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Music consumption has changed a lot since the year 2000. Back then, people purchased CDs, traditional radio still held weight, MTV was hot, and file sharing had become commonplace for those with PCs and fast internet connections. Over time, the music industry morphed to take advantage of the new digital landscape and to find new ways to capture dollars previously lost to Napster and BearShare. Digital downloads and online streaming music services eventually became the norm, thanks to the likes of iTunes and Pandora, respectively. Those trailblazing services, among others, helped internet music listening go legit and created a new music industry revenue stream.
However, that doesn’t mean you must pay for online music. Many popular streaming music services offer free tiers that offer no-cost listening. These are our favorites.
Spotify
Best for Unlimited Skips
Why We Picked It
Free Spotify accounts offer a surprising amount of benefits that make it stand out from competing services, including a deep podcast catalog that includes exclusive and popular shows like Stuff You Should Know, Reply All, and The Joe Rogan Experience. One outstanding Spotify perk is the ability to skip tracks as often as you’d like, as long as you use the desktop app.
Who It’s For
People who lack the patience to listen to songs that they don’t want to hear. Spotify is a superb choice for desktop and laptop listeners thanks to its unique song-skipping option. Open Spotify while on your PC, slap on a pair of cans, and enjoy some sweet tunes.
PROS
- Cool, collaborative playlists and Group Session options
- Optional desktop app that lets you play locally stored audio files
- Premium accounts let you hear select albums before they’re released
- Robust Student plan features Hulu and Showtime
- Podcasts
- Free version
CONS
- Lacks Hi-Res Audio
- No lyrics in web or desktop apps
Tidal
Best for Music-Related Extras
Why We Picked It
Tidal is the music service that set the standard for streaming audio quality with its Hi-Fi tiers that deliver delicious Hi-Res Audio. Those 1411kbps and 9216kbps streams aren’t available with the free tier, but you can enjoy Tidal’s other offerings, such as a 90 million-song catalog and more than 450,000 videos, without spending a dime.
Who It’s For
Tidal is ideal for people who want more than just music. In addition to Tidal’s deep video well, the service has Tidal Magazine, the company’s digital, browser-based publication that offers a fascinating collection of artist-focused essays, features, and conversations.
PROS
- Excellent sound quality, with optional Hi-Res Audio
- Long-form editorial pieces
- Music-focused podcasts
- Exclusive backstage content, live streams, and concerts
- Lyrics
CONS
- Free tier offers none of Tidals defining perks
- Relatively expensive for a streaming music service
Deezer
Best for Mobile Listening
Why We Picked It
Deezer is an excellent middle ground between LiveOne’s music curation and Spotify’s expansive musical catalog. Unfortunately, free accounts offer just 30-second song samplers on desktop, so stick with Deezer’s mobile apps.
Who It’s For
People who like listening to music when out and about. The service is heavily focused on mobile, and its copious content includes live radio.
PROS
- Useful, free tier on mobile
- Good crop of original content, including video
- Live radio
- Lyrics
- Podcasts
- Lets you upload MP3 files on the desktop
CONS
- Free tier on PC is limited to 30-second snippets
- Mobile apps lack MP3-upload compatibility
- Can’t rewind live radio streams
- Lacks Hi-Res Audio
LiveOne
Best for Live Events
Why We Picked It
LiveOne lets you create playlists built around the songs and artists you like, and mixes in related content to deliver music it thinks you’ll enjoy based on your preferences. Even better, the service specializes in concerts and online events, which you can enjoy on a pay-per-view basis.
Who It’s For
Concert lovers, as live events are the name of the game. LiveOne delivers an impressive selection of live shows throughout the year, which you can watch via pay-per-view. It also hosts LiveOne TV, a video channel that streams live music-related news, interviews, podcasts, and performances.
PROS
- Excellently curated channels and playlists
- Lets you purchase tickets for in-person or streamed concerts
- A deep video well
- Informative DJs
- Optional news updates
- Many podcasts
CONS
- Cumbersome interface
- Lacks Hi-Res Audio
- No family plan
- Lacks lyrics
YouTube Music
Best for Music Videos
Why We Picked It
It should come as no surprise that YouTube Music is a major contender in the music streaming industry, considering the monumental amount of music on the vanilla video platform. It offers customized playlists, search-by-lyric functionality, community uploads, and official studio releases. YouTube Music is also intuitive and extremely accessible if you are already familiar with the regular video service.
