The 10 Best music services

'Appy days are here again… the online music stores and streaming sites which we believe are the hippest and hottest around.

Will Coldwell

Wednesday 06 March 2013

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1. Rdio

Launched in the UK last year, this is a new streaming service from the creators of Skype giving users unlimited, ad-free access to a library of around 18 million songs. It also has a social element, allowing you to follow others users.

Free for first 6 months, £4.99 a month for web streaming, £9.99 a month for web and mobile, rdio.com

2. Deezer

An online streaming site with a vast library and radio channels. It has agreements with over 2,000 labels and features more independents than the more commercial services. The mobile app could still do with some tweaks.

Free with adverts for 12 Months, £4.99 a month for basic, £9.99 for premium, deezer.com

3. Spotify

One of the most popular streaming sites, with a smooth, user-friendly interface and large library of tunes. There is also a great range of third-party apps to enhance your experience. The adverts, however, can get annoying, so the premium service is well worth the money.

Free with adverts, £4.99 a month for premium, £9,99 a month for unlimited including access to mobile app, spotify.com

4. Shazam

Solving a problem almost everyone can relate to, Shazam helps you find out all the details about songs you love, but don't know anything about. Just hold up your phone to the speakers and it does the rest. You can even sing into it.

Free, shazam.com

5. Napster Unlimited

Includes a huge music-streaming library, Apple and Android apps and the option to save music to play in offline mode – and unlike the original file-sharing website, it's all perfectly legal and above board.

Free for 30 days, £5 a month for unlimited, £10 a month for unlimited with mobile access, napster.co.uk

6. eMusic

After iTunes, this is the most popular online music store. You can sign up to a subscription, with reduced prices, or just buy as you like. The site is particularly good for indie and alternative music.

£9.99 a month for 23 songs, £24.99 a month for 66 songs, emusic.com

7. LastFm

An online streaming station that helps you discover new music based on your personal tastes and listening habits. You can also download "The Scrobbler", which lets LastFM track what your listening to on external programmes – enabling it to make its own suggestions.

Free, last.fm

8. Soundcloud

Originally launched as a way for music-makers to share their tunes, Soundcloud is geared up for listeners, with a slick interface and mobile apps and easy sharing. What makes it so excellent is its ability to let you hear new or unreleased tracks directly uploaded by artists.

Free, soundcloud.com

9. TuneIn

A must have for radio lovers, the all-encompassing TuneIn allows you to listen via your mobile internet service, so you don't have to download different apps to listen to your favourite stations.

Free, tunein.com

10. iPlayer Radio

A smooth and fun smartphone app, which allows you to scroll through all the BBC digital radio stations by spinning a wheel with your thumb. You can also use it on your laptop and save your favourite programmes.

Free, bbc.co.uk/radio

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