Streaming Music Sites Review

Music where you want it, when you want it

The introduction of digital audio files -- and more specifically, the opening of Apple's iTunes store in 2003 -- transformed the face of music, but it wasn't until 2011 that the tide officially turned against CDs; that year, digital music sales topped physical music sales for the first time ever, CNN reports. Music buyers are moving away from more than just physical media, however. An increasing number of people are eschewing song ownership altogether and bypassing music download sites like iTunes in favor of streaming music services like Spotify, Rdio and Pandora.

These subscription-based services don't allow you to download music to your hard drive and use it as you see fit. Instead, they store music on central servers and stream it over the Internet to your computer, smartphone or tablet when you want to listen to a song, album or playlist. (Some, such as Rhapsody and Pandora, also include the ability to purchase individual songs or albums if you decide you want to keep particular tracks.) Most services can also stream music to a handful of home electronic devices, such as Internet-connected HDTVs or Blu-ray players. Some streaming music services operate more like Internet radio, with a variety of stations and minimal required input, while others are more like hard drives in the cloud, offering the ability to stream songs and even whole CDs or libraries from your favorite artists on demand.

Streaming music services may be the equivalent of renting rather than buying music, but they offer a number of advantages over traditional digital music downloads. For one thing, a monthly subscription costs the same or less than a single full-length album on iTunes, and that price usually nets you a catalog of songs that numbers in the millions. Most streaming music services offer a free ad-supported version that lets you listen to music for no cost whatsoever, and you can rock out anywhere there's a computer (or compatible device) with an Internet connection. On the other hand, if there's no Internet, there's no music -- unless you've subscribed to a premium service that allows you to temporarily store songs on your smartphone or computer in an offline mode.

Reviews of streaming music services come from a myriad of sources. Some of the best come from top technology-related publications such as CNET, Laptop Magazine or PCMag.com, while audio enthusiasts contribute some strong critiques of their own -- from both well-known publications such as Sound and Vision magazine and InnerFidelity.com and smaller sites such as ComputerAudiophile.com. Benjamin Rose's personal site, BenjaminRose.com, offers a lengthy and detailed comparison between Spotify and MOG, two of the top streaming music contenders. Engadget.com, About.com, VentureBeat.com, Lifehacker.com, TechCrunch.com, Gizmodo.com and a number of other tech-focused publications round out our sources. (Note: ConsumerSearch is owned by About.com, but the two don't share an editorial affiliation.) Almost every source compares multiple services against each other in head-to-head roundups.

We've split streaming music services into two categories: on-demand listening and radio-style streaming.