Which Apple Music plan gives you the most bang for your buck?

If you still buy your music via digital downloads and CDs, it may be time to consider music streaming instead. Pay a monthly subscription to, say, Apple Music, and you’ll have access to over 100 million songs. You can stream your favorite tracks and discover new ones anywhere you have an internet connection, or download music in advance to listen offline. Apple Music offers four paid plans, with the Family and Student plans generally considered the best value.

Family plans cost $19.99 per month and allow sharing with up to five other family members. This works out to $3.33 per month, each, for six people. The Family plan allows each member to create their own library, recommendations and playlists. At $6.99 per month, the Student plan is available to eligible higher education students for up to four years and comes bundled with Apple TV. As long as you are enrolled in an eligible program and can verify your student status, you are good to go.

The Individual plan, on the other hand, costs $11.99 per month, while Apple One bundles Apple Music with other services like Apple TV, Apple Arcade, and iCloud+ into a single monthly subscription. The Apple One Family tier costs $27.95 per month and individual plans cost $21.95 per month. The standard Family and Student plans offer the best value, depending on your situation, with the Family plan making the most sense for larger groups and the Student plan being the best choice for eligible individuals.

Apple Music doesn’t have a free tier, but there are several ways to try it free for a limited time. One-month trials are offered on a range of devices, from iPhones and Android handsets to supported Mac and Windows PCs, tablets and smart TVs. You can cancel before the trial ends to avoid being charged. The one-month free trial is available for Apple Music’s Individual, Family, Student, and One plans.

If you’ve never subscribed to Apple Music and just purchased a new iPhone, iPad, Mac, AirPods, or other eligible device, you can try Apple’s music streaming service for free for three months. But you must avail the offer within 90 days of purchasing the device. Beyond free trial and device deals, you may be able to try Apple Music for free through third-party promotions such as 30 days at Best Buy and six months at Verizon. Of course, you don’t have to opt for Apple Music, and Apple’s streaming service has some drawbacks that are definitely worth knowing about. Alternatives are available, including Tidal, Amazon Music and Spotify.

Spotify, like Apple Music, offers access to more than 100 million songs. However, one notable difference between the two music streaming services is that Spotify offers a free, ad-supported tier. This means that if you stop paying for a Spotify paid plan, you can still access saved music and playlists. With Apple Music, if you cancel your subscription, you’ll lose access because there’s no free tier, and it’s unclear if your settings will be reinstated if you subscribe again later.

Beyond Spotify’s free tier, which comes with limitations such as no offline music downloads, its monthly Family and Student plans offer good value at $21.99 and $6.99, respectively. Like Apple’s Family plan, the Spotify Family plan covers up to six people, and each person can access their own account, library, recommendations, and playlists. Both services offer ad-free offline listening, on-demand playback, and lossless audio, while Apple Music adds Spatial Audio with Dolby Atmos as part of its Family plan.

Spotify, on the other hand, includes 15 hours of audiobook listening per month for the Family plan manager. As for student plans, the Apple Music option includes Apple TV, while Spotify’s student plan comes with Hulu. Spotify also offers a Duo subscription for $18.99 per month that allows two people residing at the same address to operate individual accounts under a single subscription. Like Apple Music, Spotify offers free trial periods, including three months for the Individual plan and one month for the Student plan. There are some uncomfortable truths about using Spotify, but ultimately, Apple Music and Spotify both offer decent value, which is why both services rank so highly compared to other major music streaming services.