The perfect alternate options to Spotify for listening to music

Spotify might be probably the most well-known music providers out there (if not the most well-liked) round — and it appears that evidently the corporate it benefiting from that. As of this month, Spotify introduced that it was elevating its costs, the third time since 2023.

If that issues you (particularly should you’re a present Spotify subscriber), you’ll be glad to know that there are fairly a couple of alternate options out there for good music listening, some with free variations (and a few not), and a few that may show you how to discover new and lesser-known artists. A number of, like Spotify, additionally supply podcasts. In the event 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 just isn’t standing nonetheless. Like many different apps, it has added AI-based choices, akin to an audiobook recap characteristic, a beta music video program, and the flexibility to see what your family and friends are listening to in your cell system.

In the meantime, Spotify’s free service gives a wide array of music interrupted pretty steadily with ads. When you can specify songs, albums, or podcasts immediately utilizing the app, you’ve 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” moderately than the artist themselves.)

Spotify Premium lately raised its charges. The Premium Particular person ($12.99 / month) account gives ad-free listening, the flexibility to obtain songs and arrange your queue, and as much as 15 hours of audiobook listening, together with different options. You may get the identical choices for 2 individuals with Premium Duo ($18.99 / month) and as much as six individuals or children with Premium Household ($21.99 / month), which provides the flexibility to dam express music. You may as well simply subscribe to its audiobook catalog for $9.99 a month (for a similar 15 hours).

Funds plans: Premium Pupil ($6.99 / month), for verified college students; provides entry to Hulu.

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

In the event you’re an Amazon Prime member and suppose you’ll be getting full entry to Amazon’s music library together with your Prime subscription, suppose 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 gives three totally different music tiers; as you journey up the ladder, you get entry to extra songs at increased ranges of high quality. You may as well take heed to podcasts.

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

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

Amazon Music Limitless lets you’ve 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 gadgets without delay. All these plans additionally allow you to entry a single audiobook a month.

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

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

Apple Music is an effective choice, 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. You may as well obtain and stream music to your Apple Watch. Different options embrace a lyrics view so you possibly can observe alongside, curated lists, and stay radio stations.

There isn’t any free model; you’ll must 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 a wide range of gadgets and gives high-quality audio, together with lossless audio and spatial audio with Dolby Atmos. You’ll be able to 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: In the event you’re in faculty, the Pupil plan ($5.99 / month) gives the identical options because the Particular person plan, together with Apple TV+. You may as well embrace Apple Music within the Apple One bundle plan.

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

Once we first printed 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 report retailer and music neighborhood” through which unbiased musicians and podcasters are paid immediately by their followers. In line with Bandcamp, the artists acquire a median of 80 to 85 p.c of every sale. There isn’t any charge 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 celebration” occasions. And should you’re anxious about being slipped AI music, remember that Bandcamp is the first main music service to to ban AI content material.

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

Deezer just isn’t as well-known within the US as Apple Music or Spotify, however it has related catalogs and options. In line with its web site, it gives “over 120 million tracks,” together with playlists and podcasts. You should utilize its net model or one of many apps it has for nearly any system on the market, together with desktops, telephones, and watches. It additionally gives on-screen lyrics. It gives a number of plans.

Free allows you to take heed to playlists moderately than particular songs, and it’s important to put up with advertisements. Nevertheless, you do get entry to the app’s whole library.

Premium ($11.99 / month or $107.99 / 12 months) removes the advertisements, allows you to take heed to particular tracks, gives high-fidelity sound, and allows you to obtain your music. You’ll be able to join as much as three gadgets 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 possibly can join as much as 5 gadgets.

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

Funds plans: You may get a scholar 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 present owned by SiriusXM, it was launched as a shopper music service in 2005 and has gone by way of a wide range of adjustments since. (For instance, customers of the free service had been initially restricted to 40 hours of streaming per thirty days.) Lately, it has one free and two paid providers; it contains each music and podcasts.

Curiously, Pandora’s Free service does assist you to 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 hear offline, however you continue to must view an advert to pick particular tracks.

Pandora Premium ($10.99 / month) offers you all the 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 Pupil ($5.99 / month) and Premium Navy ($8.99 / month) provide the identical 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 gives a library of over 110 million tracks, over 650,000 movies, interviews with and documentaries about its artists, and three ranges of audio high 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 system; it particularly helps various system producers. It doesn’t supply 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 gives the identical because the Particular person plan for as much as six customers ($16.99 / month); there may be additionally a Pupil plan ($5.49 / month).

Free trial: A 30-day free trial.

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 number of tools producers, akin to Bang & Olufsen, Sonos, and Thiel. Moreover music, it gives album critiques, artist bios, and articles. Qobuz gives two plans; every of those is available in Solo (one account), Duo (two accounts residing on the identical tackle), and Household (six accounts per family) variations.

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

Chic gives a 60 p.c low cost on purchases. Solo prices $14.99 / month, as is Duo; Household is $17.99 / month.

Funds plans: Studio has a particular $4.99 / month charge for college kids 25 years previous and beneath.

Free trial: One month for all plans.

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

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

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

Funds plans: The Pupil 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 a wide range of tracks and playlists, with advertisements.

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

SoundCloud Go+ ($10.99 / month) provides entry to the service’s full catalog and higher-quality audio.

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

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

Replace January 15, 2026: This was initially printed on February 1st, 2022. All entries have been up to date.