The Ultimate Music Streaming Showdown
When it comes to streaming music, Spotify and Apple Music are often pitted against each other. But which platform truly delivers the better listening experience? If you're a subscriber to either one, you're probably biased and think your choice is the best, but we're here to break it down. Here are 10 reasons why Spotify is superior—and 10 reasons why Apple Music might actually be worth the switch.
1. Extensive Library
If you're not just a music lover but an audiobook and podcast enthusiast, Spotify is the better pick. While it, too, like Apple Music, offers an extensive library of 100 million songs, it boasts much more content beyond songs and albums than the latter.
2. More Listening Features
From countdown pages to listening parties, there's no shortage of things you can do on Spotify to get even closer to your favorite artists. But more than that, if you're someone who likes to play around with specific tunes and beats, Spotify even allows you to act as your own DJ, meaning you can experiment with different volume, EQ, and effects settings to create the best transitions between songs.
3. Free Tier
Spotify offers a free, ad-supported tier if you're not completely sold on being a subscriber yet. This means you can listen without needing to hand over your credit card right away. Apple Music, on the other hand, doesn't offer a free tier, and you'll need to pay to listen.
4. Music Discovery
Perhaps one of the best advantages Spotify holds over Apple Music is its music discovery feature. Its strong algorithm makes it extremely easy for users to find new artists to listen to, given the platform's incredibly accurate recommendations.
5. Cross-Device Compatibility
While Apple Music generally works best with Apple devices—iPhones, MacBooks, and iPads—Spotify excels at cross-device compatibility. This means that no matter what smartphone or laptop you own, you'll get treated to the same, seamless experience.
6. Personalized, Curated Playlists
Because Spotify is excellent at making personalized recommendations for users to find new artists, another way they allow for music discovery is through curated playlists. You'll find plenty of these that not just suit the activity you're doing—Workout, Concentration, Rainy Weather—but include lists with songs that match your personal taste, based on what you listen to.
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7. Social Features
Another big advantage Spotify has over Apple Music that makes it superior is its social features. After all, what's better than enjoying music on your own? Sharing it with your friends, of course! From being able to collaborate on a playlist to creating "blended" versions (which allows you to see how your tastes match up to your friends), Spotify makes listening to music fun.
8. Larger Community
Spotify boasts a whopping 696 million active monthly users, compared to Apple Music's 94 million. With a larger community on the platform, you're much more likely to find your friends on Spotify (and be able to share and collaborate playlists with them) than you are on Apple Music.
9. Music, Audiobooks, & Podcasts in One App
Remember how we mentioned that Spotify has music, audiobooks, and podcasts? You might not think that sounds like a big deal, but it is. After all, Apple Music subscribers only get, well, music; they'll need to switch to a different app (Apple Podcasts) for podcasts.
10. Spotify Wrapped
Sure, Apple Music has its own version of Spotify Wrapped, but nothing beats the original. It's no wonder why it's the most popular (and most shared) one among music lovers around the world. Plus, it's often a lot more accurate and detailed than Apple Music's Replay.
Convinced that Spotify is the superior music streaming platform, or wondering if Apple Music still has the upper hand? Wherever your heart lies, read on for 10 reasons you might actually want to make the switch to Apple Music...
1. Even More Extensive Library
Both Spotify and Apple Music have an extensive library featuring over 100 million songs, but Apple Music may best the former in other ways, especially when it comes to older compilations, EPs (extended playlists), and albums. So, if you're particularly into throwback music, Apple Music might be your pick.
2. Spatial Audio
Unlike Spotify, which doesn't natively support Spatial Audio, Apple Music does. However, if you have compatible earphones, such as AirPods, you can get Spatial Audio to work on both platforms—although it will work much more intuitively with Apple Music, and you'll have a better listening experience, given that tracks have lossless quality.
3. Karaoke Mode
Spotify might have recently rolled out its version of Karaoke mode, but as of now, it can't beat Apple Music's implementation of it. In the latter, you'll get a better singing experience since even the smallest details—every drawn-out syllable or background adlib, for example—are highlighted.
4. Better Listening Experience
Apple Music offers lossless quality, Dolby Atmos, and Spatial Audio at no extra cost. Spotify, however, only offers up to 320 kbps for Premium users. As soon as you make the switch to Apple Music, even if you're not a hardcore audiophile, you'll immediately notice the difference.
5. No Stats, Just Vibes
In Spotify, stats are everywhere: how many monthly listeners an artist has, how many times a song has been streamed globally. On Apple Music, the focus is on the music, not the numbers, which allows you to just listen and enjoy the vibes.
6. Clean Interface
iPhone users who are used to the clean, simple-to-use iOS interface will appreciate how this design and UI are reflected on Apple Music as well. This makes the platform so much easier and more intuitive to use, given that it's not as cluttered as Spotify might feel.
7. Dolby Atmos Support
Wonder why Spatial Audio is possible? Well, that's because Apple Music offers Dolby Atmos support, which allows the listener to have an immersive listening experience. This significantly changes the way songs sound and feel, making it extremely hard to give up once you're spoiled by it.
8. Photos Integration
iPhone users get another treat: Apple Music subscribers can integrate their favorite songs with their photo albums. This allows you to create personalized slideshows of photos and videos to generate Memory mixes.
9. Works Seamlessly with the Apple Ecosystem
If you're already an Apple user and integrated into the ecosystem, everything works better with Apple Music. You'll have a better listening experience jamming to your favorite playlist with your AirPods connected to Apple Music than Spotify, simply because of the unique features you can't get with the latter.
10. AutoMix
While Spotify has a crossfade feature that allows you to seamlessly go from one song to the next, Apple Music's AutoMix feature gives the former a run for its money; in fact, it's even enough to make Spotify users want to switch. How does AutoMix work? Much like a real DJ would, stretching the time and matching the beat to create a continuous listening experience.
