SoundCloud vs Spotify: Which Is The Better Music Platform

There are a lot of online music streaming sites today and in this article, we will be discussing SoundCloud vs Spotify, two of the considered music streaming sites giants. We will be talking about the things that we need to consider when comparing these two giants, from the audio quality, costs, and, even the compatibility. Aside from these things that we need to learn we will also talk about the pros and cons of using both of the applications, and give our final verdict as to which is the better one.

So, if you are into searching for the best application to use, and you do not have a perfect choice yet, this article will help you a lot. We will be taking a deeper look at all the factors needed to be able to know which one is the better application to use, SoundCloud vs Spotify.

Contents Guide Part 1. SoundCloud vs Spotify: Basic Overview Part 2. What Are The Differences Between Spotify And SoundCloud?Part 3. SoundCloud vs Spotify: Pros And ConsPart 4. Verdict: What Is The Best Music Streaming Service?Bonus: How To Get Spotify Without Premium?

Part 1. SoundCloud vs Spotify: Basic Overview

In order for us to distinguish which is the better one to use between SoundCloud and Spotify, we should know what these two applications can do for us, and where do they come from. It will help us understand both of them and identify things that we may consider when choosing the better one.

SoundCloud has been of the phenomenal online music applications of the 20^th century. It is a Swedish online music application that was based in Berlin, Germany. It is a distribution platform that lets its users share audio, upload, and promote it online. It is also a processor of digital signals that lets listeners stream music. It has approximately 30 million creators and 125 million tracks. It is a platform for both listeners and creators, wherein you can be able to upload your own music, make and build your profile, and build your own audience.

Spotify on the other hand is one of the most used and most popular online music streaming sites of today. If you ask about streaming online, and you mentioned music, it would probably be the first thing that will come into your mind. It has a very huge music database where you can find any music that you would like to hear.

It is also a Swedish media and audio streaming service provider that has over 356 million users. It was considered one of the most popular due to its versatility when it comes to the services it offers. You can listen and stream music, listen to podcasts, and even listen to the radio using Spotify. It is also a good partner since it can recommend music finds that are based on what you usually listen to, providing convenience and ease to all the things that you may need.

The facts that were discussed above are just an introduction to what is SoundCloud vs Spotify. We will be talking more about these two applications as we go on through the article.

Part 2. What Are The Differences Between Spotify And SoundCloud?

To be able to make a better choice, we should be citing all the factors that we may consider about SoundCloud vs Spotify. From the costs to the quality of music, compatibility, and data usage, we will be digging more into that in this part of this article. We will be differentiating the two helping each of you identify which is the better choice to make.

SoundCloud vs Spotify: Audio Quality

When it comes to choosing the best streaming site to use, one of the basic things that must be considered is the quality of the output that it produces. If we are going to rate the quality of audio of these two streaming sites, Spotify will win.

In the battle between SoundCloud vs Spotify, Spotify offers a better audio quality since it produces true lossless music. Although it differs depending on the subscription that you availed, it is somewhat more advanced compared to SoundCloud. Free Spotify has a bit rate of 160 kbps, while the premium version has a bit rate of 320 kbps.

On the other hand, SoundCloud offers music that has a bit rate of 128 kbps. So, with these, we can be able to say that Spotify offers better audio quality.

SoundCloud vs Spotify: Music Library

For the second basic factor, the music library and catalog of songs, it is said that SoundCloud has over 125 million tracks that are all free. The said songs are uploaded by users. The said number of tracks gave SoundCloud the leverage to be one of the competitors of Spotify, Amazon Music, Apple Music, and a lot more streaming sites.

Whatever the quality of music you have, once you have uploaded the music to SoundCloud, the quality of the music will automatically be at 128 kbps, which is a poorer audio quality compared to Spotify. In terms of the music library, SoundCloud could be a lot more playful and flexible since its songs are mostly uploaded by its users, while Spotify also has millions of tracks that its users could enjoy.

SoundCloud vs Spotify: Costs

When we talk about the costs Spotify offers free usage. You can be able to enjoy listening to songs using this free tier given that there can be some limitations, that can only be erased once you have paid for the subscription. The Premium membership of Spotify will cost you 9.99 dollars; it also has a tier for a family wherein a total of six members can use will cost you 14.99 dollars. It also has a promo for students that will cost a student member 4.99 dollars.

On the other hand, if you are going to go for SoundCloud, there can be a lot of subscriptions that will depend on whether you are a listener or a creator. If you wanted to be a listener, there are two types of subscriptions, the SoundCloud Go and the SoundCloud Go Plus. SoundCloud Go costs 4.99 dollars and offers ad-free listening that can be also accessed even when you are offline.

