With more than 678 million monthly active users and 268 million premium subscribers, Spotify holds a commanding presence in the music streaming industry.
Its success has been driven by a user-friendly interface, algorithm-driven playlists, and aggressive expansion into podcasting — now home to over 7 million podcasts and more than 100 million songs.
However, Spotify’s reign is far from unchallenged. As the market grows, so does the competition. Several platforms are carving out their niches and, in some regions, outperforming Spotify in key metrics.
Below, I’ve highlighted the top Spotify competitors and alternatives, comparing them based on user numbers, unique features, pricing, and regional strengths. Each of them is innovating in ways that challenge the very foundation of Spotify’s dominance.
Did you know?In 2024, global music streaming subscriptions grew by 10.6%, reaching 752 million. This growth helped boost worldwide music revenues by 4.8%, bringing the total to $29.6 billion. The global music streaming market is projected to exceed $108.3 billion by 2030, growing at a CAGR of 14.9%. [1][2]
Table of Contents
17. LiveOne
Launched: 2015Users: 1.4 million
Library Size: 30 million+ songs
Price: Free | $3.99/month (for Plus version)
Competitive Edge: Live event streaming
LiveOne combines audio streaming, video content, podcasting, and live concert broadcasting under one roof. Its core offering revolves around live experiences, such as music festivals, pay-per-view (PPV) concerts, and exclusive artist performances.
The company works directly with artists and sponsors to produce custom digital events, allowing it to tap into artist fanbases in ways that static streaming services cannot.
LiveOne also owns PodcastOne, one of the largest podcast networks in the US, with a slate of celebrity-hosted shows spanning music, sports, lifestyle, and news.
16. Gaana
Launched: 2010Users: 100 million+
Library Size: 45 million+ songs
Price: Free | $1.20/month (for Premium tier)
Competitive Edge: Supports over 21 Indian languages
Gaana is one of India’s leading music streaming platforms, designed to cater to the country’s vast and culturally diverse population. Its massive library includes regional, Bollywood, and international music.
The platform supports over 21 Indian languages, offering unmatched depth in regional music. This linguistic and cultural diversity gives it an edge among India’s non-English-speaking majority.
Gaana has leveraged India’s strong smartphone penetration and low-cost data ecosystem to attract users, especially through its free ad-supported tier. It has historically excelled at attracting non-English speakers and users in small towns and rural areas, thanks to regional UX design, telecom bundling, and lower prices. [3]
15. Anghami
Registered Users: 120 million+
Library Size: 100 million+ songs
Price: Free | $4.99/month for Plus version
Competitive Edge: Arabic language & UI localization
Anghami is a pioneering music streaming platform started in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region. It competes with global streaming giants by catering to local culture, language, and musical preferences.
The platform specializes in Arabic content while also offering international music. It has built its core identity around Arab music genres, including Khaleeji, Shaabi, Dabke, and Egyptian Pop.
Anghami collaborates with local artists and labels, providing content that resonates with its core audience. It also partners with telecom operators to facilitate easy payment options and make premium subscriptions more accessible.
In 2022, Anghami made headlines as the first Arab tech company to list on the Nasdaq. The listing helped boost its profile as a regional tech success story and gave it new capital for expansion into live concerts, creator monetization, and original Arabic content production. [4]
14. Tidal
Launched: 2014Subscribers: ~1 million
Library Size: 110 million+
Price: Free | $10.99/month (for HiFi version)
Competitive Edge: Superior audio quality and exclusive content
Tidal is a high-fidelity music and video streaming platform that prioritizes sound quality, artist ownership, and exclusive content.
It supports various audio formats, including standard AAC, lossless FLAC, and high-resolution MQA (Master Quality Authenticated) files, catering to audiophiles seeking the best possible listening experience.
Beyond music, Tidal focuses on exclusive releases from major artists (especially in the hip-hop and R&B genres), behind-the-scenes content, concert streams, and visual albums, creating a multimedia hub that blends music with video experiences.
For instance, the company has secured exclusive releases from prominent artists, such as Beyoncé’s “Lemonade,” which attracted 1.2 million new subscribers upon release.
13. Deezer
Subscribers: 9.4 million+
Library Size: 120 million+ tracks
Price: Free | $9.99/month for Premium version
Competitive Edge: Personalized AI + human curation
Originating in France, Deezer has grown into one of the most recognized audio services worldwide. It serves both casual listeners and audiophiles, offering features such as Flow, a smart playlist that combines AI and human curation, as well as HiFi lossless audio streaming for high-quality sound.
