Music Streaming Statistics in 2024 (US & Global Data)
Streaming is the driving force of the music industry, making up the lion’s share of the revenue. The growth of the music streaming platforms is fueled by Gen Z and Millennials who prefer the subscription economy.
Here’s what the latest research tells us about the music streaming statistics.
Music Streaming Statistics
Highlights of music streaming industry statistics:
- Global music subscribers surged 26.4% to 523.9 million during the Covid pandemic.
- Music streaming makes up 84% of the U.S. music industry revenue.
- 82.1 million Americans are paid subscribers to on-demand music streaming.
- Americans stream on average 75 minutes of music per day.
- There are 3.6 music streamers for every paid subscription.
- R&B/hip-hop is the most popular streaming genre in the U.S.
- Spotify is the dominant music streaming service with 180 million subscribers.
- The #1 reason for a paid subscription is to avoid ads interrupting the music.
- Gamers are 14% more likely to be paying for music streaming services.
1. Global music subscribers surged 26.4% to 523.9 million during the Covid pandemic.
According to the Midia music streaming industry statistics (2021), global music subscribers surged to 523.9 million in q2 of 2021. This was a strong growth of 26.4% (109.5 million) from the year before. (1)
These numbers show that the interest in on-demand music streaming services has been strong during the Covid lockdowns.
Subscribers in 2020 | Subscriber Growth | Subscribers in 2021 | Time Spent on Music |
414.4 million | +26.4% | 523.9 million | 18.4 hours p.w. |
According to the IFPI music streaming service statistics (2021), global music listening time through subscription audio streaming rose 51% in 2021. (2)
The total time spent globally listening to music each week is 18.4 hours or 1.6 hours per day. That’s the equivalent of listening to 368 3-minute songs a week or 32 songs a day.
Subscription Audio Stream. | Ad-Supported Audio Stream. | Video Streaming | Short Form Video |
23% of engagement | 9% of engagement | 22% of engagement | 11% of engagement |
The data based on 21 countries show that the weekly music engagement is dominated by 32% of music streaming (including Spotify, Apple, and Deezer). (2)
The second highest part of music engagement comes from video streaming (22%) like Youtube and short-form video apps (11%) like TikTok.
Interestingly enough, radio engagement was 16%, notably higher than short-form video apps.
2. Music streaming makes up 84% of the U.S. music industry revenue.
According to the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) U.S. music streaming statistics (2021), music streaming accounted for 84% of total U.S. music industry revenues, about the same level as the previous year. (3)
The music streaming category includes paid subscription services, ad-supported services, digital and customized radio, and licenses for music on Facebook and digital fitness apps.
Paid Subscriptions | Ad-Supported | Digital & Radio |
78% of streaming rev. | 13% of streaming rev. | 9% of streaming rev. |
Paid streaming subscriptions account for the largest share (78%) of streaming revenues in the U.S. This number was $4.6 billion in 1H of 2021 and up 26% year-over-year. (3)
Ad-supported on-demand audio and video streaming make up 13% of the total streaming revenue.
The data shows strong and clear year-over-year growth in the music streaming trend, regardless of the Covid spike. In the two years since 1H of 2019, paid music subscription revenues have grown 40%. (3)
Global Music Streaming Revenue | Industry Growth 2021-2027 | Global Music Streaming Market |
$13.4 billion in 2020 | 9.8% CAGR | $24.7 billion in 2027 |
According to the last IFPI music streaming services statistics, global streaming music revenues grew to $13.4 billion in 2020. (4) This is currently the latest last full-year streaming market size number available.
According to Allied Market Research music streaming research, the global music streaming industry is expected to reach $24.7 billion by 2027. Assuming a 9.8% CAGR from 2021. (5)
3. 82.1 million Americans are paid subscribers to on-demand music streaming.
According to RIAA music streaming data statistics (2021), in 1H of 2021, 82.1 million Americans are paid subscribers to on-demand music streaming services. (3)
This is a record number and up 13% from the previous year. These figures count multi-user plans as a single subscription and exclude limited-tier services.
