We compared Spotify and Apple Music subscriptions — and the winner is clear (AAPL, SPOT)

Music headphones

It's not easy choosing a music streaming app these days. The subscription prices are generally the same, there isn't much disparity in the music that's available, and on the surface the services all appear pretty similar.

But there are some important differences that will decide which music app is right for you.

Spotify and Apple Music are currently the two biggest music streaming platforms available. Here are the key differences you need to know about when choosing the music service that's in tune with your rhythm:

Subscriptions: Spotify offers a free version of the app, but Apple Music is subscription-only after the initial, free three-month trial.

Both Spotify and Apple Music offer student plans for $4.99 per month, individual plans for $9.99 per month, and family plans for $14.99 per month — so pricing won't likely play a role in your decision here. The free version of Spotify has limited functionality compared to the paid version, and includes ads.

For the purpose of this article, the paid version of Spotify will be compared with Apple Music.

Apple Music starts off by asking you to select the genres and artists you're interested in.

After you've made your selections, Apple Music starts to recommend playlists and artists that it thinks you will like. Spotify doesn't have this type of feature, but it learns from your listening habits over time. Both apps allow you to 'like' a song, letting them know that you want to hear more like it.

However, Spotify's recommendation system is much stronger.

Spotify simply does a better job of making recommendations than Apple Music. Every Monday you receive a new 'Discover Weekly' playlist — 30 songs picked through an algorithm that are similar to music you've listened to in the past. Spotify also has an entire 'Discover' page that makes recommendations based on artists you listen to frequently.

See the rest of the story at Business Insider