Apple Music vs. Spotify: Which is the best music app?
Apple Music vs. Spotify: Which is the best music app?
Apple Music or Spotify? The question of which is the best music streaming app used to be easier to answer: Apple's deject locker characteristic and deep Apple device integration was highly-seasoned, just Spotify's bigger library and extensive social media integration made it a deserved category leader.
Now, though, information technology's non and so clear. Apple has fabricated big strides in improving its library and feature set, including the improver of both spatial audio and lossless audio in June 2021. The rival Spotify HiFi was announced well before this, but has still to actually materialize. This Apple tree Music vs. Spotify face up-off will compare both services as they currently stand, to find out if Spotify remains king or if Apple Music deserves your subscription instead.
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Apple Music vs. Spotify: Toll
The pricing for each Spotify and Apple tree Music is very similar, with one big deviation: the former offers a gratuitous starting tier. However, Spotify'southward free option will interrupt your listening with recorded ads, as well as ads within the app, while paying for the Premium tier will get rid of both. Bank check out our Spotify Gratis vs. Premium comparison for the full rundown of differences.
Spotify also offers a Premium Duo package, aimed at 2-person households. Information technology includes the Duo Mix playlist, an automatically produced set up of tunes based on the users' listening habits.
Annotation that signing up the Apple Music annual plan is a bit of an arcane process: you start need to sign up to a monthly program, so switch to annual billing in the app or through your Apple device's account settings. You can find full instructions for this on the Apple back up site.
Apple Music vs Spotify: At a glance
| | Apple Music | Spotify |
| Starting Price | $9.99 per month | Free |
| Price for offline mode, no ads | $nine.99 per month | $9.99 per calendar month |
| Pupil Toll | $4.99 per calendar month | $4.99 per calendar month |
| 'Duo' Household | - | $12.99 per month, 2 accounts |
| Family Parcel | $14.99 per month, half dozen accounts | $15.99 per month, half dozen accounts |
| Almanac Plan | $99 per year | $99 per year |
| Exclusives | Works with Siri on the HomePod/HomePod mini; Apple Music 1 Radio; Deject music locker; spatial audio | Available on PS5, PS4, Xbox Series X, Xbox Series S and Xbox One; Spotify Studios podcasts |
Apple Music vs. Spotify: Music library
Apple tree Music and Spotify both characteristic massive libraries, but Apple claims the reward with "over 75 million" songs to Spotify's "over 70 million." The latter also includes around 2.half dozen million podcast titles, whereas at that place's an entirely separate Apple Podcasts service; Apple Music therefore definitely has more pure music tracks in total.
However, Apple Music has also moved away from its initial focus on exclusive (or timed-exclusive) album launches, with then-Apple executive Jimmy Iovine admitting in 2017 that "The labels don't seem to like it." Likewise, Spotify's sectional content is mainly limited to podcasts, and so in that location's immense overlap between the ii services on music content.
Technically this is a win for Apple on sheer numbers, merely unless you've got peculiarly eclectic tastes, y'all're extremely like to to find the artists you want on either platform.
Winner: Apple Music
Apple tree Music vs. Spotify: Music quality
Standard-quality Apple Music tracks are 256 kbps AAC files, the same format as tracks purchased from iTunes. Spotify streams songs at 3 different rates (~96 kbps, ~160 kbps and ~320 kbps) all in the Ogg Vorbis format, though the highest caliber is express to paid Premium subscribers.
This will alter once Spotify HiFi eventually launches, though when it comes to resolution and scrap rate, Apple Music's "lossless" characteristic has Spotify beat. There are a couple of options for streaming higher-resolution music, ranging from "CD-quality" xvi-scrap/44.1kHz upwardly to 24-bit/192kHz. The latter is true Hi-Res Audio, so you'd need a proficient pair of wired headphones to fully appreciate information technology.
That'south not to say that headphones and speakers don't brand a difference at standard resolution. And that's particularly truthful when non all headphones support Apple Music's lossless option, as Apple tree's wireless AirPods, even the AirPods Max, won't. Call up that current Bluetooth tech simply doesn't take the bandwidth for Hi-Res Sound,
Spotify HiFi will also likely require wired headphones for the best benefit, though Spotify notes that Spotify Connect-enabled speakers volition support it. Check out our picks of the best headphones, all-time Bluetooth speakers and best computer speakers to make sure you're getting the best experience.
In any event, Apple currently supports college-resolution streaming and Spotify doesn't. In the absence of any other big differences in Spotify's favor, we have to requite this 1 to Apple.
Winner: Apple tree Music
Apple Music vs. Spotify: Cloud locker
Apple Music's biggest special feature is the iCloud Music Library, which allows MP3 collectors to access their libraries of rare tracks wherever they go. While the service'southward original rollout was hampered by drove-distorting bugs, it's currently a useful feature that helps the service stand out from the pack.
Spotify is supposed to let you to listen to your MP3s inside the app itself, but this has never worked that smoothly, and definitely doesn't allow you to upload tracks.
Winner: Apple Music
Apple Music vs. Spotify: Browser playback
Thankfully, Apple no longer demands you lot install iTunes, and currently lets yous listen in a browser just as Spotify does. Both browser versions allow y'all browse their corresponding libraries, admission your playlists and play "Made for you lot" content, just like their app counterparts.
