Let’s cut through the noise and find out which streaming giant truly deserves your ears.

In the world of music streaming apps, Spotify and YouTube Music are prominent contenders, each vying for the top position. Spotify leads with over 615 million users globally, including 239 million subscribers, cementing its position as a leading music streaming platform. On the other hand, YouTube Music, along with YouTube Premium, has captured a significant market share, reaching 100 million subscribers as of February 1, 2024—evidence of its rising popularity. 

However, picking the perfect music streaming app is a tricky puzzle. What should you choose? Spotify or YouTube Music? Let’s compare both before you make a decision!

First, let’s talk about user interface (UI)

When it comes to user interface, Spotify and YouTube Music offer unique listening experiences that cater to different preferences. Spotify’s interface is a haven for pure audio lovers. Its sleek, minimalist home page features your own playlists, liked songs, new releases from artists you follow, podcasts and audiobooks. Spotify also curates two personalized playlists—Spotify’s Discover Weekly and Release Radar—that introduce new music to your ear every week. For podcast and audiobook lovers, Spotify offers more than six million podcast titles and 350,000 audiobooks, making it a one-stop shop for all your audio needs.

Image from Spotify’s website

On the flip side, YouTube Music’s interface pays homage to its video roots, emphasizing music videos, live performances and other visual content. On the home screen, you’ll be greeted by a mix of recommended videos and playlists, making it easy to dive into a rich visual and auditory experience. This is great if you’re a fan of watching music videos or live concerts. 

Screenshot of the home page of YouTube Music

However, the podcast experience on YouTube Music might not be as seamless as Spotify. It emphasizes the visual elements (video or the cover of the podcast title) of a podcast episode, even if it’s audio-focused. You have to manually switch on the audio-only toggle if you don’t want to consume data for video when listening to a podcast episode.

What about ads?

Let’s face it, ads are the necessary evil of free music streaming. While both Spotify and YouTube Music have ads for free-tier users, they handle them in a slightly different way.

Spotify’s free tier includes audio ads that play every few songs, which can be a bit jarring, especially when you’re deep into your playlist groove. However, it does offer an ad-free experience in its premium plans, which also come with additional features like offline listening and unlimited skips.

YouTube Music, on the other hand, incorporates both video and audio ads. The video ads can be quite intrusive if you’re trying to listen to music on the go and not watching the screen. Like Spotify, YouTube Music’s premium tier offers ad-free streaming along with other perks. 

Do they provide ear-pleasing audio quality?

Both platforms deliver high-quality audio, but there are notable differences. Spotify’s free tier streams at 160 kbps, while its premium goes up to 320 kbps, which is more than sufficient for most casual listeners and audiophiles. The sound is crisp, clear and consistent, making Spotify a reliable choice for quality audio.

As for YouTube Music, its free and premium plans provide streaming up to 125kbps and 256 kbps, respectively. While this is slightly lower than Spotify’s highest quality, it remains robust enough that most users won’t notice a significant difference.

How about music-sharing capabilities?

Sharing music is a joy, and both Spotify and YouTube Music excel in this regard, albeit differently. Spotify shines with its social features, allowing you to share playlists, songs and albums directly with friends via social media, messaging apps or even within Spotify itself. You can also see what your friends are jamming to, enhancing the shared musical experience.

YouTube Music focuses more on sharing video content. You can easily share music videos and playlists through social media or messaging apps, but it lacks the seamless integration of social features that Spotify offers. This makes Spotify the better choice for those who enjoy sharing their musical world.

Content and discovery: A rich library at your fingertips

Content is indeed king. Spotify boasts over 70 million tracks and six million podcast titles, covering nearly every genre and niche imaginable. Its powerful algorithm curates personalized playlists and recommendations that evolve with your tastes, making music discovery a delight.

YouTube Music also offers a massive library, thanks in part to its integration with YouTube’s extensive video library. This means you get official tracks, live performances, covers and remixes all in one place. If you love exploring different renditions of your favorite songs, YouTube Music has a slight edge here. However, its music discovery features aren’t as refined as Spotify’s, which might require you to dig a bit deeper to find hidden gems.

Plans and pricing: What’s in your wallet?

Both platforms offer various plans to suit different needs and budgets. Spotify’s options range from a free, ad-supported tier to several premium plans, including individual (US$11.99/month), duo (US$16.99/month for two users), family plan (US$19.99/month for up to six users) and student (US$5.99/month). Each premium plan offers ad-free listening and offline downloads.

YouTube Music also offers a free tier with ads, an individual premium plan (US$13.99/month) and a family plan (US$22.99/month for up to five users). It also offers a student plan at US$7.99, slightly higher than Spotify. One advantage of YouTube Music Premium is that it includes YouTube Premium, which offers an ad-free experience on all of YouTube. This can be a significant perk if you’re a regular YouTube user.

Conclusion

So, which music-streaming giant should you choose? It boils down to your preferences. If you’re all about the music, value high-quality audio and love discovering new tracks through personalized playlists, Spotify is likely your best bet. Its intuitive interface and robust social features make it a top choice for music enthusiasts.

However, if you enjoy watching music videos and live performances and want an ad-free YouTube experience included, YouTube Music might be the better option for you. Its vast library of diverse content and video integration provides a unique experience that goes beyond just music.

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Header Image from Freepik