YouTube Music review 2026

YouTube Music combines more than 100 million official songs with millions of user-created items on YouTube: live concerts, fan covers, remixes, DJ sets and rare bootleg recordings. This combination makes YouTube Music the broadest platform of all in terms of content. While other services only offer official releases, YouTube Music also has obscure live versions, unplugged sessions and songs that are not available on any other platform. For music explorers, that is enormous added value. Music videos are seamlessly integrated: users can switch between audio-only and video playback. The podcast offering is growing but is still considerably smaller than at Spotify. Scoring (30/35): Unbeatable breadth of content thanks to the YouTube integration. The official library is on a par with Spotify. A deduction for the sometimes confusing mixing of official and user content.

YouTube Music streams at a maximum of 256 kbit/s in AAC format – the lowest audio quality of all premium streaming services. Spotify, Apple Music, Amazon Music, Deezer and Tidal now offer lossless FLAC/ALAC at no extra charge. For critical listeners, that is a noticeable difference. Audio quality also varies widely: official songs are streamed at consistent quality, but user uploads from YouTube can have much poorer audio quality. There is no way to select quality in detail manually. No hi-res audio, no FLAC, no spatial audio. YouTube Music has so far communicated no plans for a HiFi option. For audiophiles, the platform is therefore clearly the weakest choice. Scoring (10/20): The weakest audio quality of all premium services. No lossless, no hi-res, variable upload quality. Acceptable only for users for whom audio quality is not important.

Google's AI-based recommendation algorithms are fundamentally strong but benefit mainly from YouTube usage data: anyone who watches a lot of YouTube gets more relevant music suggestions. “Supermix” creates personalised playlists based on moods and genres. The unique feature is the seamless switch between audio and video: while listening to a song you can switch to the music video at any time and back again. For many users that is a genuine added value that no other service offers. Lyrics display is available but less extensive than at Apple Music or Deezer. The Smart Downloads feature automatically downloads frequently played songs for offline use. Scoring (14/20): Strong Google AI recommendations and unique video integration. The purely music-focused features (playlists, social, lyrics), however, remain behind Spotify.

YouTube Music offers a free ad-supported version, Music Premium at €11.99 a month (€119.99 on an annual plan instead of €143.88), Family at €18.99 a month (up to 6 people) and Student at €5.99 a month. That puts the individual price €1 below Spotify, and the family plan is the cheapest of the big services. The most attractive offer is YouTube Premium at €14.99 a month: for €3 more than Music Premium you also get ad-free YouTube videos and background playback. Note: the cheaper YouTube Premium Lite (€7.99) does not include Music Premium. For regular YouTube users, the full Premium subscription is a good deal. The free tier gives access to the whole catalogue with ads, but without background playback and offline downloads on mobile. On desktop, the web player also works well for free. Scoring (12/15): Solid pricing, inexpensive family and student plans, an attractive YouTube Premium bundle. A deduction for the confusing plan structure (Music Premium, Premium, Premium Lite) and the lack of background playback in the free version.

YouTube Music is available on iOS, Android and the web. There is no native desktop app – users have to use the web player or install a progressive web app (PWA). CarPlay, Android Auto and Google Home/Nest are supported. The missing desktop app is a noticeable disadvantage: the web player works well but does not offer the same integration and performance as a native app. Offline downloads are possible only on mobile devices. Google Home integration is naturally the best of all the services (apart from Amazon Music for Alexa). Chromecast streaming works seamlessly, and on Android smartphones YouTube Music is often pre-installed. Scoring (8/10): Good mobile and smart-home coverage with strong Google integration. A clear deduction for the missing native desktop app and the restriction of offline downloads to mobile.