Yahoo Finance The best music streaming services, from Spotify to Apple Music, compared
Music makes everything better. Whether you’re looking for a bit of escapism on your daily walks, the motivation to get you through a workout or background tunes in the kitchen while you cook, it can be a source of comfort.
And if you live alone and haven't been able to see anyone beyond a screen for the past few months, it may be the friendly voice of the radio or podcasts that help you get through the day.
Thanks to the growing number of music streaming services all vying for the top spot, there’s plenty of choices to pick from.
Here we’ve rounded up every one available to help you decide which one will work for you best.
You can trust our independent round-ups. We may earn commission from some of the retailers, but we never allow this to influence selections. This revenue helps us to fund journalism across The Independent.
Amazon Music Unlimited
Cost: From £7.99 per month
Free trial? A three-month free trial is available to new users
A subscription to Amazon Music Unlimited allows you to listen to 60 million songs with no interruption from adverts.
However, if you are already an Amazon Prime member, you will already be able to access the 2 million songs in the Amazon Prime Music library. In order to listen to every song it has on offer, you will need to sign up to the Amazon Music Unlimited for £7.99 a month.
For non-Prime members, it will cost you £9.99 a month. You can also download tracks so you can listen to them anywhere, regardless of whether you have an internet connection or not.
If you own an Amazon echo dot or Amazon fire stick, there is also a single device subscription on offer for £3.99 a month.
Go to Amazon Music Unlimited now
Spotify
Cost: Free or £9.99 for a premium monthly subscription
Free trial? A three-month premium free trial is available to new users
The biggest and most well-known streaming service, Spotify has a library of 35 million songs and has 286 million users worldwide.
Signing up gives you free access to all its music with shuffle play, but there are adverts, fewer skips and you can’t download songs to listen to offline.
The paid subscription model is well worth the investment, offering no ads, unlimited skips, shuffle play and the ability to download songs so you can listen to them anytime and without an internet connection.
It curates playlists of music you like and recommends similar artists and albums for you to enjoy.
There is also Spotify Family, for £14.99, which allows five premium members to be linked to one account. There's also a discounted student membership for £4.99 which gives unlimited music with no ads.
YouTube Music
Cost: £9.99 per month
Free trial? A 30-day free trial is available to new users
With Youtube Music, you can listen to ad-free singles, albums, remixes, live performances and music videos, offering a mix of playlists based on what you’ve previously listened to.
Subscribers can also download, or upload, up to 50,000 songs to listen to offline.
There is a free version available, but only for Google Home smart speaker users, which allows you to listen to a sample of playlists through voice-activation. It does however still have ads in between songs with the free version.
Apple Music
Cost: £9.99 per month
Free trial? A three-month free trial is available to new users
There are 60 million songs to work your way through with Apple Music, which for iPhone users offers a lengthy three-month trial before you commit to a subscription.
You can also link it to your other Apple products, such as tablets or the brand's HomePod speaker.
Membership entitles you to ad-free listening and the ability to download 100,000 songs.
The Family membership model, for £14.99, lets you link up to six accounts, and for students, it offers a discounted membership, while still getting the full benefits, for £4.99.
Tidal
Cost: From £9.99 per month
Free trial? Currently, a 90-day free trial is available to new users
You may remember the furore surrounding the launch of Jay-Z’s music streaming platform, which gives users access to exclusive tracks from stars like Beyonce and Kanye West.
With the standard membership you can enjoy the library of 60 million songs, including the exclusives, but for the premium package which has hi-fi audio it will set you back £19.99 a month.
Tidal sets itself apart as the high fidelity music streaming service. It is the brainchild of rapper Jay Z and features lots of exclusive tracks from the likes of Beyonce and Kanye West. It bills itself as offering lossless music, sounding as the artists intended it.
SoundCloud
Cost: Free, or £7.50 per month for SoundCloud Pro
Free trial? No, as you can access its music library for free
Designed for music producers or people on the hunt for less mainstream musicians, SoundCloud has a giant library of 180 million tracks, mostly uploaded directly from the artist.
Its free model allows you to upload three hours of audio, providing you with real-time stats on your uploads.
The paid version means you can upload an unlimited amount, schedule releases, listen ad-free and earn money for SoundCloud plays.
Deezer
Cost: Free or £9.99 for a premium monthly subscription
Free trial? A three-month premium free trial is available to new users
With a similar model to Spotify, Deezer is free, if you’re prepared to put up with the ads. Along with music, there are also podcasts to tune into too and you can use the app with an Amazon echo or Sonos device.
There’s 56 million tracks on offer, but to get unlimited skips, no ads and to listen in offline mode you will need to sign up to the premium model.
With the free version you can only access mixes and playlists on mobile devices, but songs, with adverts, are available on your desktop.
The Deezer Family package allows unlimited access to its library for up to six users.
Read our guide on all the TV and film streaming services you need to know about
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