What to know
- Spotify’s frequent price hikes are causing users to switch to Apple Music.
- Apple Music’s quality is another reason why Spotify users are considering team read.
- With a clutter-free user interface, better support for local files, and better artist payouts, there’s a strong case to be made for switching to Apple Music.
Although Spotify is the most popular music streaming service, the conversation over which music app is better – Spotify or Apple Music – is far from over. Sheer numbers may be indicative of popularity, but that doesn’t always equate to quality, be it in terms of features or value for money.
My story is not unlike many thousands of Spotify users who’ve been using the music streaming service for years but are continually being discouraged by questionable changes to the platform and frequent price hikes.
Even though I do not own an iPhone (and have never been a big fan of Apple devices and services), everything from Spotify’s interface changes, comparatively lower sound quality, and policies that shortchange artists have finally forced me to reconsider my loyalty.
If you’re in the same boat, here are some reasons to consider a switch to Apple Music.
Why it’s time to switch from Spotify to Apple Music
Although there isn’t one single reason that is enough to make the switch, every little thing adds up. Here are five reasons why users are switching from team green to team red in droves.
1. Spotify’s needless price hikes sending subscribers over
I remember clearly when $9.99 was all that I paid for Spotify. But then came audiobooks – a completely unnecessary addition to the platform – and the price went up to $10.99.
There are reports that suggest that Spotify included audiobooks just so it could justify the hike. But the new services have done little to offset Spotify’s consistent losses reported since the Swedish-based company went public in 2018.
But this is just the start. There will be a further hike to $11.99 next month ($16.99 for Duo, and $19.99 for Family), and here’s the latest justification from the horse’s mouth:
Spotify may release a separate ‘Basic’ plan for $10.99 in the US, one that doesn’t bundle audiobooks, which is what the old Premium plan was anyway. But there’s every possibility that subscription prices may go up yet again when Spotify Lossless comes out, which brings me to matters of quality.
2. Apple Music has better music quality, lossless
Spotify users who’ve listened to music on Apple Music will agree that the quality on the latter is clearly superior. And that is even before we get to the ‘Lossless’ debate.
Apple Music’s standard-quality AAC codec is audibly better than Spotify’s OGG Vorbis, even at the highest settings. This may be subjective territory, to be sure. But as far as I’m concerned, even if I use Bluetooth headphones and get lossy compression, Apple Music still sounds much better.
Now, let’s talk Lossless. Apple introduced Lossless Audio back in 2021, without charging anything extra. So anyone who has a compatible output device can listen to music in the Lossless format. Whereas Spotify is yet to come good on its promise for lossless quality music made three years ago. By now, I won’t be surprised if we get GTA 6 before we get Spotify Lossless.
3. Apple Music has a simpler interface, fewer distractions
Once upon a time, Spotify was easy on the eyes. The recommendations made sense and there were fewer distractions. Lately, it’s become a confused mixture of music, podcasts, audiobooks and recommendations thereof. If you scroll down enough, you’ll see cards and album previews that take up more than half of the screen real estate.
Apple Music on the other hand is more minimalist, has an album-oriented layout, and has a cleaner aesthetic overall. The app achieves this by having a separate tab for different sections. Apart from the search and library sections (which are also on Spotify), there’s a ‘Browse’ section so that the Home page doesn’t get too crowded with recommendations, and ‘Radio’ stations for those who prefer listening to them.
4. Apple Music lets you add your music that syncs across devices
Of all the different ways in which Apple Music trumps Spotify, this is the feature that made me sit up and take notice. On Apple Music, once you add a song from your local storage to your library, it syncs and is made available on every single platform that you’re running Apple Music. So, if you add a song on Apple Music for Windows (or Mac), it’ll become available on your smartphone, your tablet, or whichever platform you happen to have Apple Music. I do this all the time for songs that are not available in my region and is one of the only ways I can access those songs without changing regions.
But that’s not all. You can even change its metadata, album art, genre, add lyrics, as well as change playback settings like setting the start and end time for the track. I wish I could say the same for Spotify, but I can’t.
5. Apple supports artists better, pays more
Apple pays artists more per stream, and that’s a fact. Spotify, on the other hand, has been paying artists less and less. Even with all the price hikes, the share of money that goes to artists has declined. By bundling audiobooks to the subscription, Spotify automatically ends up paying less as per the reduced royalty rates.
If you care even an iota for the artists whose music you listen to and want to support, it’s not even a question of which music streaming service you should use. Apple Music is the clear choice.
What can you do if you don’t want to switch?
Switching music streaming services isn’t easy. You have to move your library, your playlists and songs, and have to get used to the options on the new platform. But there are several online transfer services like Soundiiz, TuneMyMusic, FreeYourMusic, etc. that will let you transfer your playlists in seconds.
If you’re worried about the price hike, but don’t want to switch to Apple Music, you could try Spotify mods like the XManagerApp (on Android) and Spicetify (for Windows). In the long run however, it’s better to make the switch to Apple Music.
There’s no doubt that certain things Spotify does better than Apple Music, such as library organization and connecting to external devices and using one device as a remote to control playback on another. But if you’re concerned about frequent price hikes, need better audio quality, fewer intrusive elements, and care about the artist, Apple Music is the one to choose.
I, for one, have decided to cancel my Spotify subscription. Unless the Swedish company can offer better value and keep things simple, I foresee myself sticking with Apple Music and growing my library there.