Paid Streaming 1H of 2021 | Paid Streaming 2020 | Paid Streaming 2019 | Paid Streaming 2018 |
82.1 million subs. | 75.5 million subs. | 60.4 million subs. | 46.9 million subs. |
The first half of the 2021 subscriber number (82.1 m) is currently the latest available number. (3)
The table above shows strong growth of 15.03% of compound annual growth rate (CAGR) in paid subscribers.
The table below shows the total U.S. music streaming revenue, including ad-supported and limited tier services.
Stream. Revenue 1H of 2021 | Stream. Revenue 2020 | Stream. Revenue 2019 | Stream. Revenue 2018 |
$5.9 billion | $10.1 billion | $8.9 billion | $7.3 billion |
Paid music streaming subscriptions to account for the highest share of music revenues in the U.S. Up 26% year-over-year and totaling $4.6 Billion in 1H 2021. (3)
Ad-supported on-demand music streaming revenues grew to $741 million (e.g. ad-supported Youtube and Spotify).
This is a 3% increase from the previous year, which was significantly impacted by the Covid pandemic decline in advertising revenue across all media.
4. Americans stream on average 75 minutes of music per day.
According to Global Web Index online music streaming statistics, people in North America stream 75 minutes (1.15 hours) of music on average per day. (6)
North America | Latin America | Europe | APAC |
75 min./day | 86 min./day | 48 min./day | 72 min./day |
The music streaming usage statistics also show that people in Latin America stream on average 86 minutes of music per day. This is the highest number across all regions. (6)
To give some perspective, streaming 86 minutes of music per day accounts for 29 three-minute songs.
Ages 16-24 | Ages 25-34 | Ages 35-44 | Ages 45-54 | Ages 55-64 |
97 min./day | 76 min./day | 61 min./day | 44 min./day | 23 min./day |
The data shows that Gen Z spends the most time (97 min. per day) streaming music, while Millennials spend 76 minutes per day. (6)
The research also found that half of all 16-24s stream music on mobile and 64% of all music streamers listen to music across different devices like smartphones, tablets, and computers.
5. There are 3.6 music streamers for every paid subscription.
According to Global Web Index music streaming user statistics, there are 3.6 music streamers for every paid subscriber globally. (6)
The data shows that streaming service users are listening across multiple platforms and happily share their accounts.
Apple Music Subscribers | Spotify Subscribers | Soundcloud Subscribers |
40% share their account | 33% share their account | 27% share their account |
The study also noted that cross-platform streaming is also popular. For example, 42% of Spotify users also use Soundcloud and 31% also use Apple Music. (6)
Younger users prefer access to ownership and making playlists to listening to the radio. Also, 41% of audio streaming platforms users watch videos on social media.
6. R&B/hip-hop is the most popular streaming genre in the U.S.
According to MRC & Billboard streaming music genre statistics (2021), R&B/hip-hop is by far the most popular streaming genre (29.9%) in the U.S. (7)
Rock is the second most popular streaming genre with 17% of all on-demand streams in the U.S. These numbers include audio and video streaming.
R&B/hip-hop | Rock | POP | Country |
29.9% of streams | 17% of streams | 13.3% of streams | 7.9% of streams |
The digital music streaming statistics data also shows that among the top 50 markets by audio streaming volume, R&B/hip-hop performs best in Detroit, Atlanta, and Birmingham. (7)
The top streaming genre distribution is the same also for the whole music industry in the U.S. where R&B/hip-hop make up 27.7% and rock 20% of the total music volume.
The total music volume includes albums, TEA, and on-demand audio/video SEA.
7. Spotify is the dominant music streaming service with 180 million subscribers.
According to Midia Research music streaming platform statistics, Spotify has the highest music streaming market share with 31% of the market. (1)
Although the competition among music streaming apps is fierce, Spotify added more subscribers during the 12 months leading up to q2 of 2021 (latest data) than any other competitor.
The research suggests that there’s no risk of Spotify losing its leading position anytime soon.
