Cost to Make a Music Streaming App Like Spotify

Music, something that completes our life. Take two seconds and think what would life be without it?

Boring, uninteresting, sad and you are welcome to add more words if you have.

Well, just imagine there won’t be any clubs, no beats to dance on, wonder what we would be singing on birthdays?

Yeah, we never wondered about these things.

Music brings people together. At any place, just start one line and some or other will be singing the entire song. Let’s try it out, come on come on turn the radio on its Friday night and I won’t be long….Have you started to sing for the rest of the song? That’s the magic music brings to our lives. It has been here since a long time but the means and medium have evolved over time.

Back then it was radio, tape recorder, CD, walkmen, and now we have music streaming apps we can access through our mobile phones. Mobile apps have changed everything

Statistics of Music App Development

According to Statista: 

• Revenue in the music streaming sector is expected to reach the US $16,395 Million in 2020.
• The revenue is expected to show an annual growth rate of 5.4% resulting in an expected market volume of US $21,315 Million by the end of 2025.
• The average revenue per user is expected to be US $27.52.
• User penetration will be 8.0% in 2020 and it might hit 12.0% by the year 2025.
• In global comparison, the majority of the revenue will be generated from the US.
• The revenue increased 15.0% year over year and the user increased 15.1% year over year.

One of the most popular music streaming apps is Spotify. The app has plenty of users, great revenue figures, and even paid subscribers. If you are looking for a music streaming app development, Spotify is the best app to follow. Take a look at the number of Spotify premium subscribers.

Number of Spotify premium subscribers worldwide from Q1of 2015 to Q2 of 2020

Number of monthly active users of Spotify worldwide from 1st quarter 2015 to 2nd quarter 2020

Features to Have in a Music Streaming App

Register/Login

One of the most basic features in any app is to register for any user. The older user can just login with an email ID or contact number or even with social media accounts.

Search Your Song

A music app provides a bunch of songs. Without a search option, a user will just be lost. A search option allows the user to search their favorite songs and listen to them whenever they want.

Filter

The app also allows the user to set filters based on their favorite singer or music director or movies or language or any other thing as they deem fit.

Top Tracks

Top music streaming app like Spotify has this feature. They create a list of top songs it maybe 10 or 20 or 50. The top charts might also be based on the language or it might also be a mix. It’s easy for the user to stay updated with all the newly released songs and pick which ones they like and which ones they don’t.

Download Songs

Music application also allows an option to download the songs the user likes. This way the user can listen to all those songs even when they are no internet connection or traveling or just want to save the data. It also saves from buffering and waiting for the entire song to load.

Offline Access

Not many apps have this functionality of offline access in their apps. It is very rare but an important feature to have in the music app. This feature allows users to use the music app even when there is no internet connection. So, don’t have enough data? Traveling in an area with a poor connection? Well, no worries your app works offline. Isn’t it a feature that the user will adore?

Playlist

It’s really boring if we have to search every time to listen to a song. This is why Spotify gives this option to its users where they can create a playlist, shuffle, and add their favorite tunes into it and play at their convenient time.

Social Sharing

It’s the social sharing generation. Everything that happens is on social media. So, why not the tunes and tracks that are in mind and in ears. Well, if you are developing a Spotify clone app, it’s important to allow the users to share the songs on social platforms with their near and dear ones. This way you can also market your app and not to forget for free.

Recently Played

The app also shows all the songs that you have played recently. This way if you forget which songs you played, you can always check.

Subscription

If your music application is very popular like Spotify, you can keep subscription packages. You can provide certain features for a free while keep some premium features locked and available only for the paid users. It’s one of the ways to generate revenue from the mobile app.

Multilingual Support

Users tend to fall for the apps which are available in their native language. So, to make your music app development more likable, make it available in multiple languages to approach more people.

Multiple Payment Modes

Well, if you are going to charge money from your users, you better give them all the options to pay you. Provide them with the options to pay with a debit card, credit card, UPI, and any possible options users want.

Review and Ratings

Well, of course, the users have the right to give ratings and reviews about the experience of the app. It is helpful for the mobile app developers to get proper feedback and makes changes to the app accordingly.

Push Notifications

This feature allows the app to send an interesting notification to its users. This way the user also stays updated with whatever new the app has in store. If there is any drop in the subscription packages, the user would know through notification.

Newsfeed

This feature will show the users every new release of the songs, their singers, albums, movies, and every other relevant detail.

Steps to Create an App Like Spotify

Choose the Features

Features make the app. So, to develop an app like Spotify, you need to see and sort the features of the app. Refer to the above-mentioned features and choose which features you want in your app. Pick the right set of features for your Spotify clone app development.

Pick the License Type

There are several types of licenses for music apps. But, if we are following Spotify, it has two licenses, a Musical composition license agreement, and a sound recording license agreement. You can add based on your mobile app requirements.

Look for Mobile App Developers

It is very important for you to choose the right music app development team to make your app successful. Pick one with good experience and don’t forget to check the portfolio and types of apps they have developed in the past. You can also check the references of past clients.

Create an Amazing Design

One of the most important steps in app development is a great design. Every music app needs a flabbergasting design to be successful.

Create an MVP

Well, developing a Spotify clone app can be expensive and you don’t know for sure whether it will be able to generate that much revenue or not. It’s good to be optimistic but a lot better to be practical. So, consider what if the app fails and create an MVP at first. If it works, you always have the option to add new and more features to the app as updates.

Plan the Launch

Develop and launch is not exactly what I am talking about here. What I am really trying to tell is to create a plan that makes the launch remarkable. Create an app landing page, or post blogs about the app and its launch, hire influencers and try to create a buzz about your app.

