Spotify vs Pandora: Comparison Of Music Streaming Services

There are a lot of music streaming services available today. Gone are the days where you need to grab songs through your iPod only. Now, there’s Spotify, Pandora, Apple Music, iTunes Store, SoundCloud, and more.

There are a lot of services that you don’t know which one to choose. That’s why Spotify vs Pandora is an issue among a lot of consumers. They don’t know which to pick. Spotify has its own pros and cons, and so does Pandora.

Fortunately, we’re here to talk about Spotify vs Pandora. We’ll talk about pricing, compatibility, audio quality, and more. Then, we’ll talk about the pros and cons of the two music streaming services. Finally, we will give you a rundown of the best tool to use to grab the tracks you love.

Contents Guide Part 1. Spotify vs Pandora: Basic ComparisonPart 2. Pros And Cons Of Spotify vs PandoraPart 3. Spotify vs Pandora: Which Music Streaming Service Should You Choose?Part 4. Bonus: Get Spotify Music Without Subscription Frequently Asked Questions

Part 1. Spotify vs Pandora: Basic Comparison

So, here, we will talk about a basic comparison of Spotify vs Pandora. We’ll talk about costs, compatibility, audio quality, and more. Check out the comparison of Spotify vs Pandora below.

User Interface

Let’s talk about Spotify vs Pandora and their user interface. Both platforms offer aesthetically pleasing user interfaces that are easy to understand. They both have navigation features for the entire platform. In addition, both allow you to select tracks, play, pause and do a lot of options with your listening experience.

Costs

Spotify vs Pandora has different tiers in terms of pricing. Let’s start with Pandora first. Pandora gives you four different options to choose from. The free version, Pandora Family Plan, Pandora Premium, and Pandora Plus.

The free version has ads in it. Pandora Plus currently costs a monthly price of $4.99 or an annual plan of $54.89. On the other hand, Pandora Premium costs a monthly price of $9.99 and a yearly price of $109.89. You can even go for the 60-day free trial if you want to. Finally, the Pandora Family Plan will cost you $14.99 per month or $164.89 per year. This allows up to 6 accounts in the same household.

Now, let’s move on to Spotify. It has a free version, where you can listen to any track with advertisements. An Individual account will cost you $9.99 per month, while a Student account will cost $4.99 per month. A Family plan will cost about 14.99 monthly and allows five accounts within the same household.

Tracks And Discovery Features

Now, Spotify vs Pandora wouldn’t be complete without the tracks and discovery features. According to Spotify, they have more than 70 million songs in their arsenal. In addition, they add about 20 thousand songs every single day. On the other hand, Pandora gives you access to over 40 million tracks. In addition, they offer radio stations that are auto-generated based on themes.

Spotify is a great option for playlists and songs, while Pandora is great for radio stations. In this Spotify vs Pandora article, we have to say that Spotify also gives you Discover Weekly to give you more options. On the other hand, Pandora has a project where you are given the ability to access a lot of tracks based on algorithms they have developed.

Audio Quality

This Spotify vs Pandora article won’t be complete if we don’t talk about audio quality. Typically, Spotify will run at about 160kbps. However, you can listen to tracks with maximum quality of 320 kbps if you have a Premium account. Extreme quality can be listened to on mobile devices only.

On the other hand, Pandora will allow you to stream at about 192kbps alone. However, this is in AAC format, meaning, you’re going for quality better than MP3 at the same bitrate. In terms of audio quality, Spotify is the clear winner because they have a lot of offerings for your needs and situations.

Compatibility

Spotify vs Pandora also talks about the compatibility of the two devices. Fortunately, Spotify can be used on smart speakers, smartwatches, desktop devices, tablets, mobile phones, game consoles, and televisions. This means that Spotify is widely supported around the world.

Pandora was previously made available to a few devices only. However, it’s now supported on Android and iOS. In addition, it can be used in Amazon TV, Xbox One, Fitbit, Kindle gadgets, web browsers, Sonos, Google Home, and more.

