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Whether I’m in the car with my kids listening to the latest Kidz Bop album, Broadway show tunes or the Descendants soundtrack on repeat — or by myself binging true crime podcasts, NPR news and top-40 pop hits — I nearly always have some kind of music or podcast streaming. I’m already a loyal SiriusXM subscriber (I love having multiple live news networks), and over the years I’ve dabbled with different music streaming services like Pandora, Spotify and Apple Music. This past month, I tried out Amazon Music Unlimited, which is now offering a three-month free trial (cancel anytime).
What is Amazon Music Unlimited?
Prime members get Prime Music for free, which includes two million songs. But for $7.99 per month for Prime members, and $9.99 per month for non-members (following the free trial), you can get Amazon Music Unlimited, which is Amazon’s ad-free, on-demand music subscription service featuring 75 million songs, more than 70,000 podcasts (like NPR’s Up First, Stuff You Should Know, Criminal, Ted Talks Daily) and thousands of playlists and stations. The hi-fi service can be streamed to multiple devices and features major artists like The Beatles, Lady Gaga, Michael Jackson, Stevie Nicks, Taylor Swift, Beyoncé, Led Zeppelin, Queen, The Eagles and Elton John.
How does Amazon Music compare to other streaming services?
If you’re looking for a deal on music streaming, Amazon Music Unlimited ($7.99 per month for Prime members after a three-month free trial) may be it, at least for Prime members, according to numerous reviewers: Consumer Reports notes that this service is “best for Amazon Prime members, and anyone looking for a bargain, adding that “if you already have a Prime subscription, Amazon Music Unlimited is the best deal you can get” [for a music subscription]. But it also notes that it “doesn’t seem quite as effective in making recommendations as many of its competitors.” And PCMag gives it a 4 out of 5 “excellent” rating, noting that is is best for Amazon device integration; though Apple Music ($9.99 per month with a three-month free trial) gets a better rating (4.5 out of 5) in its rankings with the site noting that it offers “a wide variety of radio stations, playlists, and other music-related content that make it one of the best music streaming services.”
Learn more: Amazon Music Unlimited, which is now offering a three-month free trial (cancel anytime)
| Number of songs | Monthly cost | What stands out | What it lacks | |
| Apple Music | 75 million | $9.99 per month (with a three month free trial now). | Apple has some exclusive deals with artists like Drake, Taylor Swift, Frank Ocean and more for their new albums. | The Android app isn’t as smooth as the iOS version. |
| Spotify | 70 million | $9.99/month with a one-month free trial now. | Great at learning your listening habits and tailors music specifically based on songs you’ve previously listened to. | You can only skip a certain number of songs per hour. |
| YouTube | Undisclosed | $9.99/month with a one-month free trial. | You can search for songs using lyrics, phrases and keywords. | The app stops working if you lock your phone or switch to another app. |
| Amazon Music | 75 million | $7.99/month for Prime members ($9.99 for others) with a three month free trial. | You can play music anytime, anywhere on smartphones, tablets, PCs, Macs, FireTV and Alexa | There’s no video content available. |
How does Amazon Music Unlimited work?
Like most things Amazon does (think: one-click purchasing), Music Unlimited is easy to navigate. There are four buttons at the bottom of the screen: home, find, library and Alexa and a cog in the upper right corner pulls up a menu offering car mode, offline mode, connect to a device, my profile, settings and help & feedback. Car mode changes the appearance of the app to have larger text, fewer controls, customized presets and hands-free voice assistance from Alexa. Offline mode draws from your library, song history and recently downloaded items and the podcast tab offers offline listening as well.
Another fun feature of the service is the x-ray tab at the bottom that pulls up fun facts about the song you’re listening to a la Vh1’s “Pop Up Video,” as well as rolling credits of who sings the song, and who it’s written, produced and engineered by. It mentions when the song was released, where it fell on the charts (if it’s a chart topper) and displays the lyrics on command either line-by-line or in a scrolling method that uses the full screen. The same goes for podcasts: When you click “about episode,” a breakdown summary of the episode is displayed, some of which are more detailed than others, but nonetheless a synopsis will give you some insight into what you’re listening to.
Learn more: Amazon Music Unlimited, which is now offering a three-month free trial (cancel anytime)
Bottom line
Like other music streaming services, Amazon Music Unlimited learns your musical preferences and makes suggestions and playlists based on things you’ve recently listened to. It’s simple to create your own playlists, and the song history and recently played menus make it easy to find things you like listening to. The interface is very user-friendly, intuitive to navigate and works seamlessly with Alexa as well as my car’s Bluetooth feature. This is a great feature for existing Prime members who want to up their streaming service without paying a hefty price — the library is huge and there’s no learning curve in terms of using the interface.
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September 04, 2021 at 07:25PM
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Sick of Apple Music or Spotify? Amazon Music Unlimited has a 3-month free trial - MarketWatch
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