The platform supports a multilingual interface and localized content, making it especially strong in non-English-speaking markets such as France, Brazil, and parts of the Middle East and Europe.
Deezer offers a unique feature called “My Deezer Month,” which gives users a monthly summary of their listening habits. In 2025, Deezer also introduced new tools that enable users to fully personalize their music recommendations, giving them greater control over what they listen to. [5][6]
Though it doesn’t dominate the US market like Spotify, Deezer has built a robust international presence through strategic partnerships with telecom operators, hardware companies, and smart device manufacturers. It is available in over 180 countries.
12. Sirius XM
Launched: 2008Subscribers: 34 million+
Library Size: 165+ audio channels
Price: Basic plan starts at $5.99/month
Competitive Edge: Exclusive and premium content
SiriusXM is a leading American satellite radio and audio streaming provider that reaches millions of listeners across the US, Canada, and Puerto Rico. It is especially popular among vehicle owners, thanks to its integration into over 100 million cars via factory-installed radios. [7]
SiriusXM is renowned for its diverse range of content, encompassing music, talk radio, sports, news, comedy, and exclusive shows. It features big names and brands, including Howard Stern, Kevin Hart, the NFL, MLB, NBA, NHL, and artist channels for stars such as U2, The Beatles, and Drake.
Its news and talk segments feature voices from CNN, Fox News, NPR, and Bloomberg, providing listeners with much more than just music.
Most of its revenue comes from monthly subscriptions, especially from users with SiriusXM-enabled radios in their cars. The company also earns money by licensing its exclusive content for use on partner platforms, covering live events, sports, and branded merchandise. In 2024, SiriusXM made $8.7 billion in revenue and reported a net operating income of $1.52 billion.
11. Music Choice
Launched: 1987Reach: 65 million+
Library Size: 50+ linear audio channels
Price: $1.99 per month | Or bundled with cable television packages
Competitive Edge: Massive television reach
Music Choice offers a hybrid audio and video streaming experience focused largely on music television, linear channels, and on-demand video content. Its content includes genre-specific music channels, music videos, artist interviews, trivia segments, and short-form entertainment news.
Music Choice was originally designed for cable television audiences, delivering curated music channels and visual programming directly to TV screens. In fact, it pioneered the “audio-only TV channel” concept, where users could access music around the clock across various categories, including Pop, Hip-Hop, Country, Jazz, Classical, and more, all accompanied by on-screen facts and artist bios.
Today, Music Choice reaches over 65 million US households. Its strength lies in television integration, passive listening, and simplicity, whereas Spotify thrives on deep personalization and mobility.
10. TuneIn
Launched: 2002Users: 75 million+
Library Size: 5.7 million+
Price: Free | $9.99/month
Competitive Edge: Global radio aggregation
TuneIn built its brand not by offering curated playlists or music on demand, but by becoming the largest aggregator of live radio stations worldwide. It provides access to over 100,000 radio stations from across the globe, spanning content in dozens of languages and hundreds of regions.
The platform connects users to real-time content like breaking news from CNN, live NFL or MLB games, and local radio from virtually any city in the world. This global radio access makes it a popular choice not just for music fans, but also for expats, travelers, and multilingual listeners who want to stay connected to their home regions.
Besides live radio, TuneIn also offers an extensive library of podcasts and curated music channels, making it a hybrid platform that competes with music streaming services, podcast platforms, and news apps all at once.
9. Pandora
Subscribers: 7.8 million+
Library Size: 50 million+
Price: Free | Starts at $5.99/month
Competitive Edge: Music Genome Project
Pandora was one of the first major players in algorithm-driven music curation, and for years, it dominated the US market as the go-to destination for custom radio stations tailored to listeners’ tastes.
In 2019, SiriusXM acquired Pandora for $3.5 billion, expanding the platform’s capabilities and positioning it within a broader audio entertainment ecosystem that includes satellite radio, podcasts, and exclusive content. [8]
Perhaps Pandora’s biggest competitive edge is its Music Genome Project, which allows for extremely personalized and intelligent radio-style stations. Unlike playlist-based algorithms, the system analyzes up to 450 musical attributes per song (like harmony, melody, instrumentation, and lyrics) to match songs with high accuracy to a user’s preferences. [9]
Although Pandora has lost some ground to competitors in recent years, it still maintains over 7 million paid users, particularly due to its strong personalization features, seamless car integration, and focus on US content and culture. [10]
8. Joox
Launched: 2015Users: 80 million+
Library Size: 70 million+
Price: Free | $5.5/month
Competitive Edge: Karaoke and singing competitions built into the app
Developed by Tencent’s International Business Group, Joox primarily targets emerging markets in Asia and South Africa. It has carved out a niche by offering region-specific content, artist partnerships, and local-language user interfaces across countries like Indonesia, Thailand, Malaysia, Hong Kong, and South Africa.
