Music streaming is the main way America listens to music now. What started as a handy alternative to radio and downloads has turned into the default for everyday listening.
In 2025, more than 89% of Americans age 12 and up use music streaming or other online audio in a typical month, and about 100 million paid music streaming subscriptions are active in the country.
Money tells the same story. Music streaming generates about 84% of US recorded music revenue, so the industry depends on streams, playlists, and listener habits inside apps. Labels chase playlist momentum, artists measure growth in monthly listeners, and fans move between services looking for the best mix of catalog, sound quality, recommendations, and price.
Spotify remains the biggest music streaming platform in the US in 2025, used by 35% of Americans in a typical month. Competition is intense right behind it. YouTube Music keeps climbing fast, Apple Music and Amazon Music stay strong through devices and bundles, and Pandora still serves people who like a simple, radio-style music streaming experience.
The insights about the most popular music streaming platforms in the US are from Edison Research’s Infinite Dial 2025 study, one of the most trusted reports on digital media.
The sections below break down the most popular music streaming platforms in 2025, how their audiences compare, and what current listening trends say about where music streaming in the US is headed next.
Streaming in Numbers
| % of Americans age 12+ who listened to online (digital) audio in the last month (2025) | 79% (~228M people) |
| % of Americans age 12+ who listened in the last week (2025) | 73% (~210M people) |
| Paid music streaming subscriptions in the US (2024) | 100 million |
| Recorded music industry revenue, retail value (2024) | $17.7B |
| Streaming revenue, retail value (2024) | $14.9B |
| Share of recorded music revenue from streaming (2024) | 84% |
| Physical formats’ share of revenue, led by vinyl (2024) | ~11% (~$2.0B) |
Digital audio is now a mass habit, not a niche one, with roughly four in five Americans listening monthly and nearly three in four listening weekly. Subscription streaming has passed the 100M mark, a milestone that underlines how fully the US market has shifted to paid platforms. Streaming brings in more than eight dollars out of every ten that recorded music earns, while CDs and vinyl survive as a smaller premium lane rather than a mainstream driver.
Overall Rankings by Monthly Usage (US, 2025)
| Rank | Platform | % of Americans (12+) Listening Monthly |
| 1 | Spotify | 35% |
| 2 | YouTube Music | 28% |
| 3 | Pandora | 17% |
| 4 | Apple Music | 16% |
| 5 | Amazon Music | 15% |
| 6 | iHeartRadio | 9% |
| 7 | SoundCloud | 6% |
1. Spotify is Still the Leader in the Market of Music Streaming
Spotify continues to hold the crown as the most popular streaming service in the US.
Spotify reaches 35% of Americans age 12+ in a typical month, and it goes deeper than casual use.
Among people who listen to online audio, 34% name Spotify as the service they use most often, making it the everyday default for more listeners than any rival.
| US monthly reach (12+) | 35% |
| “Used most often” (primary choice) | 34% |
| Global monthly active users | 696M |
| Global paying subscribers | 276M |
| Core features | On-demand music, podcasts, audiobooks |
Momentum comes from how well Spotify blends music streaming with discovery. Personalized listening stacks, smart recommendations, and a huge playlist ecosystem keep people moving from one track to the next without friction.
Features like Discover Weekly, Daily Mixes, and the annual Wrapped recap turn music streaming into a habit, not a chore.
The platform also holds attention by pairing on-demand music with podcasts and audiobooks, so a single app covers most audio needs in a day. From curated mixes to exclusive podcast deals, it keeps users engaged beyond just music.
Global scale matters too. With nearly 700 million monthly users worldwide and more than 276 million paying subscribers, Spotify can spend heavily on product upgrades, creator tools, and new formats.
That size also helps Spotify stay sticky in the US, where it remains the reference point for what a modern music streaming service is supposed to feel like.
2. YouTube Music is the Fastest Riser
YouTube Music has locked in second place in the US music streaming race. The service reaches 28% of Americans each month, and its grip is getting stronger.
Among online-audio listeners, 21% already call it their most-used platform, with that share rising year after year as YouTube keeps pulling listening time into its orbit.
| US monthly reach (12+) | 28% |
| “Used most often” share | 21% |
| Global subscribers (Premium + Music) | 125M (2025, incl. trials) |
| Core strengths | Video-music integration, live performances, remixes |
The big advantage comes from tight pairing with regular YouTube. Switching between a music video, a live set, a remix, and an audio-only track takes one tap, so music streaming feels like an extension of the same platform people already use all day.
