??♀️ DrawRun is a simple but useful iOS app that allows users to visualize their runs on a map. Before or after a run you can quickly draw your route on the map to view the distance ran. Built in 14 hours from idea to App Store submission during #24hrstartup. After selecting a song, Spotify users can begin running and have the app detect their tempo, or press Skip and set your own pace. The app goes from 140 to 190 in increments of five steps.
Did you know there are also at least another 10 best apps like Spotify? The popular website Pandora transitioned to an app for both Android and iOS products some time ago. Deezer, the French music service is another app similar to Spotify that let’s you listen to music.
Life is somewhat like a movie. How to use cydia impactor. Don’t all of us have music playing in the background when something special happens? People tend to associate certain individuals or events with particular songs. Music has become everyone’s universal companion that follows wherever we go.
Only half a decade ago an iPod with couple hundreds of favorites was enough, but today the advancement of internet connection speed has changed the demand for music and resulted in the rising popularity of music streaming app, thus, increasing the demand in music app development.
Having over 75 million users, Spotify is the most popular among them. What is the reason behind its popularity and how to make a music app like Spotify? These are the topics of our article.
What is a Spotify streaming app?
In short, Spotify is a video and music streaming app that allows users to browse for any song, artist, album or genre. Users can share favorite tracks, add them to playlists or even collaborate with their friends to create compilations.
The Spotify app was launched back in October 2008. The idea behind it belongs to two friends, Daniel Ek and Martin Lorentzon, that came up with it sitting in the nearly empty apartment in Stockholm, Sweden. It provides access to all music in the world, anywhere and anytime.
The benefits of an online music streaming service are clear:
- Quick access
- Affordability
- Unlimited storage
- Social engagement
Install Spotify App
Spotify offered an inexpensive alternative to piracy. A monthly subscription does not cost much, so users can enjoy their favorite tracks and give credit to artists at the same time.
Cost forming factors of building a music streaming app Like Spotify
Rome wasn’t built in a day, and the same thing goes for an application. There is a long process involved in creating a music streaming app. In brief, it looks like this:
- Planning and estimating
- Finding tech crew
- Designing the app Like Spotify
- Deciding on a Platform
- Getting licensed
- Developing features
Let’s take a closer look at each of these stages.
#1. Planning
Before getting down to developing a music app, prepare the planned concept of the project. Try out the main competitors, check out what is so special about them and how to outrun them.
Of course, not all niches in the music streaming industry are taken, but you have to study what people are going to use your product. What is their age? How do they live? Why do they need you? Tailor the application’s features and design to match the needs of your target audience.
#2. Finding Tech Crew
When you finally have a vision of what your product is going to be, it’s time to locate the team that will build it for you. There are lots of factors (e.g. rates, location, language and time zone differences, etc.) to consider while setting down with one company.
In case you want to roughly estimate how much it costs to build an app like Spotify, use the average rates per region given below:
- North America
- Western Europe
- Eastern Europe
- Asia
Pay attention to the project history of the company. Do they have relevant experience in creating music streaming applications? Is their reputation any good? You can go as far as checking out their applications in App Store and Play Market.
#3. Designing the app Like Spotify
When you have found the team that is going to make your music streaming app, proceed to make wireframes for the project. The application’s purpose has to be understandable. Every action and feature has to be straightforward and intuitive. Users love apps that are easy to use.
The time spent on making a prototype strongly depends on how thoroughly you thought out what you want from the finished product. Make sure to analyze your main competitors and learn from them. Pick up the best parts, and look at the app like a user would, not like the owner.
#4. Deciding on a Platform
It’s one of the key aspects to influence the final development cost. It’d be better to create a native applications for each platform so they would perfectly interact with the existing operating system, and offer users the most authentic user experience. No matter what platform you go with, the Spotify’s SDK are available for both iOS and Android. It will ease the work of your developer crew in making features like music streaming or authentification.
#5. Getting licensed
There is no way you will be able to take someone’s composition and spread it everywhere all that simply. There are copyrights and legal procedures that should be followed. Otherwise, a lawsuit is in store for you.
