Every week, Americans spend upwards of 30 hours listening to music. Nothing has made this easier than the abundance of music streaming apps available. Like more intuitive radios you can carry in your pocket, streaming apps have reinvented the way you experience music.
They have also rev-invented the way artists create it. From curated playlists made directly by your favorite artists on apps like Tidal to newly released tracks direct to streaming apps like SoundCloud, streaming apps make artists feel closer than ever before.
Download a streaming app today to create a new music experience.
The Best Music Streaming Apps
In the music streaming world, competition is stiff. There is a great variety of music streaming apps on the market, especially for those who are looking for the best alternatives to YouTube.
Most major apps offer access to millions of songs at affordable costs. With free, ad-driven options as well, anyone can find a streaming app that works for them.
Most streaming apps can be listened to across your devices including phones, tablets, computers, and smart TVs. Some can even be connected to smartwatches. Check out these seven absolute best music streaming apps for 2020:
Amazon Music
Amazon is the powerhouse no one can resist. By conglomerating so many services, they save users on cost and simplify the experience so that you shop for socks, watch movies, and stream your favorite tunes all with one account.
Amazon Music gives subscribers access to 60 million songs. These are set up like radio stations and playlists.
With three pricing tiers, Amazon Music is extremely accessible. For Prime members, Prime Music is included free. They can bump up to Amazon Music Unlimited for $79 per year or $7.99 per month.
For those without Prime, they can subscribe to Amazon Music for $9.99 per month.
Spotify
Everyone loves something for free. Signing up for Spotify is free, though there are ads on the app. There is also a little less control over the music you listen to, but you can make personal playlists of your favorites.
Upgrading to Premium costs $9.99. It removes ads, enables on-demand playback, and offline play. Spotify offers access to 50 million songs.
Premium can be purchased as a single subscription, a duo for $12.99, or a family account for $14.99. Students get a deal of $4.99, which includes a Hulu and Showtime subscription.
Outside of music, Spotify is a top competitor in podcast platforms. If you’re looking to consolidate your listening hours into one app, Spotify offers this possibility.
Apple Music
Apple Music is the streaming iteration of iTunes. It permits access to 70 million individual songs as well as a personalized library that can be installed on your devices.
Coming in at $9.99 a month, Apple Music has the perks of offline listening, live radio, and curated playlists. Use your regular devices or sync to your vehicle with CarPlay.
Like all Apple products, it is uniquely linked throughout the Apple ecosystem, including playing through the Apple Watch without needing to be connected to the iPhone.
For Apple users, Apple Music is an obvious choice to integrate their digital life more fully through their Apple account.
Special offers include student prices of $4.99 per month and family subscriptions of $14.99 per month.
Tidal
For more than just the casual music listener, Tidal claims the “best sound quality available”. They recruit artists to create their playlists, as well as putting out playlists by their in-house team.
With a library of 60 million songs to rival the big guys like Amazon Music and Apple Music, Tidal offers subscribers variety.
Tidal provides master-quality audio so that audiophiles can access the best. These HiFi recordings are available on mobile devices and as a desktop app.
Tidal’s HiFi Standard plan comes in at $19.99 per month, with access to the HiFi quality, un-throttled skipping, and TIDAL Masters.
iHeartRadio
Missing the good old days of rock ‘n’ roll on the radio? iHeartRadio is the music streaming app for you. Completely free, tune in to your favorite radio stations from anywhere and listen live.
Besides accessing local (or not so local) radio stations online, the iHeartRadio app includes stations based on genres and liked artists. It has also joined the podcast world, hosting popular pods in their app.
For those looking for a little more control, iHeartRadio also offers paid subscriptions.
At the Plus level, users can skip as many songs as desired, play songs on demand, and download live radio to save for later. Plus clocks in at $4.99 per month
An even more advanced streaming experience is available at the All Access subscription level. This adds offline listening and unlimited playlists. It costs $9.99 per month.
SoundCloud
Looking to discover something new? As a platform for creators, SoundCloud serves up original, unique music from around the world. Find artists at the beginning of their career that you can continue to follow as they make it up the ranks of popularity.
And it’s all available for free. Sign up for SoundCloud with your e-mail or other accounts such as Facebook, Google, or Apple.
To add perks like downloading music for offline and nixing ads, upgrade to SoundCloud Go for $4.99 per month. Notch it up once more for SoundCloud Go+ to include the full catalog and high-quality audio for $9.99 per month.
LaMusica
Spanish language music listeners have found a home with the LaMusica music streaming app.
Latin music and its fans can put all of their favorite music entertainment together in one app. It consolidates playlists, radio, and music.
Users also get access to curated playlists and music news, making LaMusica a cultural hub. LaMusica is available for free and produced by the Spanish Broadcasting System.
How to Choose the Best Apps to Stream Music
Whether listeners want something new or are looking for the highest quality music, they can find it through a streaming app.
Choosing an app will likely be influenced by which accounts you already use the most, such as Amazon Prime or Apple. Large tech conglomerates make it simple for users to add music services as an inexpensive add-on to other account perks.
Millions of songs can be at your fingertips for less than $10 a month. Check out these awesome apps today.
