The 8 best music and podcast apps in 2026
Our pick: The best music and podcast app in 2026 is Spotify (9.0/10), followed by Apple Music and Pocket Casts.
Most streaming services have the same songs, so the differences live in discovery, sound quality, apps and price. We rank music streamers and podcast players on catalogue and recommendations, audio quality, how good the apps feel day to day, and how much listening data they keep.
SpotifyMusic, podcasts and audiobooks with standout discovery
9.0
Most private
Overcast8.7 overall
The full ranking
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1
Spotify9.0
Music, podcasts and audiobooks with standout discovery 9.00 -
2
Apple Music8.9
Lossless and Spatial Audio streaming with synced lyrics 8.90 -
3
Pocket Casts8.8
Cross-platform podcast player with smart filters and sync 8.80 -
4
Overcast8.7
iPhone podcast player with Smart Speed and Voice Boost 8.70 -
5
Shazam8.6
Identify any song playing around you in seconds 8.60 -
6
TIDAL8.4
Hi-res lossless music streaming with detailed credits 8.40 -
7
YouTube Music8.0
Songs, live sets and covers from the whole of YouTube 8.00 -
8
SoundCloud7.7
Indie artists, DJ mixes and remixes from creators worldwide 7.70
Votes don't change our scores. They show whether readers agree with the order — sort by Most upvoted to see theirs.
Head to head
Guides for music & podcasts
Questions
What is the best music and podcast app in 2026?
Spotify is our top pick, with an overall score of 9.0 out of 10. Spotify is the best all-round music app. Its recommendations, Discover Weekly and daylist keep surfacing music you actually like, and Spotify Connect makes switching between phone, speaker and car painless. Premium adds lossless audio, offline downloads and ad-free listening. The catch is the free tier's ads and the data collection behind them. Get it if discovery and device support matter most to you.
What is the best free music and podcast app?
Spotify is also the best option you can use for free. Yes, the free tier lets you stream music and podcasts with ads and some playback limits on mobile. Premium removes ads and adds offline downloads, on-demand playback in any order and lossless audio.
Which music and podcast app is best for privacy?
Overcast has the highest privacy score in this category at 9.2 out of 10.