Difference Between Spotify Paid And Free

Spotify is arguably the most popular streaming service in the world. It has a massive library of music as well as a sizable library of podcasts.In this Free Spotify vs Spotify Premium breakdown, we’re going to see if the paid version is worth the monthly fee, or if you’re better off bearing through the ads to save money. Before you decide to subscribe Spotify, you may need to find out what are the differences between Spotify Free and Spotify Premium, and why the Premium version is worth your money. The price must be the most obvious difference. Spotify Free, like its name, is free. Spotify is awesome. But many songs are blacked out(india). There's dispute between warner music, tips, saregama labels vs Spotify india. I mostly listen to EDM. Difference between Apple Music and Spotify Music Library – While both are the most recognized names in the music streaming world, Spotify is the undisputed king of the on-demand music streaming. Premium streams up to 320kbps, free is limited to 160kbps. On Premium you may need to change your quality settings from the settings menu (Edit/Spotify Preferences) on desktop or via the Settings. Spotify comes in two main forms - free and Premium. Spotify Premium is £9.99/$9.99 a month, which includes access to features such as ad-free streaming, unlimited skips, extreme quality streaming.

Spotify Free Vs Paid
Difference Between Spotify Paid And Free Agents
Difference Between Spotify Paid And Free Shipping
Difference Between Spotify Free And Paid
Difference Between Spotify Paid And Free Download
What Is Spotify Free

By | Published on Tuesday 3 November 2020

Let’s take a look at the differences between them in detail. The first and probably the biggest difference between Spotify Free and Premium plan is the cost. While, Spotify Free, as the name suggests, is absolutely free of cost for everyone, the Spotify Premium service will cost you $9.99 a month.

Spotify has announced it is piloting a new service that will allow artists and labels to influence the algorithm that selects what music is played when users use the streaming platform’s auto-play or personalised radio functionality. This is a development many artists and labels will welcome, although the costs associated with accessing the new service is proving controversial in some quarters.

Spotify’s curation algorithm influences what music the platform’s users hear in a number of ways. The most obvious is the algorithm-based personalised playlists like Discover Weekly. However, many users also have auto-play set up on their Spotify account, meaning that when a playlist or album they have specifically selected finishes, the service just keeps playing related music. And then there’s the ‘radio’ option, that plays a constant personalised stream of music based on a favourite artist.

The Spotify algorithm crunches lots of data in order to decide what music to play. The streaming firm calls each of the things the algorithm considers a “signal”. In a blog post yesterday, the company revealed what some of those signals are, including things like what a subscriber is listening to when, preferred genres and languages, what tracks they saved to their library, the listening habits of other subscribers with similar musical tastes, the time of day, and so on.

With the new service, artist or label input will become one of those signals. Spotify wrote in its blog post that “artists tell us they want more opportunities to connect with new listeners, and we believe our recommendations should also be informed by artists – their priorities and what they have to say about their music. And soon, we will roll out a test of a service that gives artists a say in how their music is discovered”.

Unlike Spotify’s existing playlist pitching tool, which is focused on new releases, the new service will allow artists and labels to inform the algorithm about catalogue as well as new tracks that they think the system should be prioritising. That might mean, Spotify added, a song the artist is “particularly excited about, an album anniversary they’re celebrating, a viral cultural moment they’re experiencing, or other factors they care about”.

There’s also another difference between this service and Spotify’s playlist pitching tool. That tool is free to use, whereas this will be a paid-for service. Partly to stop artists and labels telling the algorithm that all their tracks are a priority, and partly because Spotify is slowly expanding the range of paid-for marketing services it sells to the music industry.

However, Spotify revealed in its blog post, artists and labels using the new service won’t have to pay anything upfront. Instead, when an artist or label asks the algorithm to prioritise a track, a lower recording royalty rate will then be paid on any subsequent streams that the algorithm generates.

Although Spotify clearly sees that approach as being pro-artist and pro-indie – in that it means the service doesn’t require an artist or label to have a big upfront marketing budget – it’s a potentially controversial move in the context of the debate around streaming royalty rates that has gained new momentum during the COVID-19 shutdown of live music.

For those that argue those royalty rates are already too low, the prospect of an even lower rate being paid on any streams is worrying, despite the marketing value of the new service.

