Apple music claims more paid U.S. subscribers than Spotify

According to new data from the Wall Street Journal, Apple Music has surpassed Spotify in paid subscribers in the United States. Apple Music took the top spot with 28 million paid subscribers, while Spotify sits at 26 million paid subscribers in the U.S.

Spotify still leads Apple Music in overall users with 95 million compared to Apple music’s 50 million subscribers. The catch—Spotify offers a free tier while Apple does not. The tech giant’s DSP is also outpacing its Swedish competitor platform, growing between 2.6% to 3% in the past year compared to Spotify’s 1.5% to 2%.

With over 900 million iPhone users worldwide, Apple Music is pre-installed on every new phone, creating a stronghold in the industry. The question between the competition becomes, how can these products differentiate and bring value to content curation through music? Some say there will be no difference, while others point to the power of playlist and personalization.