Do I need to pay for Amazon Music if I have Prime?

What is Amazon Prime?

Amazon Prime is a membership program that provides users with access to fast, free shipping and other benefits for an annual fee. Prime members get free two-day shipping on eligible items, as well as same-day or one-day delivery in select areas. There are currently over 200 million Amazon Prime members worldwide according to https://www.aboutamazon.com/news/retail/lesser-known-amazon-prime-benefits.

In addition to fast shipping, Amazon Prime members get access to streaming movies, TV shows, and music through Prime Video and Amazon Music. Prime members also get free books and magazines with Prime Reading, unlimited photo storage with Amazon Photos, and discounts at Whole Foods Market. Other Prime benefits include early access to deals, Prime Wardrobe for trying on clothes before buying, and free release-date delivery on certain products.

An Amazon Prime membership currently costs $139 per year or $14.99 per month in the United States. Students can get Prime at a discounted rate of $69 per year. There are no long-term commitments and members can cancel anytime. Overall, Amazon Prime aims to provide a convenient and valuable membership package for frequent Amazon shoppers.

What is Amazon Music?

Amazon Music is a subscription music streaming service from Amazon that offers tens of millions of songs and thousands of curated playlists and stations. There are a few different tiers of Amazon Music available:

Prime Music – Included free with an Amazon Prime membership, Prime Music offers a catalog of 2 million songs that can be downloaded for offline listening. Prime Music allows streaming on 1 device at a time. (Amazon)
Amazon Music Unlimited – Amazon’s premium streaming tier with over 90 million songs in Ultra HD and spatial audio. Amazon Music Unlimited has three plans: individual ($9.99/month), family ($15.99 for up to 6 users), and single device ($4.99/month). (Business Insider)

Amazon Music HD – High definition streaming with lossless audio quality starting at $9.99/month for Prime members.

With Amazon Music Unlimited, you can stream tens of millions of songs ad-free, online or offline. There are also options for podcasts, on-demand playlists, and downloading for offline listening. Amazon Music Unlimited works on multiple devices so you can listen anywhere. (Tom’s Guide)

Does Prime include Amazon Music?

Amazon Prime includes access to Prime Music, which is Amazon’s ad-free streaming music service. With Prime Music, Prime members can stream over 2 million songs ad-free, listen to thousands of stations and playlists, and download songs for offline listening. According to Amazon’s help content, Prime Music offers “a selection of top playlists and thousands of stations for free” to Prime members.

However, Prime Music has a more limited catalog compared to Amazon Music Unlimited. Amazon Music Unlimited offers access to over 90 million songs ad-free, along with thousands of expertly curated playlists and stations. Amazon Music Unlimited is not included with Prime – it requires a separate subscription.

So in summary, yes Prime does include access to Amazon Music through Prime Music, but only to a subset of 2 million songs rather than the full 90+ million song catalog. To get full access, Prime members need to subscribe to Amazon Music Unlimited. According to Amazon’s help content, “Prime Music is a benefit included with your Prime membership” while “Amazon Music Unlimited requires a subscription.”

Prime Music vs Amazon Music Unlimited

Prime Music and Amazon Music Unlimited offer different features and benefits. Here’s how they compare:

With Prime Music, you get access to 2 million songs for free as part of your Prime membership. However, you can only shuffle play albums and playlists and download for offline listening on mobile devices. Prime Music allows streaming on 1 device at a time.

Amazon Music Unlimited provides access to 90 million songs, lets you listen to any song on-demand (no shuffle required), and allows downloads on mobile and desktop. Music Unlimited supports streaming on multiple devices at once, up to 10 devices on the family plan.

Another key difference is that Amazon Music Unlimited has options for High Definition audio quality, which Prime Music lacks. Unlimited subscribers can listen in Ultra HD and spatial audio formats.

So in summary, Prime Music offers a basic music catalog for free but has limited features. Music Unlimited gives you a full on-demand streaming experience with extra benefits like HD audio quality, but requires a monthly subscription fee.

How much does Amazon Music Unlimited cost?

The cost of Amazon Music Unlimited depends on whether you are already an Amazon Prime member or not. Here’s a breakdown of the pricing:

For Amazon Prime members:

$7.99 per month for an individual plan
$9.99 per month for a family plan (up to 6 members)
$79 per year for an individual plan (equivalent to $6.58 per month)

$149 per year for a family plan (equivalent to $12.42 per month)

For non-Prime customers:

$9.99 per month for an individual plan

$14.99 per month for a family plan (up to 6 members)
$99 per year for an individual plan (equivalent to $8.25 per month)
$149 per year for a family plan (equivalent to $12.42 per month)

So Prime members get discounted pricing compared to non-Prime customers. The annual plans offer the best value if you plan to use the service for an extended period.

Source: https://www.amazon.com/music/unlimited

What can you listen to with Prime Music?