Of course, any artist or label that doesn’t think the new service as adding any value isn’t obliged to use it. Though any talk of lower payouts and paid-for marketing probably empowers those who argue that the streaming business model only works for the platforms and the majors – despite, as noted, the proposed payment model seeking to ensure grassroots artists and indie labels can take part.

Some might also see a system that allows artists or labels to pay to push their music towards listeners as being good old ‘payola’. That viewpoint possibly depends on whether you see Spotify as the new radio or the new retail. Paying for airplay on radio has always been frowned upon and is often illegal. But, in the heyday of the CD, it was common for major retailers to seek discounts or fees for priority racking and in-store promotions.

It should also be noted that Spotify is keen to stress that this new service will only influence the algorithm, not control it. “Listener satisfaction is our priority”, the blog post insisted, “we won’t guarantee placement to labels or artists, and we only ever recommend music we think listeners will want to hear”.

The pilot of this new service – branded ‘discovery mode’ on the industry side – will start in the US, with the focus on Spotify’s autoplay and personalised radio functions. However, as it rolls out, the service could also be expanded to other areas of the platform where the algorithm curates.

Audio Quality

Both, Spotify and Google Play Music boasts of libraries having songs over 30 million. To be more precise, Google Play Music has 35 million songs while Spotify has just over 30 million songs.

That’s pretty huge, so it’s a tad tough or rather infeasible to find the difference in the quality of each song. However, if we talk numbers, both Spotify and Google Music stream at maximum 320 kb/s.

If we talk numbers, both the music apps stream at maximum 320 kb/s.

But when it comes to the data usage — both over Wi-Fi and Cellular network — Google Music has few more options. For instance, it lets you choose your streaming quality over Wi-Fi and Mobile network — Low, Normal, High or Always High. These music streaming qualities are also available in the free version.

If we compare the same in Spotify, it does have a toggle for cellular data. But when it comes to choosing the quality over both the networks, unfortunately, that is missing.

Though, it offers four different audio qualities — Automatic, Normal, High, Extreme high — the extreme quality is locked away for premium users.

In a nutshell, you get all the sound quality features for free in Google Play Music, however, in Spotify, you’ll have to upgrade to the premium version (for the extreme high-quality songs).

That said, human ears can’t exactly detect the difference between the high and extreme high, so unless you’re one who can, both the players seem to be at par with each other.

See More: Exploring Google Music, the Amazing Cloud-based Music Player

Interface

On the very first glance, Google Play Music is bright and flashy while Spotify is mostly dark. But as you explore deeper into both the apps, you’ll find subtle differences along the way.

Play Music employs the in-house Google material design

Google Play Music employs the in-house Google material design which gives its colorful interface. When the app is first launched, you’ll be greeted with the home page containing the songs that have been picked up for you.

A left swipe reveals the panel which has tabs for New releases, Top charts, Settings, etc. There’s not much of swiping in Play music, as you’ll find what you are looking for in the designated pages.

On the other hand, Spotify has a dark interface — completely opposite of the colorful Play Music.

While it also follows Google’s Material design, it’s a mellowed down version. Launching the app initially, lands you in the home page containing playlists based on your music taste and a few more inspired by the recently played songs.

Settings, Library, and Radio can all be found in the lower panel of the app, which is quite easy to navigate around. But then, if you are looking for anything specific like your own playlists or playlists of your friends, it involves a lot of swiping. In both the apps, a truncated version of the music player is at the bottom of the app.

And if you are a new user, it’ll take quite some time to get the hang of Spotify, unlike Google Music, which is definitely easier to navigate.

Recommendations

This is one place (apart from features) which truly decides whether a music streaming app will stay on your device or otherwise. Google Play Music does note down your choices when you sign-in initially, asking about your personal favorites. And it makes the recommendations based on them.

Plus, there’s an option in settings where you can wipe everything off and start afresh. However, that's only on pen and paper. As much as I cleaned and refreshed the app, Google Play Music didn’t seem to take note of my musical taste. It continues to ‘recommend’ songs which I have no interest to listen, in a thousand years.

This scenario is a completely opposite in Spotify. It takes note of your musical taste and displays songs accordingly. Plus there’s the Discover weekly playlist which lands on your app every Monday with the best 30 songs to match your taste.

Taking a look at the music genres, Spotify has the genres neatly laid out in the Browse section, which sadly (again) wasn’t there in Play Music, which is a tad disappointing for me.

