We're all fans of music streaming services. Although they're not for business use, they're a great way to listen to music for entertainment purposes whilst making sure money goes to the artist.

Whether you use Spotify Premium, Apple Music or Amazon Music Unlimited, you would have noticed a price increase this year. Spotify is the world’s largest music streaming service, with 220 million subscribers in 2023. Yet, the company has never published a net profit. In 2022, it posted a €236 million loss despite making €11.72B in revenue.

But not everyone gets the same deal. We looked into how much the streaming services cost all over the world.

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The Study

Our study compared the monthly cost of an individual subscription for three popular digital music services – Spotify Premium, Apple Music, and Amazon Music Unlimited (for non-Prime members) – in 46 countries worldwide where all three are available to consumers.

What did we find? That the UK public pays the most for Spotify, Amazon and Apple music streaming services globally, each costing £10.99 per month or £131.88 a year.

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What about the rest of Europe?

Customers in Iceland and Finland also pay much more than many other European nations, with subscribers paying the equivalent of £10.25 per month (or £123 annually). By comparison, music lovers can expect to pay the equivalent of over £8 per month in the Republic of Ireland, Spain, France, Italy and Germany.

In Europe, the cheapest subscriptions can be found in Poland with Spotify, Amazon and Apple music plans costing the equivalent of £3.82, £3.41 and £4.20 per month, respectively. For Spotify, that’s nearly a third of the price.

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And the rest of the world?

Looking at the rest of the world, U.S music fans are charged the most. Subscribers to Spotify Premium and Apple Music pay £8.63 ($10.99) per month, while Amazon Music Unlimited costs non-Prime members £7.84 ($9.99).

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Residents in New Zealand pay the second highest amount outside of Europe for Spotify Premium - £7.89 (16.99 NZD), and £6.78 (13.49 NZD) for Amazon Music Unlimited. Australia follows in third place, with monthly subscriptions costing £6.53 (12.99 AUD) across all three platforms.

The cheapest place in the world to access all three music streaming services is in Argentina. Amazon Music Unlimited costs just £1.11 (499 ARS) per month or £13.32 per year, while Spotify Premium costs £1.34 (599 ARS). Residents in Colombia and Brazil also pay below the equivalent of £4 per month for each plan.

A major factor in how digital music services decide who pays what is based on the population of a country and the per capita income. But as our study data shows, the differences in price between neighbouring countries can sometimes be vast.

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Can I use a VPN?

Following the news of price increases across digital music services this year, social media has been flooded with hacks on how to pay less, including sharing passwords or using a VPN.

On TikTok, “Spotify Premium VPN” has racked up over 339 million views. A VPN, or virtual private network, hides your IP address and can be used to obtain a cheaper subscription cost by connecting to a server in another country.

While using a VPN is legal in the UK, users must comply with the law, the terms and conditions and the user guidelines of the service provider. Failing to do so can result in your account being restricted or closed. Spotify, for example, bans users from “circumventing any technology used by Spotify, its licensors, or any third party, including any territorial or other content access restrictions applied by Spotify or its licensors”.

Free VPNs aren’t safe either and have been known to sell data to third parties, track your activity online, and even install malware on your devices. So, beware!

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What we recommend...

Anyone looking to reduce the cost of their music subscriptions should first consider if they are on the best plan for their needs or circumstances. Free or cheaper plans are available with ads or reduced functionality. There are student and family discounts too.

Businesses should also ensure they are using the right service for their background music to avoid substantial fines and charges of copyright infringement. Large companies, like Peloton, have been sued for many millions of dollars for playing music without the right licences.

What’s more, music platforms designed for personal use don’t have a lot of the tools a business needs for their music to run smoothly like scheduling or curation. Instead, professional music services offer a system with high-quality music that is just as easy to manage (like us).

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