That setup is a natural fit for younger listeners, who often discover songs through clips, creators, and trends before saving them to playlists.
Scale is turning into muscle. With more than 125 million Premium and Music subscribers worldwide, YouTube Music has become the clearest challenger to Spotify, especially for listeners who want both audio and video in one place.
Travel habits add another layer. Many users listen on the move or outside the US, where catalog rights can shift by country. For that reason, some subscribers lean on tools like an iphone vpn to keep playlists working and maintain access across borders.
All of that makes YouTube Music a go-to option for mobile-first audiences who want music streaming that follows them anywhere, in whatever format they feel like watching or hearing next.
3. Pandora as The Radio Veteran
Pandora is not the streaming powerhouse it used to be, but it is far from gone.
The service still reaches a meaningful slice of the market in 2025: 17% of Americans age 12+ use Pandora in a typical month, and 13% say it is the platform they use most often.
Those numbers keep Pandora in the top three for monthly reach, even while newer services fight for attention.
| US monthly reach (12+) | 17% |
| “Used most often” share | 13% |
| Estimated monthly active users | ~40M |
| Core strengths | Personalized radio, passive listening, mostly used in cars |
Pandora works best for lean-back music streaming. People fire it up in the car, at work, or while doing chores, then let the stations run without thinking about every next song.
The radio-first design still feels smoother than many on-demand apps for anyone who wants a soundtrack, not a search box.
Algorithmic stations remain the heart of the product, and they still satisfy listeners who like discovery without effort. Growth has cooled, though. On-demand platforms win over users who want full control, bigger ecosystems, and social playlist culture.
Pandora keeps a loyal lane, but the wider music streaming market is steadily shifting toward services built around choice first and radio second.
4. Apple Music: Premium but Niche
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Apple Music stays one of the biggest names in music streaming, especially on the paid side of the market.
In the US, the service reaches 16% of Americans age 12+ each month. Among people who already listen to online audio, 13% call Apple Music their primary platform, showing a solid core audience even without the raw scale of Spotify or YouTube Music.
| US monthly reach (12+) | 16% |
| “Used most often” share | 13% |
| Ecosystem strength | Deep integration with iOS, HomePod, Apple Watch |
| Features | Lossless, spatial audio, curated editorial playlists |
Apple Music leans into premium music streaming. Tight connections with Apple devices make it feel native for millions of listeners, while higher-end audio options like lossless and spatial formats give it extra pull for people who care about sound.
Editorial playlists and radio-style shows also keep the service feeling human-curated instead of purely algorithm-driven.
A paid-only model caps total reach, since there is no free tier to pull in casual users. The tradeoff is a steadier base of subscribers who choose Apple Music for quality, polish, and a clean listening setup.
For many iPhone users and audiophiles, that mix keeps Apple Music near the top of the music streaming shortlist year after year.
5. Amazon Music – Built on Prime
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Amazon Music holds a solid mid-pack spot in US music streaming.
The service reaches 15% of Americans age 12+ in a typical month, but only 8% say it is the platform they use most often. Reach is strong, primary loyalty is softer, which says a lot about how people end up on Amazon Music.
Bundling does most of the heavy lifting. Amazon Prime includes a built-in music tier, so tens of millions of households get access without signing up for another paid service.
That easy entry point keeps Amazon Music in regular rotation even for listeners who do not think of it as their main app.
| US monthly reach (12+) | 15% |
| “Used most often” share | 8% |
| Bundling advantage | Prime members get limited free access |
| Features | On-demand, Alexa integration, Echo smart speaker tie-in |
Amazon Music fits everyday, practical music streaming. Plenty of users land there because it is already included, works smoothly with Alexa, and feels frictionless on Echo speakers, cars, and TVs.
For hardcore music fans, it may not be the first pick, but for many Prime households, it lands in the sweet spot of convenience, price, and “good enough” catalog depth.
That combination keeps Amazon Music relevant in 2025 even without leading the race.
6. iHeartRadio – Where Radio Meets Streaming
iHeartRadio sits in a different lane from the big on-demand music streaming apps. About 9% of Americans age 12+ use it in a typical month, and roughly 5% of online-audio listeners say it is the service they use most often.
