Music plays an integral part in one’s life music may be used for various purposes like relaxing, working out, studying, etc.
Listening to music has come a long way;
the evolution of listening to music started with the Gramo Phone, which began in the late 19th century, then went into the radios in the mid-20th century, giving a new way to how people listen to music.
Walkman gained much popularity in the 1960s but then disappeared with the founding of the compact disc (CD).
But this all changed with the start of the 21st century when Apple released its very first iPod, gave a new way to listen to music and made it possible to carry 1000 songs in your pockets. Still, with that era ending today, we listen to music through music streaming apps.
Today, Spotify and Apple Music are one of the world’s largest online music streaming services, with over 50 million-plus songs.
Key Takeaways
- Apple Music and Spotify are both music streaming services that provide access to a vast library of songs on demand.
- Apple Music is owned by Apple and is tightly integrated with the Apple ecosystem, while Spotify is a standalone platform that can be accessed from multiple devices and operating systems.
- Apple Music offers exclusive content and radio stations, while Spotify has a larger user base and provides more personalized music recommendations.
Apple Music vs Spotify
The difference between Apple Music and Spotify is that Apple Music does not allow users to stream any song for free without buying the service. In contrast, Spotify allows users to stream any song for free without buying the service.
Spotify comes with its perks like ads, not skipping songs, etc.
Spotify provides a new place to contemporary artists by featuring them, whereas Apple Music is more of a closed space, not giving that much freedom to the unknown artist.
Comparison Table
| Parameters of Comparison | Apple Music | Spotify |
|---|---|---|
| Library limit | It provides a library limit of 100,000 songs. | It provides a library limit of 10,000 songs. |
| Number of songs | More than 60 million songs are available across the platform. | More than 50 million songs are available. |
| Available Devices | Mobile Phones, laptops etc. But is integrated to work great with Apple devices. | Mobile phones, laptops, web player and works with all devices, including google assistant and Alexa. |
| Special features | Equalizer | Crossfade |
| Music Discovery | Doesn’t provide personalized music libraries. | It uses a strong algorithm and thus provides personalized music. |
What is Apple Music?
Apple Music is a subscription-based music service allowing its users to stream over 60 million songs, podcasts, and artists.
Apple Music started in 2015 to provide its users with the best quality of music and streaming. Apple Music is more of a closed environment and an integrated app that works best with Apple services.
It doesn’t allow its users to stream music for free using Apple Music is not that tough. It is a very user-friendly app that can be signed up only by making an Apple ID.
Today Apple Music is available in more than 100 countries, including India. Apple Music is a much more intimate environment and doesn’t feature many new artists.
Apple Music provides the highest music quality and streaming. Apple Music has no robust algorithm and doesn’t give the user personalized playlists based on recent listening.
What is Spotify?
Spotify is one of the biggest music streaming apps globally, with access to more than 50 million songs, podcasts, and artists.
Spotify is one of those apps that allows its user to stream music and podcasts for free; it allows it to either buy Spotify Premium or keep using the free version, but the perks are ads playing between songs.
Spotify is easy and very user-friendly; one can sign up using Facebook, your email id, and even your phone number and start listening. Today Spotify is available in more than 76 countries, including India.
Spotify also provides opportunities to new artists by featuring them, thus making it a place for contemporary artists.
The question might be the difference between Spotify free and premium.
The main difference is the sound quality, which increases with the premium, and the ads that are all over the place with the free version can be removed with the premium version.
Spotify uses a robust algorithm which uses your music preferences and then provides you with a playlist of similar songs every week that can be accessed from the app.
How does it work?
First, visit the website www.spotify.com or download the app on your mobile devices.
Second, make your account using a phone number or email ID.
Third, choose a plan that could be a free version or a premium version.
Fourth, fill in your favourite genres and artists.
Fifth, Stream and enjoy!
Main Differences Between Apple Music and Spotify
- Apple Music doesn’t allow free music streaming, whereas Spotify does allow free streaming.
- Spotify helps new artists grow by featuring them, whereas apple music is a closed environment and doesn’t feature much.
- Apple Music plus 0.012 cents per stream to the artist, whereas Spotify pays 0.006 cents per stream. (2020)
- Spotify comes with a unique feature called Spotify Connect that allows users to switch songs between devices and even use a phone as a remote for devices. Still, apple music doesn’t provide any of these features.
- Spotify makes a personalized playlist for the user called DISCOVER WEEKLY that includes fresh music based on past listening, whereas Apple Music doesn’t.
- Apple Music provides much better offline listening because of auto-download and other features, whereas Spotify’s offline listening is below average.
Last Updated : 11 June, 2023
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Sandeep Bhandari holds a Bachelor of Engineering in Computers from Thapar University (2006). He has 20 years of experience in the technology field. He has a keen interest in various technical fields, including database systems, computer networks, and programming. You can read more about him on his bio page.
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