Podcasts

Now, let’s talk about Podcast offerings in this Spotify vs Pandora article. Spotify now has a wide variety of podcasts to listen to. But Pandora isn’t losing the race. Pandora also has a lot of podcasts across various genres such as music, technology, true crime, etc.

Radio Stations

Spotify doesn’t have its own radio stations, unlike Pandora. However, Spotify gives you the ability to choose the actual tracks you wish to listen to. Pandora creates various radio stations based on a playlist, artist, or song that you like.

Discovery is made easier by Pandora, because of these radio stations. However, this doesn’t mean that Spotify doesn’t have this too. Spotify doesn’t offer radio stations, but it does curate songs based on what you like. In addition, you can search for playlists made by other users.

Part 2. Pros And Cons Of Spotify vs Pandora

Now, let’s dig into the pros and cons within the issue of Spotify vs Pandora. Check these advantages and disadvantages below.

Pros And Cons Of Spotify

Pros:

• It’s very easy to use and understand.
• It is compatible with a lot of devices.
• It offers a free tier package.
• Offers various audio quality bitrates to select from.
• High-quality audio is offered at paid plans.
• You can download tracks and listen to them offline.

Cons

• There are limits to the number of tracks you can download on a paid plan.
• The free tier has annoying ads.
• No radio stations.

Pros And Cons Of Pandora

Pros

• Lets you listen to radio stations based on interests or genre
• Offers a free tier plan.
• Compatible with a lot of devices.
• Can be used on multiple platforms and the user interface is intuitive.

Cons

• Not that many podcasts.

Part 3. Spotify vs Pandora: Which Music Streaming Service Should You Choose?

So, the Spotify vs Pandora debate is nearly over. After you have learned about Spotify vs Pandora, which of the two should you choose?

Well, if you’re going for tracks you can listen to when you want it, then choose Spotify. You will be able to choose the exact song you want to play. But, if you’re more of discovery and radio stations, then go for Pandora. The two have similar features, but this is the distinguishing factor between them.

Part 4. Bonus: Get Spotify Music Without Subscription

This Spotify vs Pandora article, won’t be a good one if we don’t give you a bonus tip. If you want to get Spotify tracks without the need for paying a subscription, you can go for AMusicSoft Spotify Music Converter. AMusicSoft is a company that offers various tools for your entertainment needs. One of these tools is a Spotify Music Converter.

Free Download Free Download

This tool will help you grab all the tracks you want from Spotify. Thus, you’ll have it on your local hard drive. Plus, you’ll have the ability to listen to these tracks offline. Yes, you heard it right. You won’t need an Internet connection, once you have the tracks with you.

As such, AMusicSoft Spotify Music Converter has the ability to grab and convert tracks to different file formats. These include WAV, FLAC, AAC, MP3, and more. Plus, conversion speeds are very fast that you wait only for a short period of time to get your tracks.

Frequently Asked Questions

Is Pandora Cheaper Than Spotify?

If you have a student email, Spotify will be cheaper than Pandora. This is because you can get the Student plan for only $4.99 per month. However, in terms of pricing, the two are almost similar. It’s the features that you get with their packages that are different.

Is Spotify Premium Better than Pandora?

Spotify vs Pandora, which is better? Well, we can’t say one is better than the other. Spotify Premium and Pandora Premium have their own advantages and disadvantages. You need to know what your requirements and situations are, before choosing one of the two.

Spotify Premium is better if you want to be able to play tracks on demand. But, if you want radio stations, then you can go for Pandora. Spotify is lacking in discovery, but you can discover tracks yourself. On the other hand, Pandora offers radio stations with lots of tracks based on your interests.

How Long Can You Listen to Pandora for Free?

In this Spotify vs Pandora article, we will say that both platforms offer free versions. So, you can listen to Pandora for free. However, if you’d like to get the Pandora Premium, you can get a 60-day free trial for it. After that, you have to pay for the subscription plan. Listening to these two platforms for free will allow you to listen to ads too, which can be annoying.