The platform positions itself as a music-driven entertainment ecosystem. Its integration of karaoke, lyrics, live streaming, short videos, and artist interaction has made it a unique mix of Spotify, YouTube Music, and TikTok in many of its core markets.
Joox leverages Tencent’s vast digital entertainment infrastructure, including licensing, social integrations, payment systems, and AI-driven recommendation engines. This allows the platform to run efficiently while keeping costs low.
7. JioSaavn
Launched: 2007Users: 100 million+
Library Size: 80 million+
Price: Free | $1.2/month
Competitive Edge: Regional Indian content availability
JioSaavn is one of India’s leading music streaming platforms, offering a massive catalog of Indian and international songs across multiple languages.
It has a superior library of Bollywood, devotional, classical, and 16 regional tracks — categories where global platforms like Spotify or Apple Music have weaker curation or licensing.
Technologically, JioSaavn has enhanced the user experience with smart downloads, voice search integration, mood-based playlists, and a local language UI, making it more accessible to India’s diverse population.
The platform stands out by offering more than just music streaming. It also invests in original content, artist collaborations, and podcasts. With programs like “Artist Originals,” the platform creates exclusive tracks and shows, giving users unique content they won’t find on other services.
6. QQ Music
Launched: 2005Subscribers: 113 million+
Library Size: 200 million+
Price: Free | $1.2 – $3/month (for VIP subscription plans)
Competitive Edge: Integration with Tencent’s digital empire
QQ Music is one of China’s premier music streaming platforms, operated by Tencent Music Entertainment Group. It offers a vast library of local and international tracks, catering to a diverse user base across China.
Over the years, the platform has introduced high-definition streaming, exclusive concert content, music videos, karaoke features, and AI-powered recommendations to keep users engaged.
Its primary competitive edge lies in its integration with Tencent’s digital empire, which includes WeChat, QQ, Tencent Video, and Tencent Games. This ecosystem enables QQ Music to cross-promote content, leverage Tencent’s payment infrastructure, and reach hundreds of millions of potential users through native apps.
Compared to Spotify, which focuses on subscriptions and podcast content with a global English-speaking user base, QQ Music emphasizes a fan economy, interactive content, and social engagement native to Chinese digital habits.
5. SoundCloud
Users: 140 million+
Library Size: 400 million+
Price: Free | Starts at $4.99/month
Competitive Edge: Massive library of user-generated content
SoundCloud is one of the world’s largest open audio platforms, known for empowering independent artists and enabling fans to discover, share, and support music directly.
The company pioneered the idea of social music sharing. It gave artists a way to share their music directly with listeners and allowed fans to discover new, experimental, and underground sounds before they hit the mainstream.
Unlike Spotify, which focuses on licensing deals with major labels, SoundCloud is built on user-generated content and creator-first infrastructure. This grassroots structure has helped launch the careers of global stars like Post Malone, Billie Eilish, Chance the Rapper, Lorde, Lil Nas X, and others. [11]
SoundCloud also pioneered the Fan-Powered Royalties model in 2021, which differs from the traditional pooled revenue models employed by Spotify and Apple Music. This system rewards artists based on individual user listening behavior, helping niche and indie creators earn fairer payouts based on real engagement.
4. iHeartRadio
Launched: 2007Subscribers: 150 million+ (including free users)
Library Size: 30 million+
Price: Free | Paid version starts at $4.99/month
Competitive Edge: Extensive radio network
Initially focused on aggregating AM/FM radio stations digitally, iHeartRadio has evolved into a multi-format audio service offering live radio, personalized music stations, and one of the largest podcast libraries in the world.
What sets iHeartRadio apart is its deep roots in traditional broadcast radio. The platform acts as a digital gateway for over 850 live radio stations across the US, offering access to both national and local programming, including news, talk shows, sports, and music.
This has positioned iHeartRadio as a bridge between legacy radio listening habits and the on-demand streaming era, appealing to both nostalgic listeners and digital-native users. [12]
Furthermore, iHeartRadio’s tiered approach to user access (free, Plus, All Access) and heavy advertising infrastructure gives it a sustainable business model that doesn’t rely solely on subscriber growth.