Also, social media is a great tool to market your app Promote your app on all the trending platforms like Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, LinkedIn, and others. Sometimes, it might come as a surprise but social media can work wonders. A good buzz before launch will attract more initial users increasing the probability of your app success.

Bug Fixing and Maintenance

Once your music application hits the store, it is not the end of the story. In fact, it has just begun. Even after the launch, it is very important to keep looking after the app just like a baby. If there are any bugs, fix them. It some feature malfunctions, fix it. Encourage regular maintenance.

Update

Well, over a period of time you update your house, your relationship status, your lifestyle, your phone, then why not your app?

Your app also needs an update at every regular interval. To continue or increase the loyal user base, it is very important to feed your users with new features or they will fling to other music apps. Always serve them with something new to keep them engaged.

Also Read: Why Should Start-ups Invest in Developing an Android App?

Types of Music Streaming Services

Have you decided which type of music app you want to develop?

Or you want to give it all to your users?

Well, surf through the types below and make your own choice.

Music Library

In very simple terms, this is a type of app that provides a server-based music library and allows the customers to get access to their music under as per your norms whether it is a subscription or free access. Some of the popular examples of such music applications are Apple Music and Spotify.

Cloud Storage

It allows the user to store their favorite songs. It also allows them to stream them whenever and from wherever they want. Some of the popular apps of this category are Groove Music and Audiobox.

Radio Stations

This type of music app has plenty of radio stations and arrange all of them according to their specific themes. The songs can be streamed to home audio, PC, or mobile device. Popular apps of this category are Apple Music and Shoutcast.

So, before you start looking for a top app development company, make sure what you want to develop first. If not they will have a bunch of questions for you. If you don’t want to look baffled in front of them or answer “I don’t know” to their every question. Decide and then deal with the developers. Here are some of the questions they will ask and you must know. Take a look.

Things to Decide Before Hiring A Music App Development Company

Native or Hybrid?

The platform is one of the most important choices you have to make before approaching developers. In the case of native apps, developers need to create two separate apps for Android and iOS. This will be time-consuming and costly. However, if you are going for an app with complex features and want to maintain it for the long term, native is the right choice of platform.

On the contrary, if you are looking to develop an app with less complex features and low in budget and not to maintain it for a long time then react native app development would be a better choice. So, decide first your platform and then approach your developers.

Android or iOS?

That is also an important factor to decide before approaching an agency to develop your app. Well, music is something both android and iOS users love and also use. But do you really want to target both the platforms together or want to develop it for just one platform at first? Make your mind, decide a plan, and then go ahead.

Budget

I know companies are supposed to give a budget. However, it varies based on your requirements. However, you would have some basic budget in mind. Based on that you should approach a company whether a startup or an experienced one.

MVP or Feature-filled App?

Well, definitely you need to know what features you want in your app. That is why we have listed all the features, you can either choose them all or pick your favorite ones.

The Market for Music Streaming

There are basically three leaders in music streaming.

• Spotify leads with 36% of the market share.
• Apple Music is on second with 19% of the market share.
• Amazon music is in third place with 12% of the market share.

Best Music Streaming App

Of course, Spotify is the best app in this category but there are several other players you can take reference to while developing your app.

Spotify

Spotify is the best because of its amazing features. It provides its users with all they think of. Which is why it has plenty of unique visitors which turn into loyal users with time.

Apple Music

Apple Music is the second most popular app in this industry. It offers plenty of features along with discounts for students and family. The app functions on various Apple devices like Homepod, iPad, and iPhone. However, unlike Spotify, Music App does not have robust sharing options.

SoundCloud

It is also one of the popular apps. The Soundcloud app works on both Android and iOS platforms. The users can search for music and artists and also allow building playlist.

Shazam

This is one of the unique music apps. Shazam app can listen to the music playing, recognize it, and tell the users about the song and artist. The app works on both Android and iOS platforms.

TuneIn

TuneIn is a radio app that allows users to listen to local radio stations. The user can enter an artist or song and the app will show a list of all the radio station which plays it. The app is not just for music, it also plays sports commentary, podcast, and such other things.

How to Monetize A Music Streaming Application

Well, the objective of every app is to make money, isn’t it?

So, here’s how you can make money from a Spotify clone application development.

Subscription

Plenty of mobile apps offer a monthly subscription package to access all kinds of tracks available in the app. Such kind of payment model allows the app to get the payment on a regular basis. It is one of the most favorite models for all the music apps.

All the music app development companies have to regularly pay for the license and the subscription revenue model helps to keep a balance. You can try this one too as your revenue model if you like.

Advertisement

It is also one of the popular ways to make money through your app. Just like YouTube Music puts ads before playing the song or video. You can do the same with your app. Big companies pay a lot to put their ad into popular apps.

Conclusion

Music is the essence of our lives. This makes this industry one of the trending ones and a perfect fit to make an app and make some money along the way. However, developing an app is an expensive project so conduct enough research and invest your money properly to get the desired output.

FAQs

1. How to make a music streaming app?

Here are the steps to build an app:

• Create a list of features
• Hire a team of expert developers
• Create an MVP
• Test the app and take the feedback
• Launch the update

2. How much does it cost to develop a music streaming app?

The cost is based on various factors like platform, choice of company, number, and types of features, and many more decides the cost of developing an app.

3. What licenses are needed to start a music streaming app?

To create a streaming app, you might need Public Performance Rights. In the US, it is handled by three agencies: American Society of Composers, Authors, and Publishers or Broadcast Music Incorporated.

For streaming music in Europe, an application has to be made to the society of European stage authors and composers.

4. How does a music streaming app make money?

There are two very popular modes to make money from music apps:

• Subscription
• Advertisement