Default Audio Quality: N/A Max Audio Quality: 256 kbp/s Cost: Apple Music costs $9.99 per month Apple Music streams at a bitrate of 256kbps, which seems lower than Spotify’s 320 kbp/s at face value, but it’s not exactly like-for-like because Apple Music uses its own AAC audio codec. 4th Apple music. Comparing iHeartRadio vs Spotify 2019 user experience, Spotify has over 100 million paid subscribers globally, the highest number of paying subscribers in the music streaming market. That’s cake and eat it. I’ve thought that I’ve been going deaf ever since I joined Spotify. Spotify and Apple Music just don’t come close. Spotify Premium streams at a quality of 320kbps, while the free version is 160kbps. That’s why I’m switching to Apple Music. That’s a clear edge over the 256kbps of the Apple Music … Streaming and Sound Quality. Spotify vs. Apple Music: Is there a difference in sound quality? If you want the technical details, neither Spotify or Apple Music streams AAC files … Problem is, the quality of the competition remains an issue: Spotify and Apple Music are the mass market titans to tackle, and both already offer five-star services. Unlike Spotify or Apple Music, subscribers to Tidal’s HiFi tier get 24-bit MQA audio, as well as the option of Dolby Atmos. No where near the old mog or beats. Spotify vs. Apple Music Spotify is a flexible option for music lovers where you can stream songs for free. I use tidal for its lossless I can't stand that Tidal has no music discovery but the sound is the best. Spotify has two tiers: free and £9.99 per month. As with Spotify, for $15 a month, you can upgrade to the Family plan, which will let you share Apple Music between up to six family members. Apple Music plays lossy 256kbps AAC vs Spotify's 256/320Kbps lossy Ogg Vorbis, Ogg Vorbis is more compressed than AAC which is why its not as good despite the higher bitrate but i do agree majority doesnt care much, as theyre more than good enough. 3rd rhapsody @320. Apple Music is falling behind Spotify in the music streaming wars. I love the Apple app and its design. On premium, this goes away, and the maximum audio quality is ramped up from an iffy 160 kbps to a rather good 320 kbps. The 256kbps AAC files on Apple Music’s iCloud library sound more open and involving than Spotify’s 320kbps MP3 streams, and benefit from extra space, subtlety and punch too. Sound quality for Spotify vs Apple Music In the second round, the services meet toe-to-toe in sound quality when listening through the Apple Music or Spotify web player. The streaming-music wars are on, with Apple Music and Spotify now locked in a battle on price, features and artist selection. The number is well ahead of any other music streaming service there is. When it comes to sound quality, Tidal aces it. I just got the Apple Music free trial today and Apple Music sound quality is much better than Spotify. ... which should mean you can listen to a much better sound quality without paying more for it. ... (as of January 2019). The user-interface is solid and the search function is terrific, turning up long-lost musical gems through its video vaults. 2nd is spotify@320. Apple also defaults to audio of the highest quality, assuming your device is connected to Wi-Fi. I'm bummed. Apple Music doesn’t compress songs like Spotify, so you get a louder and richer sound. In total, it has over 217 million active users worldwide. Spotify 320 is so much fuller sounding and details are clearly easier to pick up vs Apple music. For free, you get annoying ads; on mobile, there’s also enforced album shuffling and limited track skips (six per hour).