Apple Music Vs Spotify; Find Out The Best Music App 2022
If you love listening to new music all the time, you must have heard about Spotify and Apple Music before. These two giant streaming apps are considered equally strong competitors to each other and popular worldwide. So which one out of these two is best to use. Though it’s a bit tricky, let’s find it out!
Table of Contents
Apple Music vs Spotify: Detailed Comparison
Spotify and Apple Music, both apps have been in the market since years and got a lot to offer you. To make deciding on one easy for you, we dug deep into what each platform has to offer, as well as what it lacks.
Let’s see who wins over in the main categories.
- Spotify vs Apple Music- Overview
- Plans and Pricing
- Music Content
- Easy to Use
- Content Variety
- Audio Quality
- Music Recommendations
- Availability
- Social Media
- Some Additional Features
- Conclusion
Spotify – A Quick Overview
Spotify – The best smart music player, known for podcasts within the app and cross-compatibility
Created in 2006 by Swedish entrepreneurs, Spotify is more of a free + premium streaming service that has over 406 million users worldwide. It should be your pick if you want to enjoy music for free. It offers a free but ad-supported tier to listen to, with some limitations. However, if you prefer a subscription plan, Spotify has got all the specialities for you. Enjoy the podcasts, cross-compatibility, and other exclusive services here!
Apple Music – A Quick Overview
Apple Music – The best lossless and spatial audio studio
Apple Music is a replacement for the iTunes app, launched in 2016. Even though this app has been in the market for only 7 years now, but it has successfully got over 98 million paying subscribers worldwide. Here, you are allowed to mix and match your existing music collection with the Apple Music streaming library. Enjoy the lossless audio and Dolby Atmos spatial audio on selected songs here.
1. Apple Music vs. Spotify: Plans and Pricing
At a quick glance, let’s compare their pricing structures first.
Point of Difference
Spotify
Apple Music
Yes
Not Available
$9.99/month
$9.99/month
$15.99/month (6 Accounts)
$14.99/month (6 Accounts)
$4.99/month
$4.99/month
$99/year
$99/year
Premium Duo ($12.99/ month -2 Accounts)
Not Available
Take note of the fact that in the Premium Plans, both apps offer you full access to the library, offline downloads, no advertisements, and access to multiple devices. But there are some distinctions too that set them apart.
Spotify
Apple Music
Unlimited
100,000 maximum
320kbps bitrate
24-bit/192 kHz
Residing at the same address
Have the same iTunes Store region
$15.99/month
$14.99/month
Additional Spotify Perks
1. Free Plan
Spotify offers you to listen to its music library for free. But there would be ads in between and some restrictions on in-demand playbacks, for sure. At least you can still create your own playlist and listen to it on shuffle premium-free. Doesn’t it sound right?
2. Premium Duo
This Spotify plan allows you to maintain two different and separated Premium accounts at just $12.99 a month. If you like to buy this plan for your friend or else, both of you should reside in the same place. That’s the only limit here!
3. Spotify Kids
In its Family Premium Plan, there is a “Spotify Kids” feature that offers you to give Spotify access to your children with kid-friendly content.
Final Verdict:
Winner: Spotify
In this Spotify vs. Apple Music comparison, Spotify wins. I mean what else would you need to have, when you get unlimited access to the music library for saving it. Adding more to that, features like Premium Duo, Free Plan, and Spotify Kids are some exceptional options that you won’t have in Apple Music plans. If you’re an Android user, have got kids, and are budget-conscious too, Spotify should be your call then.
However, if you prefer high music quality over some extra perks, Apple Music is a good deal here. Try out its 3-month free trial to see if it’s worth it or not.
2. Apple Music vs. Spotify: Music Content
Both apps have extended music libraries with millions of tracks (every genre) in them.
While talking about Spotify, this app has over 4 billion playlists and is constantly extending its music library every day. You may expect to find all of the most recent mainstream hits here. It also shows the playlists that are created by independent record companies and music journals to give you a new music taste.
Spotify has all of the basic music genres covered, like Pop, Hip-Hop, Rock, Chill, and so on. However, the app also includes genres like Podcasts, Karaoke, Cooking & Dining, Anime, and Songwriters. You can easily see which songs or artists are currently trending around the world in its “Chart” playlist.
Whereas Apple Music’s library is presented in mood and genre-specific playlists, as you like it. This app keeps you updated about the latest releases and covers all popular genres with the help of Apple Music editors. However, this app appears to have a larger selection of genres and more categorized lists, with over 100 selections compared to Spotify’s 57 options.
Final Verdict:
Winner: Apple Music
In this category, Apple Music wins because of having a little advantage. It wins out due to its smart selection and more fleshed-out categories, which provide you with more alternatives.
3. Apple Music vs Spotify: Which one is easy to use?
With a minimalist look, Apple Music gives you a more customizable sidebar to navigate through. You can edit it however you like by choosing what you want to see on the front. Whether it’s a desktop version or a mobile phone, everything is simple to grab from the drop-down menu. But this app may require you to make an extra effort. For instance, if you’re a new user, then you may feel it irritating when you have to “Like’ and “Add” the song separately.
On the other hand, Spotify offers additional tools to help you manage your music. You can sort out your playlists by reordering the tracks according to their titles, artists, dates, or durations on both mobile and desktop versions. Also, you have got a “Search in playlist” tool to quickly discover what you’re looking for in a particular playlist. Just like a song, and it gets automatically saved in your playlist. That’s how simple Spotify is!
Final Verdict:
Winner: Spotify
With more intuitive user control, Spotify makes your experience more convenient and effort-free. Having the ability to organize playlists using “sort” and “search” tools is a minor detail that makes a significant difference.
