The very best options to Spotify for listening to music

When this text was initially written in February 2022, the large Spotify controversy was that artists had been abandoning the audio service in protest of the corporate’s contract with podcaster Joe Rogan, and some subscribers were deciding to follow the musicians’ instance. Extra lately, some customers have threatened to bail after CEO Daniel Ek invested in a firm that focuses on AI software program used for army drones. In the meantime, the service’s behavior of defaulting to creating all playlists and profiles public has resulted within the Panama Playlists, an internet site that purports to point out the Spotify playlists of varied well-known figures.

Regardless of these points, Spotify might be the best-known music service on the market. Nevertheless, there are fairly a number of options obtainable for good music listening, some with free variations (and a few not), and a few that may allow you to discover new and lesser-known artists. When you’re somebody who has determined to discover what music providers are on the market, right here’s a fast rundown of a few of the prospects.

Within the curiosity of being full, we’ll begin with Spotify itself.

Spotify will not be standing nonetheless. It has continued so as to add new skills to its service, similar to a DM characteristic that permits customers to share suggestions with pals from throughout the app and a brand new monitor mixing device. It’s additionally doubled its audiobook listening restrict from 15 to 30 hours (for a worth and never within the US).

In the meantime, Spotify’s free service affords a big selection of music interrupted pretty ceaselessly with ads. Whilst you can specify songs, albums, or podcasts straight utilizing the app, you’ve gotten much less alternative as to what you need in your listening queue. (For instance, if I request a selected artist utilizing Google Assistant or Alexa, I’ll invariably be led to the artist’s “radio” reasonably than the artist themselves.)

Spotify Premium begins with its Particular person ($11.99 / month) account, which affords ad-free listening, the flexibility to obtain songs and manage your queue, and as much as 15 hours of audiobook listening. It’s also possible to get the identical options for 2 individuals with Premium Duo ($16.99 / month) and as much as six individuals or children with Premium Household ($19.99 / month), which provides the flexibility to dam express music. It’s also possible to simply subscribe to its audiobook catalog for $9.99 a month (for a similar 15 hours).

Funds plans: Premium Scholar ($5.99 / month), for verified college students; provides entry to Hulu.

Free trial: All plans provide a one-month free trial.

When you’re an Amazon Prime member and assume you can be getting full entry to Amazon’s music library along with your Prime subscription, assume once more.

Together with Apple Music and Google’s YouTube Music, Amazon Music is likely one of the most well-known providers outdoors of Spotify. It affords three totally different music tiers; as you journey up the ladder, you get entry to extra songs at increased ranges of high quality. It’s also possible to take heed to podcasts.

Amazon Music Free permits you entry to the service’s playlists, radio stations, and podcasts, however audio high quality is restricted to SD, there are advertisements, and you’ll’t choose particular songs or albums.

Amazon Music Prime is free to members of its Prime purchasing, video, and so on. service (however to not relations — it’s one of many few options that’s not shared). It’s also SD solely, however it’s ad-free and allows you to choose particular songs.

Amazon Music Limitless lets you’ve gotten ad-free entry to songs in SD, HD, Extremely HD, and spatial audio. There’s an Particular person Plan ($11.99 / month, $10.99 for Prime members) and a Household Plan ($19.99 / month), which helps you to stream on as much as six units directly. All these plans additionally allow you to entry a single audiobook a month.

Funds plans: The Single Gadget Plan ($5.99 / month) enables you to use the service on a selected Echo or Hearth gadget, and the Scholar Plan ($5.99 / month) offers you HD entry and lots of of Limitless’s options.

Free trial: All plans provide a 30-day free trial.

Apple Music is an effective possibility, particularly for individuals who have already got a buy-in to the Apple ecosystem. It touts its higher-quality audio, together with “immersive sound with dynamic head monitoring” for these with AirPods. It’s also possible to obtain and stream music to your Apple Watch. Different options embrace a lyrics view so you’ll be able to comply with alongside, curated lists, and stay radio stations.

There isn’t any free model; you’ll should go to a separate app for podcasts.

Apple Music Particular person ($10.99 / month) is the usual plan; apart from entry to Apple’s music library and playlists, it may be used with quite a lot of units and affords high-quality audio, together with lossless audio and spatial audio with Dolby Atmos. You possibly can request particular songs or albums by asking Siri; you may also obtain music and see lyrics. The Household plan ($16.99 / month) gives the Particular person options for as much as 5 individuals.

Funds plans: When you’re in faculty, the Scholar plan ($5.99 / month) affords the identical options because the Particular person plan. It’s also possible to embrace Apple Music within the Apple One bundle plan.

Free trials: One-month free trial for all plans (with occasional particular affords).

Once we first revealed this roundup again in 2022, a number of individuals beneficial that we additionally embrace Bandcamp, and it’s simple to see why. Bandcamp calls itself an “on-line file retailer and music group” during which impartial musicians and podcasters are paid straight by their followers. According to Bandcamp, the artists accumulate a median of 80 to 85 p.c of every sale. There isn’t any payment for the service itself; you take heed to featured tracks by artists after which buy the digital or bodily albums of your favorites. There are additionally stay “listening party” occasions.

As talked about, Bandcamp itself is free; you buy the music individually for various costs set by the artists.

Deezer will not be as well-known within the US as Apple Music or Spotify, but it surely has related catalogs and options. In keeping with its web site, it affords “over 120 million tracks,” together with playlists and podcasts. You should utilize its net model or one of many apps it has for almost any device out there, together with desktops, telephones, and watches. It additionally affords on-screen lyrics. It affords a number of plans.

