Skip Navigation
Asklemmy @lemmy.ml
Wild Bill @midwest.social

Spotify vs Tidal - worth switching?

Which one do you prefer?

I am seeing plenty of mixed opinions about both Spotify and Tidal. Some are saying Spotify is the best, others say it’s bloated, others think it’s annoying it’s also an app for podcasts. Some people really like Tidal, but I have mostly seen negative opinions about it - worse song recommendations, no difference in audio, too expensive.

As someone who doesn’t care very much for song recommendations I can’t decide which one is ideal for me personally. Tidal seems to pay artists better, but the criticism it receives makes me unsure. What do y’all think?

67 comments

  • I can't speak much about the money making stuff, but I've read that most music artists make the majority of their income through touring and ticket sales for their live performances at venues, music festivals as well as attending other private events etc - and this goes back to even pre-Spotify days. So Spotify not paying artists well doesn't really make a big difference. In fact, I'd argue that Spotify actually brings artists publicity, much like how mp3 sharing did back in the day, or the radio for that matter. I've discovered many artists via radio back in the day, much like how I discover them today via Spotify's recommendations, and personally, I don't see the issue.

    Anyways, as a former audiophile, I've decided to choose convenience over perceived audio quality, so I use Spotify. Mind you, it's not like I don't perceive any difference at all, but the point is, for my day-to-day listening, it makes little difference - especially when most of my listening is in generally noisy environments like at work or during my commute. Also, Spotify streams at 320kbps Ogg Vorbis (on a good connection) - you'd need to have really good ears and gear to actually hear a difference between that and an uncompressed stream. Even then, it's not like it makes a difference if you're say just listening to pop and rock music or something.

    It's not like I've completely given up on lossless audio - I do use my audiophile gear when I'm in the mood and want to listen to certain tracks like say some of Pink Floyd atmospheric stuff like in A Momentary Lapse of Reason, or say John Williams, or classical music like Tchaikovsky or Vivaldi, but these are just a small fraction of my listening experience.

    So if you are blessed with the ears and gear to actually make out the difference between 320kbps ogg vs FLAC/DSD, AND you listen to the kind of music where it really matters AND you care enough about that difference that it affects your enjoyment - then sure, go for Tidal. Otherwise, there's no point.

  • I tried Tidal cause I like the idea of paying artists more per stream. However I simply didn't like the UI (especially the lack of album covers visible when list-viewing playlists) and recommendations.

    Ended up switching to Apple Music which, even on Android, I prefer.

    Has lossless, supports uploading your own files to the cloud, my fav Library system, and pays artists more per stream than Spotify. No podcasts too 👍 Windows app is also getting pretty good (still behind Spot tho)

  • I switched from Yt Music to Tidal because of audio quality and it's audible. But the difference between Spotify highest quality and Tidal is truly minimal. I did the tests and I couldn't hear it. I kinda prefer the UI and generally like supporting market alternatives if they're good and if they pay artists better, then that's even better. I don't listen to podcasts either, so those are my personal reasons for choosing Tidal over Spotify.

    I have never really used Spotify, but my partner insists that the recommendations on Tidal are actually better. I also think the recommendations are great, but work best for genres that Tidal is strong at. Of the genres I listen to, I've had really good experiences with the genres hip hop, rap, lofi, misc. electronic music, western pop, and less good experiences with classical music, soundtracks and more niche genres like J-Pop, African Pop and random trash (on Spotify, our we used to like to prank our friends by adding stuff like gangster's paradise kids bop version or "female orgasm sounds" to their playlists. I haven't really found prank-worthy stuff on Tidal yet).

    So it's really a personal decision and tbh, I think Spotify is the better choice for most people.

  • I honestly think Spotify is better because mote people use it. Its been a while for me but there's just way more music and the app is nicer. There have veen a dew times where Ive been really tempted to go back but I end up just forgetting lol. I pay for Tidal bc ethics and YouTube Premium and I get pretty much all my music needs met.

  • I was on Tidal forever ago. To answer the most important question, no the higher quality audio files aren't total snake oil. Certain offerings definitely sound better. Amazon Music generally offers higher sound quality though. Tidal also do pay artists better, but Napster is the best about payment if I'm not mistaken (ironic as fuck).

    As for the app though... It's been a few years, but this is where everything that offers sound quality goes to shit. The desktop player was ass and the website was ass. It didn't know how to handle Last.fm and other things I'd consider basics for Audiophiles. Amazon Music's UI was even worse, I cancelled it after 2 days.

    Spotify has the best value proposition. Hulu+Spotify for 10 bucks is good. I also question how long Tidal will be able to continue existing.

67 comments