5 Pointers for Finding the Best Music Streaming Apps

If you’re looking to rock out but still stay within your budget, you’ll want to take a look through the free music streaming services. There are plenty of options for apps that do not require a monthly subscription, so you can use that money for other things.

Some subscription services, like Spotify and YouTube, offer a free account version alongside their premium versions. Other sites are 100% free, like SoundCloud. You may have to listen to an ad or two every few songs to enjoy the cheapest streaming apps, but it’s really a small price to pay if you want to save your cash. It’s also a good way to ensure that your favorite artists are getting paid for their music, so you can continue to enjoy all the hits they have to offer.

If you’re always looking for new music or want to be up to date on all the latest releases, it would be a good idea to download the most popular music streaming services, since those are the platforms that most artists, especially the top artists, will use to host their brand new songs.

Or if you feel like you’ve already tapped out the Top 40 but are still hungry for new songs to listen to, you might like a streaming app that suggests music for you. Just like apps for streaming movies and tv shows can provide you with perfect matches to watch next, many apps and online streaming services also have algorithms set up to help you find the best music for you. All you have to do is listen to your favorites and the apps will automatically generate playlists based off of what you already listen to, no matter how wildly different your music tastes are. Who knows, your new favorite song might be from 30 years ago, and you just don’t know it yet!

Planning a road trip in the near future? Or getting on a plane? Or maybe you’re just nearing your data limits for the month but still want to listen to music on the go. Sometimes you might find yourself stuck without wifi or internet, but that doesn’t mean you can’t still listen to your beloved playlists on your streaming apps.

Many apps, like Amazon Prime and Spotify Premium, allow streaming users with a subscription to download any music in their streaming library to their phone, so it can be enjoyed any time without an internet connection. It’s just like downloading a purchased song, but you only have to pay a low monthly price to get an unlimited amount of music to add to your playlists and take with you wherever you go. Plus, if you find you no longer listen to songs or want to switch up your playlists, you can easily remove them from your playlist or move them to a different playlist with the click of a button.

If you’re the type that rarely sticks to just one or even two genres of music, you’ll certainly need a music streaming app that will connect you with a large music library, so that you can get all the variety of playlists you desire. You’ll also need an app that easily connects you to different types of music.

Certain apps for streaming or music stations make it easy to find and play music based on genre. Apps like Amazon let you search songs by genre, or Spotify, for example, creates playlists based on genre or even moods and holidays. Whatever type of music you feel like listening to, streaming apps can help match you to the music faster, so you can spend less time searching or shuffling and more time listening to some fantastic music.

If you like to listen to a particular type or music, you will definitely want to search for music streaming services that have the kind of music you listen to readily available. For example, apps like Spotify and Amazon Prime Music tend to have a wide variety, especially with focus on newer top hits.

If you like to listen to more indie artists, you may want to consider something like SoundCloud, or if you like music from other countries, apps like Deezer might be good ones to try.

If you’re looking to find new music based on what you usually listen to, radio apps like Pandora Radio can help you find some different jams for your playlist. Or if you’re looking to combine multiple music streaming sources at once, apps such as Last.fm are a good option.

You may also want to consider apps that fit your listening needs. If you’re a musical editor or you're going to be playing your music loudly on good speakers or headphones and need high sound quality, you should look into apps like Tidal.

Those that love playing video games might want a app that allows them to stream their favorite music in the background while they play, such as Groove Music for Microsoft PC and Xbox. Or if you like listening in the car, you might want an app that has a voice enabled feature, so you can queue up the next song hands-free.