By Chris Schulz
Investigative Journalist | Kaipūrongo Whakatewhatewha
We’ve tuned into all the music streaming services available in New Zealand so you can work out which one fits you best.
Listening to music on the go can provide a soundtrack for your life when you’re out and about – whether that’s your morning commute, your gym workout, your day in the office, or just taking the dog for a walk.
But with a range of music streaming options, pricing plans and audio qualities out there, it’s hard to know if the service you’re on is the right one.
Add in recent controversies surrounding Spotify – among New Zealand’s most popular music platforms – and it can be a confusing landscape.
Consumer has analysed all the options, finding six main streaming services that differ in small but significant ways.
How to save money on your music streaming
Take advantage of free trial periods
Many music streaming platforms offer generous trial periods of 1-3 months, so you could become a ‘savvy switcher' and spend the best part of a year testing out all the services for free.
Putting your subscriptions on hold and using the free version – when available – is another option. That will limit your options to Spotify and YouTube Music, though, and will involve listening to a lot of advertising.
The downside of both those options is the admin involved – setting up accounts and then switching to another service. Plus, you could lose all your carefully curated playlists when you switch.
Is a family plan right for you?
If there's more than one listener in your household, a family plan can be a good way to share the costs around.
For example, an individual subscription to Spotify costs $18.99/month, but a family plan gives you six premium accounts for $29.99/month – that’s just $5 each.
Apple Music also offers a generous family plan, as well as the option to bundle its Apple TV and Apple Arcade services into the mix as well.
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The best music streaming services, ranked
1. Apple Music
Individual: $16.99/month
Student: $8.99/month
Family: $25.99/month
Free trial: 1 month for new subscribers, or 3 months with the purchase of an eligible Apple device (iPhone, iPad, etc)
Download to listen offline? Yes.
Free streaming? No.
Apple Music gets Consumer’s tick of approval for its easy-to-navigate layout, its recommendation algorithms and its updated playlists that will keep any music fan happy, no matter what genre of music they prefer.
Unlike other streaming services, Apple Music also offers a suite of radio shows – including one hosted by the New Zealand DJ, Zane Lowe.
If you’re an audio nerd, Apple Music provides a range of streaming options, from Lossless to Spatial Audio. Standard streaming is in 256kbps.
If you’re already an Apple TV, Apple Fitness or Apple Arcade user, you can bundle a family Apple Music subscription into the mix and sign up for Apple One – a $39.99 subscription that gives five people access to all those services across all devices.
While Apple Music offers an app for Android phone users, it’s best if you’re already in the Apple ecosystem – and that, of course, comes at a premium price point.
And Apple Music doesn’t include podcasts. You’ll need a separate app to access those.
2. Spotify Premium
Individual: $18.99/month
Student: $10.49/month
Duo: $25.49/month
Family: $29.99/month
Free trial: 3 months for new individual subscribers: 1 month for students.
Download to listen offline? Yes.
Free streaming? Yes.
Spotify has copped plenty of flak lately, with co-founder Daniel Ek's investment in German war-tech company Helsing and ICE ads playing on the service in the United States.
Then there’s the proliferation of AI music on Spotify streams, leading major artists like Massive Attack and King Gizzard and the Lizard Wizard to remove their music from the service.
Several local artists – including Tiki Taane and The Bats – have done the same.
Yet Spotify remains a streaming colossus and is probably the service all your friends use. Those links to new songs or personal playlists they’re sending you most likely come from Spotify.
Another benefit for Spotify users is access to an array of exclusive podcasts and audiobooks – all accessible with a Premium account and through the same Spotify app.
3. YouTube Music Premium
Individual: $17.99/month
Student: $8.99/month
Family: $27.99/month
Free trial: 2 months
Download to listen offline? Yes.
Free streaming? Yes, with ads.
YouTube, the video streaming juggernaut, branched out with a separate music offering in 2015, which it launched in New Zealand in 2016.
Because YouTube can be a wild west when it comes to copyright, the service often has content that other streaming services don’t; like mixtapes containing bootlegged samples that haven’t been cleared.
The service has access YouTube’s video content, too, meaning you can listen to your favourite live performances or other music videos through your headphones while you’re out and about.
While the cost of YouTube Music is similar to other streaming services, it’s worth considering bundling it in a YouTube Premium subscription. For $22.99/month, or $39.99/month for a family plan of up to five accounts, you’ll get ad-free video streaming plus full access to YouTube Music.
4. Amazon Music Unlimited
Individual: $16.65/month
Family: $28.66
Free trial: 3 months
Download to listen offline? Yes.
Free streaming? Yes.
Like the rest of Amazon’s offerings in Aotearoa, its music service, Unlimited, is tied to its Australian service.
That means you’ll be paying in Australian dollars, and the price can fluctuate depending on the exchange rate.
But Amazon Music offers a nice, clean layout, promises listeners access to a library of 100 million songs, and includes podcasts. Its audio quality includes HD, ultra HD, Dolby Atmos and 360 Reality Audio.
Plus, you’ll be able to access one audiobook, via a partnership with Audible, per month.
5. Deezer
Individual: $US11.99
Family: $US19.99/month
Free trial: 30 days
Download to listen offline? Yes
Free streaming? Deezer Free offers an ad-supported option – but not in New Zealand
Deezer doesn’t have a New Zealand branch, but you can still access the streaming service from here. You’ll have to pay in US currency, though, and the price could fluctuate depending on the exchange rate.
Deezer’s layout is cartoony and colourful. It offers the ability to collaborate on playlists, and a karaoke function, so appears to be targeting a younger audience.
It’s also one of the few streaming services we’ve found will tell you if the music you’re listening to was made with the help of AI.
6. Tidal
Individual: $16.99/month
Student: $8.49/month
Family: $25.99/month
Free trial: 1 month
Download to listen offline? Yes
Free streaming? Only in the US
Tidal is known for its high-fidelity streaming rates, including HiRes Free Lossless Audio Codec (it doesn’t mean anything to us either, but music nerds might know what this is).
Tidal has a solid reputation. Its layout is clean, it offers a DJ extension at a price for those who want to mix songs like a pro, and it will also help move your playlists over from other services.
But the headlines surrounding Tidal are worrying, with its owners, Block, recently laying off 1,000 staff. Other commentators have reported a lack of updates or new features being announced.
Other music streaming services
Soundcloud Go/Go+: The basic package costs $7.99/month; premium is $17.99/month.
Bandcamp: Free, but users are pushed to purchase digital files or merch after repeat listens.
How to switch streaming services
If you’re sick of your music streaming platform and want to transfer your catalogues, libraries and playlists to a different service, you have several options.
Most of the streaming services we surveyed offer library transfer services; check their terms and conditions to find out how to do this.
Tune My Music offers transfer options for most major streaming platforms.
Soundiiz does the same.
