Spotify is the better app overall, scoring 9.0 to 8.4. Spotify wins on 4 of the 5 scores, TIDAL on 1.
Music fans who want great recommendations on every device they own
Audiophiles with good headphones or hi-fi gear who want hi-res streaming
Score by score
The details
| Feature | Spotify | TIDAL |
|---|---|---|
| Category | Music & Podcasts | Music & Podcasts |
| Category rank | #1 of 8 | #6 of 8 |
| Developer | Spotify | TIDAL |
| Pricing | Free + paid plans | Subscription |
| Usable for free | Yes | No |
| iPhone & iPad | ✓ | ✓ |
| Android | ✓ | ✓ |
| Mac | ✓ | ✓ |
| Windows | ✓ | ✓ |
| Linux | ✓ | — |
| Web | ✓ | ✓ |
Strengths and weaknesses
Spotify
- Best-in-class recommendations and playlists
- Works on nearly every phone, speaker, console and car
- Free tier lets you listen without paying
- Free tier has ads and playback limits on mobile
- Ad-supported model relies on data collection
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.
Full Spotify review
TIDAL
- Hi-res and Dolby Atmos included, no pricier tier
- Credits make it easy to explore producers and writers
- No ads and less data-driven than free rivals
- No meaningful free tier
- Weaker recommendations and no podcasts
TIDAL is built for listeners who care about audio quality. Its plans include hi-res FLAC and Dolby Atmos, and detailed songwriter and producer credits make it easy to follow the people behind the music. The apps are clean, and TIDAL Connect works with plenty of hi-fi gear. Recommendations trail Spotify's, and there are no podcasts. Get it if sound quality comes first.
Full TIDAL review
