Apple changed the way we listen to music with iPod back in 2001. It once again tried to do the same, but this time, digitally with Apple Music in 2015. It is a paid music streaming service by Apple. If you are new to Apple Music or looking to start your Apple Music journey, then remember that you have to pay a monthly subscription fee to use that service. But how much is Apple Music? Are there benefits of a Family Plan?
In this guide, we will take a look at the Apple Music service. Then, we will see the pricing of Apple Music and the different plans it offers. Finally, we will see if Apple Music is worth it.
What is Apple Music?
Before looking at Apple Music, let us quickly look at Apple’s association with music. After Sony’s Walkman, we believe that Apple’s iPod has created a similar level of impact on the music listening experience.
It was a revolution. You could easily purchase music from iTunes and just sync the iPod to download the music files. Once you have the music on your iPod, you don’t need internet or other connectivity. Just plug in the headphones and enjoy the music.
As the World is moving towards online and streaming services, even Apple entered the music streaming business in 2015 with Apple Music.
Apple Music is a paid music streaming service from Apple. Apart from music, you can also stream videos, internet radio, podcasts, etc.
If you are familiar with Spotify, then Apple Music is very similar to that. It has more than 90 million songs. Apple Music has a seamless integration into the Apple ecosystem such as Siri, AirPlay, iCloud, etc.
Apple Music is available on all “Apple” devices. Additionally, there are apps for Windows, as well as Android OS devices.
How Much is Apple Music?
Now, the important question is, how much is Apple Music? Apple offers a one-month trial period, where you can try and test Apple Music.
After this trial period, you have to purchase a monthly subscription to continue listening to music from Apple Music. At the time of writing this guide, Apple Music has four plans. They are:
- Voice
- Individual
- Student
- Family
Voice
It is the basic and cheapest of all Apple Music plans. The “Voice” plan costs $4.99 per month. You have access to all the 90 million plus songs from the Apple Music library.
The catch is this plan is available only on Apple Devices. Also, you don’t get additional benefits and features such as Dolby Atmos, Lossless Audio, Lyrics, etc.
Individual
The next plan is “Individual”. It costs $9.99 per month. You get all the features available in Apple Music except anything related to family stuff.
Student
If you are a student, then Apple offers a discounted “Individual” plan at just $5.99 for you. Of course, this is only available for college students after verification.
You get all the benefits of the Individual plan at a lower cost.
Family
The final Apple Music only plan is “Family”. The main benefit of this plan is that with one plan, you can give access to six people. Apple Music’s “Family” plan costs $14.99 per month.
Each family member gets all the benefits of the “Individual” plan. But the personal library and recommendations are unique to that member only.
The following table compares different Apple Music Plans with available features and also the price.
| Feature | Voice Plan | Individual Plan | Student Plan | Family Plan |
| Cost | $4.99 | $9.99 | $5.99 | $14.99 |
| Access to 90 million+ songs | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| 30,000 Playlists | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Ask Siri for any song, album, playlist, etc. | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Ad-free Music | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Exclusive content, original shows, and concerts | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Live, on-demand radio | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| All Apple Devices | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Type to Siri | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Other devices | No | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Dolby Atmos and Spatial Audio | No | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Lossless Audio | No | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Lyrics | No | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Download songs to the library | No | Yes (100,000) | Yes (100,000) | Yes (100,000) |
| Access the library from any device | No | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Listen online or Offline | No | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| See what friends are listening to | No | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Access to Others | No | No | No | Yes (unlimited access for up to 6 members) |
| Each member has a personal library | No | No | No | Yes |
| Each member gets personalized recommendations | No | No | No | Yes |
Apple One Bundle Plans
All the plans we saw till now are stand-alone Apple Music plans. In 2020, Apple launched a bundle of services under one plan known as Apple One. The services in Apple One are:
- Apple Music
- Apple TV+
- Apple Arcade
- iCloud+
- News+
- Fitness+
There are again three tiers of Apple One plans. They are:
- Individual
- Family
- Premier
The cost of these plans is as follows: Individual is $14.95 per month, Family is $19.95 per month, and Premier is $ 29.95 per month.
We listed the features and services of all the Apple One plans in the following table.
| Individual | Family | Premier |
| $14.95 | $19.95 | $29.95 |
| Apple Music | Apple Music | Apple Music |
| Apple TV+ | Apple TV+ | Apple TV+ |
| Apple Arcade | Apple Arcade | Apple Arcade |
| iCloud+ (50 GB) | iCloud+ (200 GB) | iCloud+ (2 TB) |
| — | — | News+ |
| — | — | Fitness+ |
As you can see from the above table, all Apple One bundles have Apple Music service as a part of them.
Conclusion
Apple Music is a popular music streaming service from Apple. You can listen to music, internet radio, podcasts, etc. using Apple Music.
It is a paid service, so, you have to pay a monthly subscription fee to Apple to continue listening to music. If you are wondering how much is Apple Music, then we covered the plans and pricing in this guide.