3. Amazon Music
Launched: 2007Subscribers: 53 million+
Library Size: 100 million+
Price: Free | $9.99/month (for non-Prime members)
Competitive Edge: Seamless compatibility with Alexa-enabled devices
Amazon Music plays a strategic role in bolstering Amazon Prime’s value proposition while also standing on its own as a premium music platform. It operates through multiple service levels, ranging from ad-supported streaming and Prime member access to a fully-featured Amazon Music Unlimited tier.
It differentiates itself through voice-first experiences, particularly for users of Amazon Echo and Alexa devices, enabling hands-free music playback, playlist creation, and smart recommendations.
On the quality front, Amazon was an early leader in HD and Ultra HD streaming, offering CD-quality and 24-bit audio across a massive song catalog. It was also one of the first major platforms to offer Dolby Atmos and Sony 360 Reality Audio, at no extra cost.
The platform hosts exclusive events like “Amazon Music Live,” a weekly concert series featuring top artists, which airs after the NFL’s Thursday Night Football on Prime Video. [13]
2. YouTube Music
Subscribers: 125 million+
Library Size: 100 million+
Price: Free | $9.99/month
Competitive Edge: Integration with YouTube’s massive content ecosystem
YouTube Music has steadily evolved into a major competitor in the music streaming industry by leveraging Google’s powerful data ecosystem and YouTube’s global reach of over 2.7 billion logged-in monthly users and 122 million daily active users.
It benefits from Google’s AI and data infrastructure, which powers hyper-personalized recommendations, context-aware playlists, and smarter search functionality.
Unlike traditional audio streaming services, YouTube Music seamlessly blends official audio tracks, music videos, live performances, remixes, fan-made covers, and user-generated content into a single, unified interface. Plus, its visual-first experience sets it apart — users can easily switch between audio and video, which keeps them more engaged and creates a more immersive music experience.
In the US, YouTube Music subscribers grew from 20 million in 2020 to 27.9 million in 2024. Globally, it had 868.4 million users by December 2023 and is expected to hit 1 billion users by 2026.
1. Apple Music
Subscribers: 103 million+
Library Size: 100 million+
Price: Starts at 10.99/month (varies by region)
Competitive Edge: Lossless audio and spatial audio with Dolby Atmos
A defining aspect of Apple Music is its deep integration with the Apple ecosystem — iOS, macOS, iPadOS, watchOS, tvOS, and CarPlay. This tight integration enables users to sync music libraries seamlessly across devices, control playback via Siri, and benefit from system-level optimizations, like spatial audio on AirPods.
Apple’s focus on high-fidelity sound, lossless audio, and Dolby Atmos spatial audio support gives it a strong appeal among audiophiles. [14]
The company also invests heavily in editorial curation, with music experts crafting playlists, interviews, and exclusive programming. This human-touch approach balances Apple Music. Plus, it is one of the few streaming platforms with a strong presence in China and India, regions that are difficult to penetrate due to regulatory and language barriers.
Apple earns revenue solely from subscribers, sharing a substantial portion (reportedly 70%) with music rights holders. By avoiding an ad-supported model, Apple can maintain a premium brand image and focus on a quality-over-quantity listener experience.
Read More
- What Song Is This? 16 Best Music Identifier Apps To Find Unknown Tracks
- 24 Apple Competitors and Alternatives
- Business, Music revenues rise again in 2024, boosted by streaming subscriptions, Reuters
- Industry Analysis, Music Streaming market trend and analysis, GrandViewResearch
- Amit Gurbaxani, How Indian music is attracting listeners by breaking the language barrier, FirstPost
- Press Release, Anghami becomes the first arab tech company to be listed on Nasdaq, Nasdaq
- Nicolas Rogès, Deezer’s new features and changes, Soundiiz
- Newsroom, Deezer offers music fans an even more personalized experience, Deezer
- News Events, Ford extends in-vehicle availability of SiriusXM across Ford and Lincoln, SiriusXM
- Investor Relations, SiriusXM to acquire Pandora, SiriusXM
- Teradata, How well do you know your own music taste?, Forbes
- Media, Number of Pandora’s paying subscribers worldwide, Statista
- Lydia Moynihan, How SoundCloud won over Billie Eilish, Post Malone, and Lil Nas X, New York Post
- Lance Venta, Study on the new American consumers, RadioInsight
- Jonathan Landrum, Top acts hit ‘Amazon Music Live,’ APNews
- Lossless Audio, Our commitment to your listening experience, Apple