To provide users with high-quality audio or video content, you have to receive a Public Performance Rights license. In the USA, it is handled by three agencies: ASCAP.com, BMI.com or SESAC.com. Moreover, a particular share of revenues will have to be paid to artists as royalties for using their music.
#6. Developing features
Authentification
Spotify utilizes the freemium business model, which requires the user to sign up before using a system, and what’s more important, it lets them access the content for the trial period before purchasing a subscription. Also, Spotify is connected to Facebook and allows users to sign in through their account.
- Developing this feature is going to require 24 hours of front-end time, and 16 hours to build the backend part.
Music streaming
The streaming method does not require the whole file to be downloaded. Actually, the audio is delivered in small “packets” for the data to be buffered into the device and instantly played. You have to make sure that the stream in steady and uninterrupted to hear the clear sound without any stops.
- As for a simple MVP, it will take about 60-80 hours for front-end, and 50 hours for back-end part. However, building the music streaming feature altogether is going to take about 600 hours (350 hours for front-end including caching, and 250 for back-end without scaling).
Search
Spotify allows users to choose among tons of playlists and select the one that suits their mood the best. Aside from that, users can search the track by artist, album or a particular genre.
- The MVP needs 50-60 hours to develop the front-end, and 50 hours for back-end.
Sharing music
The application has taken after a social network in giving the ability to see the playlists of friends and share liked tracks with them.
- Front-end: 5 hours per each platform
- Back-end: 60 hours
Playlists
There is a whole team dedicated to creating relatable playlists suitable for a special occasion like having a road trip with a family or enjoying the party with friends. Moreover, users can set up their own music collections on their own, or together with their buddies. These playlists can be shared and popularized on Spotify.
- Front-end: 40 hours
- Back-end: 70 hours
Offline mode
This feature allows users to listen to their favorite songs without the internet connection. It uses the local storage of the device to cache the audio data. Spotify still opens on startup mac pro.
- Front-end: 40 hours
- Back-end: 20 hours
The time needed to develop an MVP of a similar music streaming app like Spotify is going to take approximately 550-600 hours of working time. However, if you aim for the same quality and usability as in Spotify, multiply this number by 2 or 2.5.
Approximate overall cost of a music streaming MVP Like Spotify
Relying on the rough estimate in the table given above, we can say that the development of an average music streaming MVP is going to take the minimum of 530 hours (development time). So the sole development is going to cost around $16-20 K. We covered only the essential features of music streaming app, and that is only the top of the iceberg. However, why is Spotify so successful?
Feature | Front-end | Back-end | Total +/- |
---|---|---|---|
Authentification | 24 h | 16 h | 40 h |
Music streaming | 80 h | 60 h | 140 h |
Search | 60 h | 50 h | 110 h |
Sharing music | 5 h per platform | 60 h | 65-70 h |
Playlists | 40 h | 70 h | 110 h |
Offline mode | 40 h | 20h | 60 h |
530 hours |
Secret behind Spotify’s success (or why you won’t make it)
Spotify has become so popular because it gives users what they want. It understands users’ preferences by analyzing enormous amounts of collected data with the help of specially developed algorithms.
While the basic Spotify technology stack may look quite simple: they build the app relying mainly on Python and JavaScript, and PostgreSQL in combination with memory caching system to save the music directly on the device, the true fame should go to the discovery algorithms.
It is the long process of receiving the data on user and user’s behavior together with creating algorithms for analyzing its every aspect.
To provide personalized user experience, companies offer their users an option to like or dislike songs they listen to. Whenever a user likes or Spotify a composition. The information is stored in the user’s preferences section combined with the name of the artist, album, song, and more.
![Apps like spotify running software Apps like spotify running software](/uploads/1/3/4/1/134140794/679261050.gif)
It is also possible to analyze what tracks the user has skipped, or what he has listened to until the very end. It will also allow offering tracks that suit a user’s taste.
With time, the analysis will help improving user experience, but the cost of storing space and developing algorithms for analysis will require additional funding.