Prime Music gives Prime members access to a catalog of over 100 million songs ad-free (https://music.amazon.com/). This is up from just 2 million songs that were available previously, marking a major expansion in 2020 (https://www.foxbusiness.com/lifestyle/amazons-100m-music-catalog-free-prime-members). The Prime Music catalog includes popular hits and albums across multiple genres like pop, rock, hip hop, country, and more. However, it does not provide access to every song available on Amazon Music.

Unlike the paid Amazon Music Unlimited tier which gives access to over 90 million songs, Prime Music still has some limitations. While it offers a selection of top playlists and stations, the full catalogs of various artists are not always available. There are some release date restrictions as well, with newer or extremely popular music sometimes missing. Overall Prime Music aims to provide a solid sampling of songs, albums, playlists and radio but lacks deep catalogs compared to the paid Unlimited version.

What devices work with Prime Music?

Amazon Prime Music is compatible with a wide range of devices, allowing you to listen to music on the go or at home. Prime Music works on iOS and Android smartphones and tablets, Windows 10 devices, Amazon Fire tablets, Kindle Fire, Fire TV, Fire TV Stick, and Echo and other Alexa-enabled devices like the Echo Dot.

You can also listen on desktop via the Amazon Music web player or desktop app on PC and Mac. Other compatible devices include select Bose, Sonos, Samsung, and Sony products that have Alexa built-in. So whether you’re using headphones, a smart speaker, or streaming to your TV, you’ll be able to access Prime Music across many different devices.

However, it’s important to note that Prime Music has some limitations compared to the full Amazon Music Unlimited service. With Prime Music you can only play shuffled music on mobile devices, so you don’t have full on-demand playback. There are also catalog restrictions since Prime Music only offers a limited selection of songs and albums compared to the 50 million songs available through Music Unlimited.

But for Prime members, Prime Music still provides a free way to enjoy music across a variety of compatible devices. Just don’t expect the full unlimited on-demand experience. For that, you’d need to upgrade to Amazon Music Unlimited.

Sources:
https://www.amazon.com/gp/help/customer/display.html?nodeId=GW3PHAUCZM8L7W9L
https://www.androidcentral.com/what-devices-can-play-amazon-music

How to sign up for Amazon Music with Prime

Signing up for Amazon Music is easy for Prime members. Here are step-by-step instructions for accessing your Prime Music library:

Open the Amazon Music app on your phone, tablet or computer. You can download the app from the App Store, Google Play or Amazon’s website.
Sign into the Amazon Music app using your Amazon account credentials. This must be the same account that is linked to your Prime membership.

Once signed in, you will be brought to the Amazon Music library. Here you can browse playlists and stations included with Prime.
To download Prime songs for offline listening, tap the download button next to any song, album or playlist. Downloads are available for Prime members at no extra cost.
If you have an Alexa device like an Amazon Echo, you can also request songs with voice commands. Just say “Alexa, play [song name] from my Prime Music library.”

With those simple steps, you can start accessing millions of songs through your Prime membership. There is no additional sign-up needed. Just use the same Amazon login for Prime and Amazon Music to unlock your included music perks.

Limitations of Prime Music

While Prime Music offers access to 2 million songs, there are some significant limitations of the service that Prime members should be aware of:

The biggest drawback is that the 2 million song catalog is fairly limited compared to services like Spotify, Apple Music, and Amazon’s own Music Unlimited. Prime Music’s catalog tends to miss many newer and popular songs and albums. According to Amazon, it’s meant to be a “starting point” for music listening rather than a comprehensive catalog.

In addition, Prime Music only allows shuffle play for albums and playlists – you can’t pick individual songs to play. There is also no option to download music for offline listening. Streaming is limited to 1 device at a time.

Prime Music’s search functionality is also limited compared to Amazon Music Unlimited. For example, you can’t search for songs by specific lyrics. And there are no personalized recommendations or algorithmic playlists based on your listening history and tastes.

So while Prime Music offers a free music option for Prime subscribers, it lacks many expected features of full music streaming services. For unlimited access to Amazon’s full catalog of over 90 million songs, Prime members would need to upgrade to Amazon Music Unlimited.

Source: https://www.tomsguide.com/us/amazon-prime-music-unlimited-faq,news-25430.html

Is Amazon Music Unlimited worth it for Prime members?

For most Prime subscribers, upgrading to Amazon Music Unlimited can provide significant added value over the free Prime Music offering. Here’s an analysis of the key differences:

The Amazon Music Unlimited library has over 75 million songs, while Prime Music only has 2 million. So you get access to many more artists, albums, and songs with the paid Unlimited tier. If you want to be able to listen to any specific song or album on-demand, Unlimited is likely worth it (source).

Unlimited subscribers can download songs for offline listening, which isn’t possible with Prime Music. So Unlimited can be beneficial if you want to listen while offline, like during flights or other travel (source).

The Unlimited plan allows streaming across multiple devices simultaneously, while Prime Music only permits single device streaming. For families or households with different listening preferences, Unlimited provides more flexibility (source).

In summary, Amazon Music Unlimited offers significantly more music choice, offline listening, and multi-device streaming over Prime Music. For Prime members who regularly listen to music, the Unlimited upgrade brings tangible benefits worth considering.