here: Starting with version 1.65.0, the WDR 3 app features a search function. It's accessible directly at the bottom left using the magnifying glass next to the play button. Whether it's "Daniel Hope," "Klassik Forum," "Geistliche Musik," or contributions from the daily cultural magazines, we sort the results into "Audios" for individual content and corresponding "Programs." Without typing any search terms, you'll find WDR 3 content we know is in high demand on the search page below the search bar: WDR 3 programs sorted by A-Z, as well as current audios that were broadcast on WDR 3. Under "More WDR 3," you'll find all the presenters and dates for upcoming WDR 3 events.

New section "My WDR 3"

Can be found via the person symbol

Your collection of saved content and subscribed shows and podcasts has moved within the app with version 1.65.0. Instead of being at the bottom next to the play button, the "My WDR 3" area is now located at the top right: where the gear for settings used to be. Instead of a gear, the icon is now the outline of a person, representing your personal area. Settings for things like font size, stream quality, or push notifications can still be found here, just a little further down. Here you'll find your saved audio files and subscribed programs at a glance. For saved audio files, we now also show how much storage your offline audio files are taking up. So if your device is running low on storage, you can easily "clean up" and see how much space an audio file can free up.

Listen to WDR 3 live and rewind

"Discover" page of the app

At the very top of the "Discover" screen, our "bubbles" – the circular images – show you WDR 3's diverse radio offerings. You can choose between the live stream and three other streams. To make navigating the app even easier, you'll find our most popular categories under the music streams. With just one tap, you'll be taken directly to classical, jazz, and world music, or to the program and podcasts. Tap the green play button at the very bottom of the app to open the player. Tap the track above it to open the Maxi Player. You can rewind here using the progress bar. Under "more," you'll find more information about who's currently speaking or what music is playing.

Know what's on - the playlist

The bar at the bottom also takes you directly to the playlist. In the playlist, you can see what music is currently playing and what was broadcast today, yesterday, and in the past seven days—including information about who composed the piece and which ensemble or soloist was featured.

Discover audios

When you open the app, the "Discover" screen appears first. Here, in the "Highlights" section, you'll find editorial listening recommendations for classical music, jazz, and other exciting music genres. You'll also find the latest sacred music programs and "WDR 3 Persönlich" with Daniel Hope and Götz Alsmann. The small teasers below take you to highlights from the WDR 3 magazine programs, which report on current books, films, and art exhibitions. Radio plays and documentaries are also available. An overview shows all WDR 3 podcasts from A to Z. And at the very bottom, various links lead to the WDR 3 presenting team and upcoming events on WDR 3 cultural radio.

Listen to audio offline

"Saved" audios

Even if you don't have an internet connection, you can still listen to our online audio. To do so, tap the "three-dot menu" in the selected audio and select the "Make available offline" option. The audio is now available offline and saved in your personal list of saved audios. You can access this list via the person icon in the top right corner under "My WDR 3." You can save mobile data by downloading your favorite programs over Wi-Fi before using the app on the go.

Recommend audios via social media

If you've discovered something you'd like to share, feel free to use the share function directly on the audio. Tap the icon and you'll see several social media channels where you can share the link to the audio. If the recipient also uses the app, they can also play the audio directly there.

Your message to WDR 3

Contact via Messenger

You can chat with us and send voice messages, photos, or videos to WDR 3 via our messenger – found in the app at the bottom right. We'll respond as quickly as possible, seven days a week, from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. You can also use the phone button to dial your phone and get in touch with WDR 3. We look forward to hearing from you!

And now: the weather and the traffic

Using the weather icon and the traffic icon at the top right of the app, you can enter your location and route. Weather and traffic information will then be tailored to your needs.

Tips and settings in the app

After launching the app, we offer you brief usage tips across several slides. You can also find these via the person icon at the top under "Show tips." There you can also specify whether the audio stream should only be used when connected to Wi-Fi or only in a reduced quality to save data. You also have the option to prevent your usage data from being recorded. We collect anonymous usage data solely to track the number of content views, without any inferences about your personal behavior – and without any connection to advertising functions.

Are there any costs involved in listening to the WDR 3 livestream?

The app uses your smartphone's internet connection. You can find out whether or how much this will cost in the future from your mobile phone contract with your provider. Because many contracts have a limited monthly high-speed volume, we've integrated a bandwidth reduction switch into the WDR 3 app. First, tap the menu button in the top right, then tap "Settings":

Only on Wi-Fi: If you enable this option, audio and videos will only be played when there is an existing Wi-Fi connection.

High streaming quality: When this option is enabled, you'll hear WDR 3 with the best sound. However, this will use more data on the mobile network. Disable this option to save data.

For which smartphone operating systems is the WDR 3 app available?

The WDR 3 app is available for the two most commonly used operating systems: Android (version 6 and higher) and iOS (version 12.4 and higher).

Where can I find information about the WDR 3 program?

You can access WDR 3's program information by opening the menu in the top right corner of the app using the gear icon and then selecting "Program." Here, you can view information about the day's programs in the top row with the respective date. A second way to access "Program" is via the button of the same name at the top of the app.

Why don't I see an answer to my question in Messenger?  

Unfortunately, we had a bug in the first version of the app that delayed messages in Messenger. An app update fixed the issue. You may not have the latest version of the WDR 3 app on your smartphone. Please update your app in your app store. 

What streaming quality is offered in the WDR 3 app?

The stream quality can be selected in the app's settings. If the low quality level is selected, the stream will be a 64 kbit/s MP3 stream. This setting should be chosen if data usage is to be as low as possible. Unfortunately, rewinding in the live player is not possible with this setting.

The "High Stream Quality" setting is an adaptive 192 kbit/s stream that uses the AAC ( Advanced Audio Coding ) compression method. If the internet connection is poor (e.g., when traveling by train), the stream quality is automatically reduced.

Where can I find the WDR 3 programs to listen to?

You can find most WDR 3 programs for listening in the app at the very bottom of the "All WDR 3 Podcasts" line. You can also subscribe to the programs here, so you'll always find the latest audio versions of the show in the "My" section.

The live player also offers the option to rewind 30 minutes.

Where can I find the WDR 3 concert player?

You can find all WDR 3 concerts by searching for "WDR 3 Concert" in the "All WDR 3 Podcasts" bar at the bottom of the app. Here you'll find an overview of all the concerts we currently offer online. You can also subscribe to the concert podcast, so you'll always find new concerts in the "My" section. Each of our audios also features a "three-dot menu" that allows you to view all episodes of the respective show.

How does playback via AirPlay or Google Cast work?

In the maximized view of the player, you can use the speaker icon on the left to use AirPlay (iPhone) or Google Cast (Android). Select a supported device for playback and enjoy WDR 3 in even better sound quality.

If I can't hear the WDR 3 stream, why is that?

You can listen to the radio program as a live stream using the WDR 3 app. The app uses your smartphone's existing internet connection. This can be your wireless network at home or a mobile network while on the go. The better the data connection, the better the sound quality of the live stream. This requires that your mobile phone contract allows such data connections. If you can't hear anything using the WDR 3 app, please first check your internet connection. If the problem persists, please send us a message at wdr3app@wdr.de.