Free Spotify App
As the amount of users’ data increases, you will have to think about improving or implementing new algorithms to better the system of music recommendations and daily discoveries.
Spotify, for instance, uses Echo Nest API, that utilizes data mining and machine learning technologies to collect information on what user listens to on a daily basis, what artists or songs are most or less favorite. This information is used to create personalized playlists for the user and his particular mood. It works on proposing suitable music for every moment of user’s life.
Why it is nearly impossible to repeat Spotify’s success
The streaming market is not as easy to enter as it may seem. Here at IDAP we get a lot of clients that want a Spotify-clone. However, despite that is simple on the tech side, there are a lot of processes involved that remind in the background. If you want to have a successful streaming application, you have to dig deeper where no one has dug before.
Spotify did not become famous in one day. They have spent nearly 5 years, acquired machine learning, created a system of algorithms that analyzes user’s preferences and offers a playlist for a day.
Therefore, it would be difficult to compete with the giant of the music streaming industry. Instead of trying to succeed at something that is already made, try to find your own niche that will help people of a specific profession or interest.
Summary
Summing up, the initial cost of building a simple Spotify-like music streaming app starts from $16,000, and can only grow and grow some more. We at IDAP have no problem in building the technical part of any streaming application, both video and audio.
However, no matter how much money you invest into another Spotify clone, the probability of its success is very low. The magic of Spotify is unique and not cloneable. It is something that cannot be technically built, as it is driven by an idea. https://axajkv.weebly.com/blog/can-you-play-spotify-free-on-your-phone.
Loading..
What makes Spotify great?
From the looks of it, Spotify is rapidly becoming one of most popular music streaming services available. Most people who stream music use Spotify, or have used Spotify at some point in the past. What has Spotify done to become such a well-liked music streaming option? Spotify’s key to success has been a few factors that ultimately came together to form a very powerful, user-friendly product.
To begin with, Spotify is easy to use. This may seem like a very simple explanation, but it’s true. Spotify is easy to use, easy to navigate, and easy to sign up for. Also, Spotify offers an enormous catalog of music as part of its free membership. Some music streaming apps are popular, but they don’t really offer users the ability to pick and choose exactly what they want to listen to. So, in summary, Spotify is easy to use, wallet-friendly, and offers a large selection of music.
When I created this list of the best apps like Spotify, I kept those three factors in mind. It’s also worth noting, before we get into the finer details of these items, that I only took the apps in account in my writing. Some of these apps may also have desktop counterparts, but I’m only going to address the app’s features.
1. Amazon Prime Music
Amazon Prime Music has only been around for a couple of years, and it’s started to attract a little bit of attention recently. For the most part, a lot of people just use Prime for the free two-day shipping. Recently, though, Amazon’s “More to Prime” advertising campaign reminded Prime users that they were also able to take advantage of Prime Video, Prime Music, and Prime Photos. I have been a Prime member for several years, but I only learned of Amazon Prime music fairly recently.
Amazon Prime’s music selection is pretty big, boasting around 1,000,000 total songs. It’s still dwarfed by Spotify’s selection, however, which has over 20 million. Still, if you’re someone who primarily listens to more mainstream music, Amazon should have all of the songs that you want and more. The app itself is also very well designed, and I think that the interface is slightly more attractive than Spotify’s. Prime Music has all of the features that you would want out of a music streaming app, and I really like it. My only complaint? Pricey! It’s a good thing to have if you’re already a Prime member, but I don’t think the music service on its own is worth $99 a year. Prime is already a great value for the free shipping alone, though, and I think that the Prime Music just adds to that value.
2. Pandora
Pandora is much older than Spotify, and it was probably the leading music streaming service before Spotify hit the streets. Pandora’s model is a little different from Spotify’s. It’s more of a radio app than a streaming app, which may have partially contributed to it being overtaken by Spotify in terms of popularity. When you open up Pandora, you select a station. Pandora then plays a curated radio station with music that is related to that station. You have a limited number of skips that you can use, and you have to listen to the occasional ad.