While SoundCloud Go Plus costs 9.99 dollars and offers full access to hundreds of millions of tracks, offline listening, online listening that has no ads, no previews, and millions of Premium SoundCloud Go plus songs. If you are a creator, there are two types of subscriptions, the Pro Unlimited that costs 12 dollars per month, while Repost by SoundCloud that costs 2.50 dollars monthly.

SoundCloud vs Spotify: Compatibility

Both of the streaming providers are compatible with almost all available devices or platforms. Spotify can be downloaded and access using a smartphone, iOS devices, Android devices, personal computers, MAC, and even game consoles.

Whilst, SoundCloud can be accessed through two platforms or mobile applications, the first one is the main application that can cater to listening, streaming, or sharing of tracks features, and the second one is called the SoundCloud Pulse that is intended only for iOS, and Android devices.

Part 3. SoundCloud vs Spotify: Pros And Cons

To be able to be sure that we have chosen the better streaming service to use we got to be talking about the advantages and disadvantages of SoundCloud vs Spotify.

Advantages Of Spotify

1. It has a huge music collection that allows its users to be playful and adventurous. If you are a paid user you can be able to gain unlimited access to millions of songs. It has one of the largest collections of prereleases since it has the largest network agents who are working closely in coordination with a huge number of artists.
2. It offers curated playlists that let you discover new music or songs based on the types and genres of songs that you usually listen to.
3. It offers a great music algorithm that lets you listen to new songs, like a breath of fresh air.
4. Spotify Premium has integrations with Amazon Echo, Google Home, Discord, and a lot more.
5. It offers a radio.
6. It has very reliable offline features that users can ultimately depend on.
7. It offers a free tier.
8. It has an application accessible to both iOS and Android devices.
9. You can be able to access it using the web browser.

Disadvantages Of Spotify

1. You cannot be able to use Siri for the application integration.
2. There is a limited capacity when we talk about lyrics integration.
3. The question when it comes to billing can only be accessed through email and Twitter.
4. The free tier can be annoying due to a lot of ads that will be encountered in between every track that you listened to. You also cannot be able to do unlimited skips of songs.

Advantages Of SoundCloud

1. You can be able to follow all your music idols using SoundCloud. Since this streaming service offers songs that are uploaded by users, you can directly search for a specific artist, and follow them to know updates on songs, and the like.
2. It has an explore tab that lets you discover all the new music that it continuously offers.
3. It is free to use.
4. It offers a lot of songs recommendations based on the genre of the songs that you frequently listen to.

Disadvantages Of SoundCloud

1. It has a lot of bugs which is very annoying if you are a frequent user. Its website is not properly maintained compared to other streaming services.
2. It has a terrible sound quality compared to other streaming services.
3. You cannot assure the quality of songs that you can listen to, since almost all of its tracks are uploaded by users. It means that there can be “wanna-be” singers that can upload their song creations.
4. The price that you will pay is not worth the services they offer.

Part 4. Verdict: What Is The Best Music Streaming Service?

So if we got to evaluate SoundCloud vs Spotify in terms of all the basic factors that we have discussed, Spotify got better leverage compared to SoundCloud. From the audio quality that is worthy of the price that you will pay, Spotify is undeniably the winner here. It also has dominated the world of music with over 65 million subscribers all over the world.

Although SoundCloud could also be a choice especially if you are a “wanna-be” singer who wants to explore yourself, it does not compare to the quality of services that Spotify is offering. Spotify has ultimately conquered the world of streaming services of the 20^th century.

Bonus: How To Get Spotify Without Premium?

You may know the SoundCloud vs Spotify comparison. But do you know that there is a way that you can be able to keep all the songs that you have downloaded from Spotify for as long as you wanted? Yes, AMusicSoft Spotify Music Converter, a professional converter, and an amazing tool when it comes to the conversion of files.

It is one of the best partners when it comes to all your conversion needs, easing all your tasks and making your music life a lot more enjoyable. Here are the things that you should know about this tool.

1. Save a lot of time, energy, and effort while using this professional converter. Instead of converting a song after another one, and repeating the process one by one, you can now be able to convert a whole album or playlist in one go. Even a few minutes will do.
2. Do not worry about Digital Rights Management or DRM, or any other technical restrictions. You can now be able to transfer your files from a device into another one and remove the DRM protection of the files.
3. Convert your files to any file types you want, from FLAC, WAV, MP4, or MP3 which is one of the most versatile file types we have today.
4. Save a lot of money from paying monthly subscriptions. You can now have all the songs that you want and keep them forever with you.
5. This professional converter is very easy to use and understand. It has no complicated steps which is an advantage if you want to deal with a very convenient conversion.

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