Free enables you to take heed to playlists reasonably than particular songs, and you must put up with advertisements. Nevertheless, you do get entry to the app’s total library.

Premium ($11.99 / month or $107.99 / 12 months) removes the advertisements, enables you to take heed to particular tracks, affords high-fidelity sound, and allows you to obtain your music. You possibly can join as much as three units to the app.

Duo ($15.99 / month or $174.99 / 12 months) has all of the options of the Premium plan for 2 particular person accounts; you’ll be able to join as much as 5 units.

Household ($19.99 / month or $218.99 / 12 months) affords six particular person Premium accounts and the flexibility to attach as much as 13 totally different units. Child profiles allow you to management what your youngster is listening to.

Funds plans: You will get a pupil low cost on the Premium plan for $5.99 / month.

Free trials: One month for all paid plans.

Pandora is likely one of the grandparents of music providers and was one of many first to supply playlists developed by a listener’s preferences. At the moment owned by SiriusXM, it was launched as a shopper music service in 2005 and has gone via quite a lot of adjustments since. (For instance, customers of the free service had been initially restricted to 40 hours of streaming monthly.) Nowadays, it has one free and two paid providers; it contains each music and podcasts.

Apparently, Pandora’s Free service does help you play particular songs and albums (versus simply classes of music), in addition to podcasts, so long as you view an advert first; you may also view an advert for limitless skips.

Pandora Plus ($4.99 / month) removes the advertisements for limitless skips and allows you to pay attention offline, however you continue to should view an advert to pick particular tracks.

Pandora Premium ($10.99 / month) offers you the entire Plus options, removes all promoting, and allows you to make and share playlists.

Funds plans: The Household plan ($17.99 / month) contains six accounts on the Premium plan. Each Premium Scholar ($5.99 / month) and Premium Navy ($8.99 / month) provide the similar options because the common Premium account.

Free trial: 30 days for Plus and 60 days for Premium.

Tidal presents itself because the music service for true music followers, with an emphasis on innovation and high-quality audio. It affords a library of over 110 million tracks, over 650,000 movies, interviews with and documentaries about its artists, and three levels of audio quality: Max (as much as 24-bit, 192kHz), Excessive (as much as 16-bit, 44.1kHz), and Low (as much as 320kbps), relying in your plan and your gadget; it particularly helps a number of device manufacturers. It doesn’t provide podcasts or a free plan.

Particular person ($10.99 / month) gives 110M+ tracks in lossless, HiRes FLAC, and Dolby Atmos, no advertisements, and offline listening.

Funds plans: The Household plan affords the identical because the Particular person plan for as much as six customers ($16.99 / month); there may be additionally a Scholar plan ($5.49 / month).

Free trial: A 30-day free trial. You possibly can prolong it to 60 days for $2.

Like Apple Music and Tidal, Qobuz doesn’t have a free service. Like Tidal, the emphasis right here is on high quality music, with hi-res audio; it has partnered with a variety of equipment manufacturers, similar to Bang & Olufsen, Sonos, and Thiel. In addition to music, it affords album critiques and artist bios. Qobuz affords two plans; every of those is available in Solo (one account), Duo (two accounts residing on the similar deal with), and Household (six accounts per family) variations.

Studio gives downloadable music and unique editorial content material, similar to playlists and articles. Solo prices $10.83 / month; Duo prices $14.99 / month; Household prices $17.99 / month.

Chic enables you to specify albums and affords a 60 p.c low cost on purchases. Solo prices $14.99 / month; Duo is $17.99 / month or $179.88 / 12 months; Household can be $17.99 / month.

Funds plans: Studio has a particular $4.99 / month fee for college students 25 years previous and below.

Free trial: One month for all plans.

Again in 2020, Google subsumed its impartial Google Play Music service (and in 2024, its Google Podcasts app) into its YouTube video service, developing with YouTube Music.

The Free service contains alternative of particular person songs and albums together with advertisements. When you’re listening on a telephone, the music will cease in case your display screen goes darkish otherwise you change apps.

Music Premium ($10.99 / month or $109.99 / 12 months) eliminates the advertisements and the pauses and allows you to obtain your music. When you subscribe to YouTube Premium ($13.99 / month), YouTube Music is included. The Household plan ($16.99 / month) enables you to add as much as 5 different family relations aged 13 and up.

Funds plans: The Scholar plan ($5.49 / month) offers you Premium service with verification of eligibility.

Free trial: All paid plans have a one-month free trial.

SoundCloud has been round since 2007 and encourages its members to add tracks, create playlists, and actively remark — which they enthusiastically do. This contains TikTok customers, who can add their tracks to SoundCloud. There are options permitting artists to create SMS campaigns for his or her followers, and partnership with a service to assist artists copyright their work.

The Free service permits entry to quite a lot of tracks and playlists, with advertisements.

SoundCloud Go ($4.99 / month) eliminates the advertisements and permits offline listening.

SoundCloud Go+ ($9.99 / month) provides entry to the service’s full catalog and higher-quality audio.

Funds plans: SoundCloud Go+ for college students prices $5.49 / month after a 30-day trial.

Free trial: Seven days for SoundCloud Go, 30 days for SoundCloud Go+.

Replace August twenty seventh, 2025: This was initially revealed on February 1st, 2022. All entries have been up to date.