Introduced in June 2015 to iOS and Android users, Apple Music is one of the leading music streaming services in the world.

It has become so popular that people started comparing it with Spotify, the leading music app.

Is this comparison valid?

The easiest way is to find out how many people use Apple Music and compare it against Spotify.

Apple Music is a service that was developed by Apple Inc a few years back. It allows users to stream music on-demand on their devices. 

This platform runs on a monthly or yearly subscription, with varying prices for single accounts, family accounts, students, and voice plans.

During the early years of the app’s release, many users criticized Apple Music for its non-intuitive design. 

However, after many significant redesigns and eliminating interface issues, Apple Music has regained its place in the music streaming industry.

How many users does Apple Music have? Here’s what we know. 

Key Statistics

  • Apple Music has more subscribers than Spotify in America.
  • Apple Music has 88 million users. 
  • Apple Music holds 16% of the global music streaming market share.
  • Apple counts it as a play even when someone listens to a song for just 30 seconds, 
  • The Weeknd is Global Artist of the Year for Apple Music. 
  • Apple Music listened to Dynamite by BTS the most.
  • Apple Music is currently offering 50 million songs in its catalog. 
  • Apple Music users are paying $0.0076 per stream.
  • Apple users have paid $53.6 billion for Apple services. 

Apple Music Has More Subscribers than Spotify in North America.

Apple Music

Apple Music has approximately 33.7 million subscribers in the United States, beating Spotify and other music streaming services such as Pandora and Amazon Music.

However, Spotify has more users than Apple Music in Europe and South America.

In fact, people outside of America typically don’t prefer to use Apple Music, as Spotify seems like a more accessible option for them.

How Many People Use Apple Music in 2024?

Although Apple Music does beat Spotify in terms of US subscribers, it stays in second place when it comes to global users.

As of 2021, Apple Music has an estimated 88 million users worldwide

Spotify, which has scored first place, has approximately 116 million users as of 2021.

Amazon Music comes in third place with 70 million users and YouTube Music at fourth with 50 million users. 

Apple Music Holds 16% of The Global Music Streaming Market Share.

According to the latest statistics, Apple Music takes up approximately 16% of the global music streaming market share.

Although it’s a good number, it’s second to Spotify by a considerable margin. However, this information is only true to the data for the first quarter of 2021.

Contrastingly, Spotify currently holds 32% of the market share, making it clear that both streaming services are battling to keep their audiences’ attention. Amazon Music, Tencent, Google, YouTube Music, and Pandora hold the rest of the market share.

Apple Counts It as A Play Even when Someone Listens to A Song for Just 30 Seconds.

Did you know that Apple Music will count it as a stream, even when the song is only played for 30 seconds?

Unsurprisingly, fans have used this tactic to ensure their favorite artists get the most streams on the platform. 

The listening statistics are similar when it comes to Apple radio spins. Every time a listener spends at least 30 seconds on an Apple Music radio station, it records a radio spin.

The Weeknd is Global Artist of the Year for Apple Music. 

Apple Music users found a liking to the “Blinding Lights” singer, The Weeknd, last year. The singer won Apple Music’s Global Artist of the Year award, mainly credited to his new album “After Hours.”

In fact, the album surpassed about a million pre-adds on Apple Music before its release. In addition, its lead single “Blinding Lights” peaked at #1 on the Daily Top 100: Global Chart on Apple Music. 

Apple Music Users Listened to “driver’s License” by Olivia Rodrigo the Most.

Suppose you’re wondering what those 98 million users listened to the most last year. In that case, it’s undoubtedly Olivia Rodrigo’s “driver’s license.” Awarded 2021’s Song of the Year, the song topped Apple Music’s overall track chart. 

In the first three days of the release., it had accumulated more than 21 million streams and 16k digital downloads. 

Apple Music Is Currently Offering 50 Million Songs in Its Catalog. 

Although Spotify is considered a more accessible and user-friendly platform, Apple Music is preferred due to its variety in the catalog. In fact, the service is currently offering 50 million songs in its collection, compared to Spotify’s 35 million.

Even in terms of offline listening, Apple Music wins the competition. The app allows its users to download up to 100k songs in their library for seamless offline listening. Meanwhile, Spotify Premium allows its users to download 10k songs per device for offline listening.

It’s also worth noting that Spotify lets you connect one account on up to five devices.

Apple Music Artists Are Earning $0.0076 per Stream.

One of the main reasons artists prefer Apple Music over Spotify is due to the pay per stream. Spotify monthly subscriptions are much more expensive than Apple Music, as the typical monthly plan is about $9.99. 

However, Apple Music’s pay per stream is higher than Spotify’s. Artists earn approximately $0.0076 per stream on Apple Music, while Spotify only pays them $0.0026 to $0.0049 per stream. 

“Pay per stream” is the amount an artist earns every time a listener streams their song.

Apple Users Have Paid $4.1 Billion for Apple Music.

Apple Music

Overall, Apple Inc. has earned approximately $4.1 billion in revenue from Apple Music as of 2020. However, this is not an exact revenue since Apple does not reveal its separate revenue for Apple Music. 

This number is an estimate based on comparisons to Spotify, global streaming revenue, and Apple Music’s market share. 

Conclusion

While you now know how many people use Apple Music in 2024, the stats may change as the app shows steep market penetration since its redesign.

While Apple Music is available in most countries of the world, some of its packages, like the Apple One Bundle, are not available everywhere. It’s currently available in more than 100 countries, providing different packages for Individual, Family, and Premier users. 

The premier plan is currently limited to Australia, the UK, the US, and Canada. Given the rapid growth of subscribers and Apple Music revenue, it is likely to stretch beyond 100 million subscribers in the next couple of years.

Sources

MusicallyBusiness of AppsReview Moose
Hosting TribunalGoogleMusic Apple
MacRumors