Winner: Describe
Apple Music vs. Spotify: Availability
Both services have worked on widening their availability in recent years. In addition to the expected devices like phones, tablets, PCs and Macs, Spotify content can exist played via your games consoles. That goes for the most recent PS5, Xbox Series X and Xbox Series Southward, also as older consoles like the Xbox Ane series and the PS4. Early in 2021 Spotify too launched the Car Thing, a small touchscreen device you can install in any car to play music and podcasts from.
Apple Music has its ain automative solution in Apple tree CarPlay, though this needs to be built-in to the car itself; yous can't only add CarPlay to any old clunker. Nevertheless, Apple Music also claims an impressive breadth of supportive devices, from the Apple HomePod and HomePod mini to the Apple TV 4K and Apple Watch.
Spotify too works on smartwatches ranging from Fitbit and Garmin models to more mode-minded Samsung and Google Wear OS wearables. It's getting meliorate in this regard as well, as Spotify is getting offline listening on Clothing OS devices as well as the Apple tree Watch.
Either way you're spoiled for choice, through thank you to its bonus games console back up, Spotify edges this ane. Y'all could perhaps also call it a negative that Apple tree Music lossless won't work with a lot of headphones and speakers, though that will somewhen be truthful of Spotify HiFi besides.
Winner: Spotify
Apple Music vs. Spotify: Playlists and curated content
When it comes to user-curated playlists, Apple tree and Spotify are essentially on parity. Both volition present y'all with personalized playlists, like Spotify's Daily Mix lists and Apple Music's Get Up! And Chill mixes. Both services will also recommend songs and artists you lot haven't listened to even so, merely might like based on your listening preferences.
The Apple Music 1 (previously known as Beats 1) radio station also serves as a potential source of new music, though since it functions like a traditional radio station — fronted by veteran DJs like Zane Lowe and Ebro Darden — its content is curated for the Apple Music subscriber base as a whole. Spotify's version of "radio" is substantially just playlists, curated for certain genres, topics and tastes.
Winner: Draw
I of Spotify'south clearest wins is its wealth of social sharing features. You can easily share Spotify content every bit Instagram and Facebook stories, postal service album art on Snapchat (which then links friends and followers to the song) or create links and scannable, QR-similar Spotify Codes to share music and playlists on whatsoever messaging platform.
Apple Music lets you share playlists with other registered users over AirDrop, or create content links to post wherever yous desire, but its social media integration is much more basic than Spotify's. If you're not overly keen with sharing your listening habits with the world, that might not be an upshot, merely it'southward all optional on both platforms.
Winner: Spotify
Apple tree Music vs. Spotify: Blueprint
E'er since Apple tree Music's large redesign for iOS 10, information technology'south blueprint is close to Spotify in a lot of respects. Both use large images in an almost tile-like UI, with a navigation bar the bottom of the screen for quick access to your music library or the respective search function.
Honestly, the main difference here is purely aesthetic. Apple Music favors a light, bright and white expect with high-contrast text, while Spotify has long stuck to its darker black/grey colour scheme with flashes of neon greenish.
Winner: Describe
Apple tree Music vs. Spotify: Value
If yous don't want to pay for streaming music and you're OK with ads, Apple's insistence on not having a complimentary program will keep you using Spotify. New users can try Apple Music for costless for 3 months, which is more than generous than Spotify Premium'southward 1-month free trial, but subsequently than you'll need to subscribe.
For those who are willing to pay, the playing field looks balanced at a glance. Apple tree Music and Spotify Premium are both $ix.99 a calendar month for individual accounts, and while Spotify's Family plan is more expensive, it's only past a unmarried dollar per calendar month. Both services also offering a $.99 monthly subscription for students.
Go on in listen, however, that Apple tree Music is now throwing in spatial audio and lossless sound for no extra charge. Every bit such, it only offers more than Spotify Premium does for the same cash.
If Spotify HiFi was folded into the existing Spotify Premium tier, rather than launching as a carve up tiered service, that would keep things somewhat even. Only that hasn't happened nonetheless, and even if it does, Apple Music will notwithstanding take the spatial sound advantage.
The fact that Spotify has a costless pick keeps this particular clash a tie, but if if you can spare the cash for a premium subscription, Apple Music is the better deal right at present.
Winner: Draw
Apple Music vs Spotify: Which is the better music app?
Nosotros start ran an Apple Music vs. Spotify comparing a few years agone, and Spotify comfortably won, on the back of its curated content, value for money and wealth of supported hardware.
Credit to Apple tree Music, then, for not just closing the gap but surpassing Spotify overall. It's still behind on social features, and lacks native support for games consoles, merely irresolute its approach from consumer-unfriendly exclusives to more thoughtfully curated content streams has paid off. It's too wisely gained a browser version and remains the better pick for those who like to hoard their music files.
Really, though, it's lossless and spatial audio that brand the difference. Not just does this brand Apple Music the amend choice for listeners who desire the best audio quality possible, just given it's no more expensive than a Spotify Premium subscription, it'due south also improve on value for those willing to pay.
Apple tree Music vs. Spotify: Scorecard
| | Apple Music | Spotify |
| Music Library | ✔ | |
| Music Quality | ✔ | |
| Cloud Locker | ✔ | |
| Browser Playback | ✔ | ✔ |
| Supported Hardware | | ✔ |
| Playlists | ✔ | ✔ |
| Social Integration | | ✔ |
| Design | ✔ | ✔ |
| Value | ✔ | ✔ |
| Full | 7 | 6 |
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Source: https://www.tomsguide.com/face-off/apple-music-vs-spotify-which-is-the-best-music-app
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