Spotify | Apple Music | Amazon Music | Tencent Music | YouTube Music |
31% mkt. share | 15% mkt. share | 13% mkt. share | 13% mkt. share | 8% mkt. share |
Interestingly enough, YouTube Music was the only Western digital service provider (DSP) to increase global streaming market share during this period. (1)
According to Spotify data (2022), Spotify has 180 million subscribers and 406 million active users. In addition, Spotify is available in 184 markets with 82 million tracks. (8)
Another part of the music streaming equation is the artist revenue policies. Unfortunately, there are no official numbers available on how much each platform pays for its artists and which is the highest paying music streaming service.
According to the Trichordist’s artist streaming stats research (2020), the average pay-per-stream rate across all platforms is approximately $0.00173. (9)
Platform | Avg. Pay per Stream | Streams per Song | Market Share by Streams |
Spotify | $0.00348 | 175 | 22.09% |
Apple Music | $0.00675 | 90 | 6.36% |
Amazon Music | $0.00426 | 143 | 0.65% |
YouTube | $0.00154 | 395 | 1.90% |
YouTube Red | $0.01009 | 60 | 0.23% |
Deezer | $0.00562 | 108 | 0.80% |
Pandora | $0.00203 | 299 | 1.91% |
Peloton | $0.03107 | 20 | 0.07% |
Yandex | $0.00109 | 559 | 0.93% |
Tidal | $0.00876 | 70 | 0.11% |
Disclaimer: The data in the table above is based on 2019 to 2020 data and is presented as an approximation by the researcher. Every researcher uses distinct sources of data and processes the data differently.
The research analyzed the 30 most popular music streaming services, which represent 99.87% of all streaming dollars between 2019 to 2020. The table above doesn’t include all the services, only the most popular ones. (9)
8. The #1 reason for a paid subscription is to avoid ads interrupting the music.
According to IFP statistics about music streaming (2021), the top reason for paying to use a streaming service was the desire to avoid ads interrupting the music. (2)
The top three reasons were:
- No adverts interrupting the music
- I can listen to what I want when I want
- Access to millions of songs
The main factors on choosing platforms were the ability to choose favorite songs, artists, and their own playlists.
Ages 16-24 | Ages 25-34 | Ages 35-44 | Ages 45-54 | Ages 55-64 |
60% subs. | 61% subs. | 49% subs. | 37% subs. | 28% subs. |
This online music streaming statistics by age shows that the use of subscription audio streaming is highest among younger demographics.
For example, 2 out of 3 Millennials and Gen Z’s globally subscribe to music streaming services.
Interestingly enough, according to radio statistics, about half of Gen Z in the U.S. also listen to AM/FM radio every day.
9. Gamers are 14% more likely to be paying for music streaming services.
According to MRC Billboard statistics on music streaming, U.S. gamers are 14% more likely to be paying for music streaming services compared to average music listeners. (7)
The study also found that video gamers are 13% more likely to engage with music than the general U.S. population.
Considering that over half of the U.S. general population plays video games in some capacity, making this is a significant number.
On average, gamers spend 19% more monthly across music categories than average listeners.
One of the most surprising music streaming trends was that 40% of gamers who listen to music tune into the Country genre. That translates into gamers being 174% more likely to listen to Country than EDM.
FAQ
How many people use Apple Music?
Apple Music had 78 million subscribers worldwide in June 2021. Apple Music has 15% of the total music streaming market share. (10, 1)
How many people use Spotify?
Spotify has 406 million monthly active users worldwide and 180 million subscribers in 2022. Spotify is dominating the music streaming market with 31% of the market share. (8, 1)
How many people have Spotify premium?
Spotify has 180 million Spotify premium subscribers in 2022. Currently, Spotify is dominating the music streaming market with 31% of the market share. (8, 1)
How many people use Tidal?
According to internal reports, Tidal had 350,000 subscribers in September 2015. Tidal has been accused of inflating its streaming numbers. (11)
How many people use Pandora?
Pandora had 52.6 million monthly active users and 6.5 self-pay subscribers at the end of 2021. (12)
How many people use Soundcloud?
Soundcloud had 175 million users globally in 2014. (13)
How many people use Youtube Music?
Youtube had 2 billion users in 2020 and Youtube Music had 23.6 million paying subscribers across at the end of 2021. Youtube Music has 8% of the total music streaming market share. (14, 15, 1)
How many people use Tencent Music?