That keeps it firmly in the mix, even if it is not chasing Spotify-style dominance.
| US monthly reach (12+) | 9% |
| “Used most often” share | 5% |
| Core strengths | Local radio access, branded festivals, and podcast integration |
iHeartRadio works best for listeners who still want radio, just delivered through music streaming habits. The app brings thousands of live local stations into one place, then layers in curated channels and a big podcast catalog.
Instead of forcing people to build playlists or hunt for new artists, it offers a familiar lean-back experience with the convenience of streaming.
The main value is cultural and practical: keeping broadcast radio easy to reach in a world where most listening happens online.
For commuters, sports fans, talk-radio loyalists, and anyone tied to local stations, iHeartRadio remains a useful bridge between old-school radio and modern music streaming.
7. SoundCloud – Niche but Culturally Vital
SoundCloud has around 6% monthly reach in the US, smaller than the big five but still hard to ignore.
Music streaming on SoundCloud runs on a different fuel: creator uploads, early drops, remixes, DJ sets, and scenes that are too new or too niche for the major catalogs.
Think of it as the open frontier of streaming, where a track can live in public the minute it is finished.
Early on, SoundCloud felt like a social network for producers first and a player second.
Bedroom creators traded feedback in comment threads, reposted each other’s work, and built micro-communities around rap, EDM, indie, and everything in between.
A large share of the audience is still young and discovery-hungry, and hip-hop plus electronic remain the loudest corners of the platform.
SoundCloud also pushes a more artist-friendly money model than most music streaming rivals.
Fan-powered royalties send subscriber dollars to the artists listeners actually play, instead of dumping everything into one giant pool.
New tools launched in 2025, including “Buzzing Playlists,” are designed to surface tracks gaining traction with listeners, not only tracks favored by algorithms.
| US monthly reach (12+) | 6% |
| “Used most often.” | Not broken out separately |
| Core audience | Indie fans, electronic/hip-hop communities, DIY creators |
| Strengths | Remixes, early access to emerging artists, grassroots feel |
Reach may be modest, but influence punches way above its weight. Several of the last decade’s biggest breakout names first built momentum on SoundCloud, including Post Malone and Chance the Rapper, along with a long list of underground stars who later jumped to mainstream platforms.
For anyone who wants music streaming to feel alive, a little messy, and a step ahead of the charts, SoundCloud remains the place where tomorrow shows up early.
What the Numbers Tell Us
- Spotify still sets the pace. The service leads both in monthly reach and in “used most often” share, which means Spotify is not only big, it is sticky. Many listeners treat it as the default place to search, save, and return to, making it the main hub of US music streaming.
- YouTube Music is the main growth story. A monthly reach of 28% and a fast-rising primary share point to momentum that goes beyond casual use. Video-first discovery, live performances, remixes, and direct ties to regular YouTube help YouTube Music pull listeners who already live inside that ecosystem.
- Lean-back radio platforms are holding a lane, but aging out. Pandora and iHeartRadio still show meaningful reach, largely tied to cars, workplaces, and talk or local radio habits. Growth stays limited because younger listeners tend to want on-demand control, playlists, and social discovery rather than “press play and let it run” formats.
- Ecosystems keep Apple Music and Amazon Music competitive. Apple Music stays strongest where iOS devices and premium audio features shape daily listening, while Amazon Music benefits from Prime bundling and Alexa or Echo habits. Both services win more on convenience and device life than on pure word-of-mouth music streaming hype.
- SoundCloud proves influence is not only about size. Even with single-digit reach, SoundCloud remains a cultural pipeline for new artists, remixes, and underground scenes. Smaller platforms can matter a lot when they serve a clear community and offer features that the main services do not.
Taken together, the rankings show a US music streaming market that is top-heavy but not frozen. Leaders stay strong, challengers can rise fast, and legacy formats survive when they solve a specific listening need. For artists, labels, and brands, platform choice shapes discovery, fan growth, and revenue potential.
Music platforms do more than connect fans and artists; they also open up a wide range of digital platforms, earning avenues that extend far beyond streaming alone.
Conclusion
In 2025, the US music landscape is clear: streaming is the center of the industry, and within streaming, Spotify sets the pace.
YouTube Music is closing in quickly, Pandora holds on to radio fans, and Apple and Amazon carve out loyal bases tied to their ecosystems.
Meanwhile, iHeart and SoundCloud continue to serve important but smaller audiences.
For everyday listeners, this means one thing: no matter what kind of music fan you are,playlist-driven, radio-loyal, indie-focused, or video-first, there’s a major platform competing to serve your needs.