Who It’s For
YouTube Music is an extension of the video streaming behemoth, so it’s a perfect service for video lovers. Not only do you get numerous official music videos, but a veritable treasure trove of covers and community-uploaded videos, too. Plus, you get YouTube Music as part of the ad-free YouTube Premium service.
PROS
- Lets you easily switch between audio and music videos
- Cool location- and time-based playlists
- Can search for songs by lyrics
- Collaborative playlists
- Family and Student plans
- Free version
CONS
- Doesn’t offer much non-music programming
- Lacks Hi-Res Audio
iHeartRadio
Best for Terrestrial Radio Fans
Why We Picked It
Freemium service iHeartRadio has been in the business since 2008, and it combines traditional radio, curated artist channels, and podcasts to deliver a listening experience with a little something for everyone.
Who It’s For
Radio may seem like a quaint listening medium nowadays, but there are many excellent stations to enjoy across the country. Not only can you enjoy local radio, but the service also offers its own productions and suggestions to fill in preferential gaps in your area.
PROS
- Many live and curated artist streams
- Podcasts
- Informative news articles and event listings
- Lyrics
- Free plan
- Optional family plan
CONS
- iHeartRadio Plus plan lacks a web version
- Limited listening options for free users
- Unable to rewind live radio
- Lacks video and Hi-Res Audio tracks
Buying Guide: The Best Free Online Streaming Music Services for 2022
What Is the Best Free Music Streaming Service?
If you think you’ll miss out on good content by going the free route, think again—these streaming services offer a surprising amount of content. For example, LiveXLive differentiates itself with Stories, a hosted program that features interesting tales, ranging from love to horror. iHeartRadio blends live, terrestrial radio with playlists. Spotify has many free playlists and podcasts. Amazon Music Unlimited offers the same. Though some of the listed services have price tags attached, rest assured that they all have no-cost tiers.
You may ask, “What about big names, such as Apple Music or SiriusXM Internet Radio?” Those excellent streaming music are definitely worth your time, but they are premium-only affairs with premium-only features. Those for-pay service levels are aimed at customers who really want to explore the depths of what a streaming music service offers. Not everyone needs those features, of course, so free music tiers are extremely valuable.
What Are the Downsides to Free Music Streaming?
Free music listening has its inconveniences, however. You may need to listen to audio ads. You may be limited to just six song skips per hour. You may not be able to listen to songs on demand, or fire up particular playlists. You may not enjoy the sweet sounds that Hi-Res Audio delivers. In many ways, free streaming music resembles classic, terrestrial radio. That’s not too bad, considering you save roughly $9.99 per month you’d otherwise be paying for an individual music streaming plan.
Unfortunately, there are overall problems in the streaming music space that impact free and paid accounts. Thanks to—you guessed it—money, some platforms gain and lose content over time. The Beatles, Taylor Swift, Prince, and other artists have seen their catalogs vanish from streaming platforms (and later reappear) due to low royalties. It’s not just big names that get stiffed by the record industry; the little guys catch a bad one, too.
Though content restrictions and missing artists and tracks are still a problem in the space, the situation has improved markedly in recent years. Still, there’s been a paring down. LiveXLive absorbed the excellent Slacker Radio (and rebranded to LiveOne after that), and Google sent yet another service to its graveyard when it replaced Google Play Music with YouTube Music. Fortunately, other streaming music services have stepped up to bring you free tunes.
Recommended by Our Editors
Keep Rocking
In our chart below, you’ll find the streaming music services that serve up song lyrics, live programming (be it live radio or streaming video), or non-music content—think podcasts, weather updates, and so on. If you’re ready to take a dip into the free music streaming pool, we’ve got several quality services to recommend. Each of the reviewed services offer Android and iOS, too, so you needn’t be tied to your PC to enjoy tunes. So, grab a pair of headphones, or turn up your speakers, and prepare for a good time.
For more on streaming music, check out the best places to stream hi-res audio.
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