Spotify tops the music streaming services chart globally, Apple Music comes 2nd on the list

Main Image
  • Like
  • Comment
  • Share

A report by Media Research shows that the worldwide music streaming subscriptions grew by a whopping 26.4% in the 2nd quarter of 2021, now standing at 521.3 million subscribers at the end of that period, an increase of 109.5 million from 2020.

The study highlights that ‘SPOTIFY’ continues to be the market leader by a distance despite rival services emerging and eating up its market share. Spotify controls 31% of the global music streaming market, which is more than double of the number 2 in the list, Apple Music which has a 15% share.

Midia Research Report

ALSO READ: [Exclusive] Realme 9 Pro Plus Specs and Renders Revealed; Dimensity 920 SoC, Camera details, and more

ALSO READ: Samsung teases unpacked event in February to launch Galaxy S22 Series with ‘Note’ like features

Next up are Amazon Music and Tencent Music, each with a 13% market share, while despite enjoying huge popularity in India, YouTube Music has only an 8% share of the global subscriptions. Apple Music has almost 78.6 million subscribers, while Amazon Music and Tencent Music have over 68.1 million each.

YouTube Music which is in 5th place has about 41.9 million subscribers to its credit.

Though it accounts for only 8% of the market share, YouTube Music is the fastest growing service for the 2nd time in a row. Mark Mulligan of Midia suggests that the reason behind it is that YouTube as a brand is deeply embedded in the minds of the people, especially younger millennial consumers. It has become a habit for some people and serves as a key platform for music and other kinds of video consumption.

Spotify is a leader with the biggest share of the market, even more than Apple Music and Amazon Music combined. The numbers indicate that Spotify is the choice of a maximum number of consumers using music streaming apps, no matter how many new services try to compete with it.

If we talk about Apple Music, its performance has also improved in 2021. Global streaming has risen, partly due to pandemic boredom. In the year 2020, Spotify and Apple Music saw a growth of 16.2% globally over 2019.

ALSO READ: How to combine your Spotify Playlists

ALSO READ: What is Spotify Wrapped 2021 and How to get it?

However, with Spotify adding more subscribers than any other streaming service in the last 12 months up to the middle of 2021, “there is no risk of Spotify losing its leading position anytime soon,” claimed Midia’s Mark Mulligan. However, he also cautioned about the erosion of Spotify’s share as it had a 33% share at the same time a year before and 34% in 2019.

Shivangi AgarwalShivangi Agarwal
Shivangi is a tech writer at Smartprix, where she covers consumer technology news with a focus on smartphones, wearables, laptops, and the evolving world of OTT streaming. Since joining the team in August 2021, she has written over 120 in-depth reviews, comparisons, and buying guides aimed at helping readers navigate the ever-changing tech landscape.

With a strong foundation in English literature and education, Shivangi brings clarity, insight, and a reader-first approach to every story. Her expertise lies in breaking down complex features into accessible, practical insights—whether she’s reviewing the latest smartphone or exploring trends in infotainment.

Shivangi holds a B.A. (Hons.) and M.A. in English, along with a B.Ed in English and Social Studies. She is based in Faridabad, India. You can follow her work on Smartprix or connect with her for tech-related queries.

Related Articles

ImageSamsung Galaxy A27 Review: 5 Things I Like & 4 Things I Wish Were Better

Samsung’s Galaxy A-series has always focused on delivering a polished software experience, reliable cameras, and long-term software support. The new Galaxy A27 follows the same philosophy, bringing a better design, a modern punch-hole display, Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 6 Gen 3 chipset, and One UI 8.5 out of the box. At its price, several competitors offer bigger …

ImageSpotify to finally make its way to India; Launch likely in the First Quarter of 2019

Swedish music streaming company Spotify is considered as the global market leader among the streaming apps. Spotify’s curating algorithm is arguably one of the best in the world right now. Spotify has been making several attempts to bring their service to India but couldn’t materialize because of the record labels who held rights to most …

ImageApple Music and Amazon Music Unlimited will now stream lossless audio at no extra cost

Apple has introduced lossless audio and Dolby Atmos Spatial Audio support to its Apple Music users. The two new features will be available at no additional cost to the existing subscribers starting from June. Meanwhile, close on the heels of Apple’s announcement, Amazon has also made the HD music streaming on its platform free. In …

ImageWhy the iPhone Escaped Apple’s Sudden Global Price Hikes

Apple just pulled a surprice price hike across its computing and smart home lineups globally. If you’re looking to get an iPad, iMac, MacBook, Apple TV, or HomePod Mini today, you’re going to pay noticeably more. Yet, noticeably absent from this sweeping price adjustment are the iPhone, AirPods, and Apple Watch. Why spare their most …

ImageONMO+ cloud gaming launches in India at Rs. 4,999 with a Pro Controller and a 3-month subscription

OnMobile Global, best known for mobile services, is now in India’s cloud gaming market with ONMO+. This isn’t a regular console. It’s a hardware bundle called a Smart Console. You get a gamepad and access to a streaming service that brings AAA games to your screens. For Rs. 4,999, you get the ONMO+ Smart Console, …

Discuss

Be the first to leave a comment.