A common debate I have seen on Twitter lately is Apple Music vs. Spotify. I asked a few of my friends, and the majority of us lean toward Spotify, but those that use Apple Music have strong feelings towards it as well. I have personal experience with Spotify, so I had to do a little research to see what Apple Music was all about. Both apps have similar price subscriptions, so don’t let that be a factor in the debate, but there are many differences after that. For those that have been using one or the other, you probably have developed a bias towards your app and are unlikely to change that, but hear me out anyway.
Unlike Spotify, Apple Music lets you have one free month and then you have to buy a subscription. Spotify has a free option, with commercials, if you don’t want to pay for premium. Both apps find ways to recommend music. Apple Music has you pick your favorite genres and artists at the beginning of your subscription. Spotify collects what you listen to and gives back recommendations. Spotify wins out on this one because they upload a new Discover Weekly Playlist every week. There are also multiple Daily Mix Playlists, which are playlists personalized for your tastes.
Another similarity is that both apps let you save songs. If you go to an artist’s page in Apple Music that page is separated by albums, so you can easily find the song you are looking for. Spotify, on the other hand, throws all the songs and albums in what seems like no specific format. While they might have set it up a certain way, it is hard to decipher the order of albums and match the songs to each album.
Both apps let you make decisions based on data or storage. You can stream music to save storage or download music to save data. Spotify and Apple Music are able to give you high-quality music when you are connected to WiFi, but Spotify wins out because you can change the quality of your music to fit your storage or data needs. They also match how they use the radio, playing music for the genre or artist you picked, but Apple Music has a much better system. Spotify will eventually repeat the songs, but Apple Music has more on the radio along with live DJs.
There are a few other features to mention. Spotify and Apple Music both have podcasts, but Spotify has the benefit of being able to listen to the Podcast without leaving the app. Another mutual feature is the option to watch videos. Apple Music has more content to offer, but watching videos is not a popular thing to do on either app. Lastly, both apps offer top charts which show the same songs and albums, but Spotify’s is better presented.
Those are mutual offerings between the apps, but Spotify still has a few more to offer. The app lets you see what friends are listening to, collaborate with songs, and see what concerts are nearby. They also show meanings behind song lyrics and even have the option to upload your music tastes onto Tinder. While Apple Music does have special events every once in a while, Spotify can offer much more consistently. Both apps do a great job of offering the basics of listening to music, and both have certain downfalls. In the end, we all have our preferences, so I’ll let you decide which app is really the best.