Tencent Music had 636 million users and 71.2 million paying users at the end of September 2021. Tencent Music has 13% of the total music streaming market share. (16, 1)
How many people use Gaana Music?
Gaana Music had 185 million monthly active users and over 1 million subscribers in August 2020. (17, 18)
How many people use Deezer?
Deezer had 16 million active users and 7 million subscribers in January 2019. Deezer has 2% of the total music streaming market share. (19, 1)
How many people use Netease?
Netease had over 800 million registered users at the end of 2019. Netease has 6% of the total music streaming market share. (20, 1)
How many people use Amazon Music?
Amazon Music had over 55 million customers globally and nearly all of these 55 million are paying customers in January 2020. Amazon Music has 13% of the total music streaming market share. (21, 22, 1)
How many people use music streaming services?
There are a total of 523.9 million subscribers globally to music streaming services in Q2 of 2021. (1)
How much data does streaming music use?
An hour of high-quality music streaming uses around 144 MB of data. The data usage depends on the audio quality. (23)
Which music streaming service has the most subscribers?
Spotify has the most subscribers. Spotify has 180 million subscribers in 2022. (8)
Which music streaming service pays artists the most?
Apple Music pays on average $0.00675 per stream in 2020. The final figure depends on multiple factors and is different across service providers. (9)
Which music streaming service has the most songs?
Soundcloud has 250 million tracks from 30 million artists. Apple Music is second with 90 million songs and 30,000 playlists. (24, 25)
How much do music streaming services pay artists?
Music streaming platforms pay on average $0.00173 per stream. (9)
What’s the total music streaming revenue per year?
Total global music streaming revenue was $13.4 billion in 2020. It’s expected to reach $24.7 billion in 2027. (4, 5)
References
- Midia Research, Mark Mulligan. 2021. Music subscriber market shares Q2 2021. Link
- International Federation of the Phonographic Industry (IFPI). 2021. Engaging With Music. Link
- Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA). 2021. Mid-year 2021 RIAA revenue statistics. Link
- Allied Market Research. 2021. Online Music Streaming Market: Global Opportunity Analysis and Industry Forecast, 2021–2027. Link
- International Federation of the Phonographic Industry (IFPI). 2021. Global Music Report. Link
- GlobalWebIndex. 2021. Music streaming around the world. Link
- MRC Data Reports and Billboard. 2021. Year-end report U.S. 2021. Link
- Spotify. 2022. Quick Facts. Link
- The Trichordist. 2020. 2019-2020 Streaming Price Bible: YouTube is STILL The #1 Problem To Solve. Link
- Statista. 2022. Number of Apple Music subscribers worldwide from October 2015 to June 2021. Link
- The Verge. 2019. Tidal’s allegedly bogus streaming numbers are under investigation in Norway. Link
- SiriusXM. 2021. SiriusXM Reports Third Quarter 2021 Results. Link
- SoundCloud. 2021. Advertising on SoundCloud. Link
- Youtube. 2018. YouTube Music, a new music streaming service, is coming soon. Link
- Statista. 2021. Number of YouTube Premium subscribers worldwide from 2020 to 2024. Link
- Tencent Music. 2021. Tencent Music Entertainment Group Announces Third Quarter 2021 Unaudited Financial Results. Link
- The Wall Street Journal. 2020. Spotify, Apple Music Trail Little-Known Rival in Music-Obsessed India. Link
- Livemint. 2019. 800k subscribers since Mar 2019: YouTube’s music app outpaces Spotify, Gaana, JioSaavn in India. Link
- Statista. 2019. Number of Deezer’s paying subscribers worldwide as of January 2019. Link
- Netease. 2019. 4Q 2019. Link
- Amazon. 2020. Amazon Music has more than 55 million customers worldwide. Link
- Financial Times. 2022. Amazon Music subscriber numbers close in on Apple. Link
- Digital Music News. 2021. How Much Data Does Spotify Use? Here’s a Quick Breakdown on Streaming Data Use. Link
- Apple. 2022. Apple Music. Link
- SoundCloud. 2022. What is SoundCloud? Link