4 Best Apple Music Alternatives (2026)
Two things push people out of Apple Music: it only really pays off inside Apple's ecosystem, and there's no free tier to drop down to — cancel and your streaming library goes dark the moment the period ends, with no refund for the rest of the month. So the useful alternatives are either services that keep working on every device you own, or ways to stop paying without losing music altogether.
Apple Music alternatives, compared
Cancelling usually means you still need the thing. These are the alternatives worth looking at — with the honest downside of each.
Spotify
From $11.99/mo, free ad-supported tier availableBest for: Anyone mixing iPhone, Android, Windows, consoles, and smart speakers
- Runs well on essentially every platform and has a permanent free tier, so cancelling later never locks you out of your playlists.
- No lossless audio, and like Apple it doesn't refund the unused part of a month.
YouTube Premium (includes YouTube Music)
From $13.99/moBest for: Heavy YouTube watchers who want ad-free video and music on one bill
- Covers ad-free YouTube, background play, and a music service that carries live sets, remixes, and rarities no other catalogue has.
- More expensive than Apple Music, and its library and playlist tools feel less curated.
Amazon Music
Included with Prime; Unlimited from $9.99/moBest for: Prime members and Echo households
- A large ad-free tier is already bundled into Prime, so a lot of ex-Apple Music listeners can stop paying anything extra.
- Weaker apps and a Prime tier that limits on-demand playback unless you upgrade to Unlimited.
Your own purchases plus a library app (Freegal / hoopla)
Free with a library cardBest for: People who only listened a few hours a month and hate recurring bills
- Music you bought from iTunes stays yours after cancelling, and many public libraries add free streaming or keepable downloads on top of it.
- New releases are patchy or absent, monthly download limits apply, and you lose Apple's recommendations entirely.
Some links are affiliate links — we may earn a commission at no extra cost to you. It never changes which alternatives we list or what we say about them.
Still need to cancel Apple Music?
Cancel Apple Music in your subscription settings: on iPhone, open Settings → tap your name → Subscriptions → Apple Music → Cancel Subscription. You keep access until the end of your billing period. You can also cancel from a Mac (Music app), on the web at music.apple.com, or in the Apple Music app on Android. If you subscribed through Google Play, cancel in the Google Play app instead.
How to cancel Apple Music →We are independent and not affiliated with Apple Musicor the alternatives listed. Prices and features change often — always confirm on the provider's official site before subscribing.