All in all, if I have to pick a winner here, Spotify nails it when it comes to presenting the best songs out there.

Features

Features are the second best thing to look for in a music app. It wouldn’t come as a surprise if I say that both the apps are feature rich. If Google Play Music allows you to choose the sound quality over both Wi-Fi and mobile network, Spotify goes ahead and lets you lower the gap between two songs (crossfade).

If Play Music lets you manage the device location, Spotify allows you to track your songs using Last.fm

On the other hand, if Play Music lets you manage the device location, Spotify allows you to track your songs using Last.fm. Aforesaid, Spotify you can easily discover new music through the Discover Weekly playlist feature and what makes it even better is that these songs are based on your listening habits .

If you ask me, Spotify is the main reason which lessens my Monday morning blues. But when it comes to the main differences, there are a few that should help you decide.

For instance, Google Music has the Google advantage and lets you watch YouTube videos of most of the songs. All you need to do is tap on the three dot menu and select Watch video. Spotify doesn’t have this feature, though it contains a handful of videos under the Videos Genre.

Another notable difference is Playlist — rather the creation of playlists. Spotify has a boatload of features when it comes to playlist — collaborative playlist, secret playlist, organize and arrange them or import playlist even in the free version.

On the contrary, Play Music doesn’t let you create playlists on the free version, but it does let you save an already built playlist to the library.

So, here I think, it’s a better option to side with Spotify, for it allows you to handpick the songs that you would listen.

Also See

Spotify Free Vs Paid

: 21 Spotify Tips and Tricks for Power Users

Offline Listening

When it comes to enjoying music when you're off the grid, Spotify will let you enjoy that luxury only when you upgrade to the Spotify Premium version. It lets you download upto 3000+ songs per device on 3 different devices.

Similarly, Google Music will let you enjoy the benefits of offline listening only when you have subscribed to the music streaming app.

Desktop App

Yes, I understand that our smartphones have become our outboard brains these days. But then, let's not forget the dependence on desktop/laptops. So, if you'd rather spend your time listening to music while workin, the good news is that Spotify has a desktop app both for Mac OS and Windows.

Other than that, Google Music doesn't have an app of its own — it's browser-based for desktop users. However, there are a couple of third-party apps which support Google Play Music. One such example is the Google Play Music Desktop Player.

At the end of day, it's the ease of use which matters

Both these desktop apps rescues you from the fringes of the web player. At the end of day, it's the ease of use which matters. You wouldn't want to hunt for the right tab on your browser to stop/play a song, right?

Syncing Local Music Collection

Difference Between Spotify Paid And Free Agents

If you have a huge collection of local songs, worry not, Play Music has you covered. It allows adding up to a whopping 50,000 songs to your account. That’s pretty impressive, right? But the catch is, it has to be done through the web version.

Similarly, Spotify lets you only sync your personal music files only through the web version.

Difference Between Spotify Paid And Free Shipping

Pricing

Price is an important factor when it comes to making the leap for the Premium version. Spotify Premium version is priced at $9.99, with a family account costing as much as $14.99. The family plan can have as many as six members. What’s more, there is even a student discount amounting to 50%.

On the other hand, Google Play Music lets you have a free 30 days free trial after which you can upgrade to the premium version at $9.99 and the family plan (six members) is also same at $14.99. Plus, Presently, Google Play Music is running a deal where the music streaming app is available for a free trial of up to 90 days.

On the free trial, you can still listen to songs on Google Music, but it'll be limited to the radio stations and the locally saved music. Please note that radio station music come with ads. On the bright side, radio stations aid in music discovery, as it plays similar songs from a particular playlist or artist.

So, as you can see there’s not much difference in the price, but in Google Play Music you get YouTube Red bundled with the music app.

Also See: Netflix vs YouTube Red: Should You Subscribe to One or Both?

That’s a Wrap!

So, that was pretty much the difference between the top music streaming services— Google Play Music and Spotify. If you ask me, considering that both the app prices are same, I would rather side with Spotify for its features and songs recommendations. Because at the end of the day, searching manually through a huge database of songs isn’t really my cup of tea.

See Next: 13 Google Play Music Tips and Tricks for Best Music Experience
The above article may contain affiliate links which help support Guiding Tech. However, it does not affect our editorial integrity. The content remains unbiased and authentic.Also See

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