How Is Spotify Different from iTunes?

Given the popularity of iPods, iPhones, and iPads, chances are you’re familiar with Apple’s iTunes music player. iTunes is an application that lets you play and manage all your digital music, with special emphasis on purchasing and downloading music from Apple’s iTunes Store.

Even though the interfaces are similar, Spotify is much different from iTunes in that it’s a subscription service, not a download service. It’s a totally different model for listening to music.

With iTunes, you purchase and download the individual tracks you want. You pay anywhere from $0.69 to $1.29 per track, and the music files are then downloaded to and stored on your computer. After you purchase a track, you own and can play it back on a specified number of other devices.