Apple Music vs. Spotify: Which service stands as the best?
Streaming music was only common on desktop sites or web apps such as YouTube but now the dynamics have changed tremendously. Music streaming apps emerged from SoundCloud and now you have to pay a specific amount to stream unlimited music on your smartphone.
The two main candidates are Apple Music and Spotify but if you are an iOS user and you want to make a decision then you will have to be very smart about it. Do not choose a music app just because it is cheaper or if it is offering an extensive music library as compared to the other one. You have to base your decision on several factors and for that, we have compiled a very unbiased comparison that will help you make the decision you are looking for.
Here are some things that you should check in both apps.
Audio and Music Library
Since both are music streaming and sharing apps, the first criterion to judge the two should be related to the music libraries. After careful and thorough research, Spotify has earned an upper position since the app’s music catalog comprises of over 30-million songs that are not a match for Apple Music.
As for Apple’s music streaming services, it does have a library of 45 million songs, which is a lot for its competitor Amazon’s Prime Music platform, but some of it is not free and is only set to be exclusive. So, that makes Apple Music a better selection in terms of an extensive music library.
Radio Feature
Both music streaming apps have the feature of an in-built radio. Spotify has not named this feature the conventional term ‘Radio’ instead you can access such playlists directly through the search options. You will be given recommendations for songs that you want to hear and all of these suggestions will comply with your interests.
Apple Music has also played its part to introduce a radio list in the app. Apple has its very own radio station that mainly focuses on actual radio artists and DJs that have their own live shows on radio. Some of the most popular DJs have visited the platform so it has become renowned among different artists.
Subscription Plans and Costs
Let’s talk about Apple Music first. The initial cost of the standard plan costs $10 and that is a lot alike to Spotify Premium and other similar premium music streaming apps or sites. Amazon’s Music Unlimited costs $10 per month so for the same price you are getting so much from Apple Music. Just like other streaming and subscription platforms, both apps offer different plans as well.
Spotify does not offer a free subscription but only for June 2019, it is having an offer for a free subscription which will consist of ads and is based on Hulu subscription. The original monthly cost of Spotify is $6 per month for its premium package. Apple Music falls in the more expensive side so that is why despite giving lesser music and audio files, Spotify wins the spot in terms of subscription fees and different plans or packages.
Search and Song Discovery
Now that millions of songs exist on both the apps, you have to search very smartly to find the song that you have been looking for. The music library is very extensive and if you want new music, the app should suggest music according to your preferences. Spotify has different features that help you discover and find new music. In the weekly discovery feature, you can view all the trending and latest music. This gives new artists the opportunity to showcase their work as well.
On Apple Music, you are first asked to select the artists you like right after you have made your account there. The app will then find all the relevant songs of your selected artists and display them on the main interface of the app. You can adjust and change your favorite music artists as you please as well. Now once you have updated your list of favorite artists, the app is going to shuffle the artists and show you the content of the artists you have recently added.
Offline Download Options
The option to download and save music has already been released by YouTube but now music streaming apps and sites are also adopting it to an extent. Apple Music has introduced the feature so you can play songs that you have saved in offline mode as well. However, the best part is that you are not assigned a specific limit for offline downloads.
As for Spotify, this feature does exist but it has been introduced with some restrictions. In Apple Music, there is no limit to how many songs or files you can save offline but in Spotify, you cannot save unlimited files but have only 10,000 offline downloads per device.