Spotify also has a radio feature, but that isn’t all that it has. Pandora doesn’t really give users the ability to pick and choose what they want to listen to. Its selection is roughly comparable to Amazon’s selection, which is a little underwhelming when you consider how long Pandora has been around. Even so, Pandora is a relatively high quality app, and if you use the Spotify radio feature often, you’ll probably like it a lot.
3. iHeartRadio
iHeartRadio is an interesting amalgam of music streaming features. iHeartRadio is a radio app, much like
Pandora. You can’t just choose whatever music you would like and listen to it. However, unlike most music streaming radio stations, which are basically massive playlists that get put on shuffle, iHeartRadio also offers actual radio stations. This may not be a super cool feature for some people, but I think that the ability to listen to morning talk shows and what not is nice, and something that is missing in most online “radio” stations.
Pandora. You can’t just choose whatever music you would like and listen to it. However, unlike most music streaming radio stations, which are basically massive playlists that get put on shuffle, iHeartRadio also offers actual radio stations. This may not be a super cool feature for some people, but I think that the ability to listen to morning talk shows and what not is nice, and something that is missing in most online “radio” stations.
However, there are also a few other little wrinkles. iHeartRadio doesn’t offer users any skips at all in its live radio stations at all. That’s right, if you don’t like a song, you’re going to have to just sit and listen to it. (However, there are skips in custom radio stations, which are very similar to the radio stations in Spotify. You’re able to thumbs-up and thumbs-down different songs, as well as skip songs that you dislike.) There’s a slight benefit to this in the live stations, though. Since they don’t have skips, that also means that they don’t have any ads. Whether you would prefer one or the other is a matter of personal preference, but I personally find it kind of jarring to be listening to music and suddenly have an ad play really loudly. iHeartRadio is neat, and I think that it’s definitely a little different from Spotify. Different doesn’t always mean worse, though.
4. Slacker
Like iHeartRadio, Slacker is kind of a music streaming mutant. The app is actually called ‘Slacker Radio’, and the apps largest draw is the ability for curators to create their own radio stations. So, it becomes kind of like a faux-radio station. A curator can assemble a large list of songs, and even put in little comments between them. It feels like a real radio, even though it actually isn’t. With a subscription, Slacker Radio also allows user to listen to music from their music on-demand service. Their music on-demand service is pretty big, but it’s still not quite as big as Spotify’s. (I keep saying that but, to be fair, I don’t think many libraries are.)
Slacker offers a free plan, and two paid subscription plan. The free plan is pretty standard, with limited skips and advertisements. The first paid plan (Radio Plus) is $3.99/mo, and allows unlimited skips, no advertisements, and the ability to listen offline. The second plan (Radio Premium) is $9.99/mo, and it offers all of those features plus the ability to create playlists and replay songs. Slacker isn’t quite as popular as the other apps on this list, but I think it should be. I think that the user-created radio stations are a really cool concept, and I think the user interface looks pretty good. It’s more unique, and it works.
5. Google Play Music
Google Play Music might be Spotify’s greatest competitor, out of every other item on this list. It offers Spotify’s same level of simplicity, while bringing even more functionality to the table. Google Play Music only offers its on-demand selection with it’s paid membership (which is $9.99/mo) but I think it’s pretty worth it. Google Play Music offers over 30 million songs, which is considerably larger than Spotify’s selection. Their coolest feature, though, can’t be found anywhere else. They actually allow you to upload your own music (up to 50,000 songs) to the cloud, and access them whenever you want.
Not only does this expand their own collection, but it’s just a really cool service in itself. I have A LOT of music stored across different devices, and Google Play Music is an absolute lifesaver. I can have all of my stuff in one place, and listen to it pretty much whenever I want! Still, it’s a little depressing to me that there isn’t a free option for Google Play Music users. With that considered, I don’t think I can say that Google Play Music is actually better than Spotify. It’s just different. However, it’s definitely an alternative that I recommend you look into.
Do you have another app you think would be a good fit for our 2018 list of spotify alternatives and competitors? Let us know in the comments below!