4. Apple Music vs Spotify: Which one has more Content Variety?
Spotify is most renowned for its extensive podcast library when it comes to non-music entertainment. There are currently 2.6 million titles available on the app. With standard podcasts, Spotify also aims to provide video podcasts that allow creators to incorporate video content into their existing audio episodes.
Apart from podcasts, Spotify offers a wide range of audiobooks including fiction, nonfiction, literature, poetry, language learning, and stories among others.
Whereas, Apple Music is all about live radio programs, radio shows, and just music videos. These radio programs also feature debates and interviews along with news updates. And, the Music Video category includes BTS reels, short documentaries, as well as live performances.
Final Verdict:
Winner: Spotify
In this Apple Music vs Spotify comparison, Spotify takes the lead because of having a wider range of content. Its podcasts themselves cover a wide range of topics, not just only music.
5. Apple Music vs. Spotify: Which one has better Audio Quality?
The audio quality and its setting matter when you’re streaming using your mobile data. But this is the case only for casual users who have nothing to do with the touch a particular audio quality gives to its listeners. But for music lovers, this audio quality is the primary concern above all other things.
So, let’s now compare each app’s audio quality settings in a table.
Audio Quality
Automatic |
Low quality |
Normal quality |
High quality |
Very High quality |
Lossless |
High-Res Lossless quality |
Apple Music
64-256kbps |
N/A |
N/A |
256kbps |
N/A |
24-bit/48 kHz |
24-bit/192 kHz |
Spotify
Depends on connection |
24kbps |
96kbps |
160kbps |
320kbps |
N/A |
N/A |
Final Verdict:
Winner: Apple Music
When it comes to audiophile-level sound, Spotify’s 320kbps simply won’t cut it. Apple Music’s Lossless Audios may take your favourite music to a whole new level. And, when you add in the spatial audio, Spotify is ultimately out of the game.
6. Apple Music vs. Spotify: Music Recommendations
Spotify and Apple Music both include discovery functions that are similar. These applications use algorithms to identify your musical likes.
You can use Spotify’s Search and Apple Music’s Browse features to find worldwide chart playlists, new music releases, mood playlists, and personalized suggestions.
The brilliance of Spotify’s recommendations is shown at this point. It has “The Discover Weekly” playlist that never fails to deliver. For streamlining its recommendations, Spotify tracks everything you do on the app, even the time you prefer to use it.
Whereas, Apple Music recommendations depend on human curation.
Final Verdict:
Winner: Spotify
With its powerful algorithms, Spotify picks up on trends faster. While, on the other hand, Apple Music is a bit restricted and takes a long time to fine-tune its discoveries according to your preferences
7. Apple Music vs Spotify: Availability
You can play Spotify music on all traditional platforms like phones, tablets, Macs, and PCs. It’s perfect for newer systems like the PS5 and Xbox Series X and S, Xbox One and PS4,
Car Thing (a small device to install and play Spotify in the car), and even smartwatches too.
In comparison, Apple Music has its own automated built-in solution in Apple CarPlay. Moreover, it’s compatible with devices including the Apple HomePod and HomePod mini, as well as the Apple TV 4K and Apple Watch.
Final Verdict:
Winner: Spotify
In either case, Spotify wins this comparison because of its additional game console support.
8. Apple Music vs. Spotify: Social Media
If you want to share your music content on different social media platforms, then Spotify is in the lead here. Spotify allows you to share its content on Instagram and Facebook stories. Your Spotify album cover can also be shared on Snapchat. Adding more to that, you can create links and QR-like Spotify Codes and can share them on any messaging platform.
On Apple Music, you can share your playlists with only registered users and via AirDrop. This app also offers you to create links and share wherever you want, but its integration is less sophisticated than Spotify’s.
Final Verdict:
Winner: Spotify
Spotify wins here due to its robust social media integration and sharing features.
9. Apple Music vs. Spotify: Some Additional Features
Now let’s compare what Spotify and Apple Music offer you in the not-so-important but still required categories. They may not seem important to you, but these features are the basic ones that help have a good music experience. If you enjoy that type of stuff, they might serve then little extras. Let’s get into them.
1. Apple Music vs Spotify: Replay
Wrapped by Spotify is only available once a year. With its stylized design and entertaining statistics, it’s always a treat to look forward to. Apple Music Replay, on the other hand, is available all year.
Winner: Apple Music
2. Apple Music vs. Spotify: Lyrics
Apple Music Users can skip to a certain point of a song by clicking on a specific lyric line. This thing is beneficial for you if you’re learning a song in a foreign language. However, Spotify doesn’t allow you to do that.
Winner: Apple Music
10 . Apple Music vs. Spotify: Which one you should go for?
Just as we said both platforms have a lot to offer. Spotify’s proficiency in the field of music discovery will please those who value it. Its huge library of podcasts and audiobooks is a great source of non-musical entertainment. Additionally, its flexible plans are a plus for budget-conscious ones.
On the other side, Apple Music’s lossless and spatial audio will satisfy those who care about music quality. This app is also a perfect spot for those who appreciate music videos, live performances, documentaries, music conversations, and artist interviews.
While concluding this, it’d be quite unfair saying that Spotify is better than Apple Music or vice versa. Both apps have got different perks, depending on what you find more enjoyable. To make it easy, if you’re just a casual listener who loves listening to songs while being involved in something else, choose Spotify. It’s free for you! But, if you’re an audiophile who is deeply involved in and concerned all about music and its quality, then go for Apple Music.
