How to Develop a Music Streaming App Like Spotify: Features, Process, Cost

Music piracy, a nostalgic approach espoused by the general masses to listen to music before streaming platforms, was, in reality, a massive concern for artists and labels. Daniel Ek, the founder of Spotify, addressed his concern during his interview with The Telegraph, stating that legislating away from piracy was next to impossible. However, he also conjures up how inventive, dual thinking compensates artists while substantially rewarding the users who worked to build a music streaming app like Spotify.

As soon as the solicitude towards music piracy alternative the worldwide label royalties issues, music enthusiasts  were on restructuring the music industry. The lookout for a music streaming app development company with industry-wide experience began to rise. With the assistance of custom app development services, entertainment industry giants introduced music streaming apps similar to Spotify, such as SoundCloud, Apple Music, and TIDAL. 

Assuming that the majority of entertainment and music industry leaders are welcoming the innovative thoughts of feature-rich music streaming apps, it’s high time you familiarize yourself with them. This way, if you are among the enthusiasts, you can systematically plan the entire music app development without assistance.

Developing Music Streaming Apps Like Spotify: Market Overview

Focusing and analyzing the investment-to-revenue ratio holds value for big minds with immersive and futuristic plans. Investment in music streaming apps raises a question, one that sets up the pillars for the future revenue stream: What is the market value and user preference for it?

Shedding light on the premium functionality, 295 million users chose Spotify for interruption-less music streaming. In the United States alone, 75% of users find Spotify a premium source of entertainment. To conclude the market value concerns, Spotify reported $16 billion in revenues in 2023. Huge figures with huge profits are what we are witnessing at the moment. There is no downward spiral but an upward inclination in the Spotify-like music streaming apps market.

Must-Have Feature for Music Streaming App Development Like Spotify

Feature-rich apps surpass single-purpose apps and captivate the market with their upturning functionalities. With music streaming app development services, you can include audio streaming for music playing, but that cannot be the only functionality of your app. It can also enable users to stream podcasts and build their playlists as per their mood. The feasibility and convenience of personalization are what make an app worth the engagement. Moving on to iOS or Android app development for music streaming apps, a profound understanding of basic and advanced features is requisite to build music streaming Spotify mobile apps.

• Registration

Business model of your apps will decide the needs for registration feature. Often app-owners and decision-makers settle on adding the registration features to enhance the app and offer the users with customization and personalization. 

• Music Search

With a music streaming app development company, you must add the music search features. The more diversity it holds, the valuable the search option is for the genre-centric users. For instance, “Red” can be a popular song, an old band or a new podcast. Anything that represents the word red, as per the needs of user, must show up within seconds. 

• Audio Streaming

Not mentioning the core functionality would bediscourteous in context to music streaming like Spotify. The core and soul of the music app, audio streaming, should be uninterrupted, unless the ads are the part fo the program, or atleast smooth for the users to enjoy. 

• Playlists

Suppose, you like a song and want to keep it safe in your libraries, you would want a section that preserves all those songs that holds value to you. With a music streaming app development agency, entertainment businesses must provide the users with in-built playlist creating options. Every mood has it’s own playlist and people can feel the focus of their story with their earphones in.

• Social Sharing

Spotify has been a choice that allows users to express themselves with music and share the people their favorite songs. Since businesses and enterprises are developing music streaming apps like Spotify, they must remember to add the shareability feature and integrate it with every social-centric out there. With the unprecedented rise of new-age music, expressing capabilities must follow as well.

• Offline Mode

People with a passion for listening to music everywhere never get their headphones off their heads. Good or bad, sad or happy, eating or working, their life movements are dependent on their music streaming apps. For remote places where the signals can’t reach, music must stay intact with them, and that can only be possible with offline mode. This offline mode is dependent on downloading the same tracks just in case of emergency. 

• AI Recommendations

Recommendations are necessary for all the music enthusiast trying to widen their music genre and apprehend their vibe. With AI development services, entertainment businesses must build AI-powered recommendation systems that suggest the user music matching their taste or what are found listening mostly.

• Podcast

YouTube hasn’t been the only platform presenting the content creators to showcase their creativity with podcasts. The newest features of Spotify has been podcast, a feature worth the paradigm shift. You must include the podcast section with the assistance of a music streaming app development company and attune the app not only for music listening purposes but also the podcast that canb life-changin for people. 

• Lyrics Display

Music streaming apps like Spotify have introduced the features of lyrics display for the user who may have to start the song first and then Google the lyrics to understand. Not everyone must be Googling the features, but those who do must know the struggle behind it. Including a lyrics display has been revolutionary for Spotify and will have the same impact on your music streaming app. Using MusixMatch for API integration can also improve the scalability of your music streaming app, such as Spotify.

•  Push Notifications

Last but not least, the push notification features notify users about the latest updates in the music industry. One real-life use case can be from the most recent event. Swifties were invigorated with joy when their music apps notified them about the new album release of The Tortured Poets Department by Taylor Swift. The artist gained instant listening hours, and Spotify gained a rush on the app. You must choose a music streaming app development agency to incorporate it into your app and hook those by-heart music lovers.

Step-By-Step Spotify-Like Music Streaming App Development Process

With emphasis on the features, focusing on the step-by-step Spotify-like music streaming app development process is imperative. From minute details to app-centric approaches while infusing valuable industry insights, everything becomes a part of the process. Entertainment businesses and enterprises often hire an Android or iOS app development company with a substantial and resourceful understanding of the vertical. Without any delay, it is peak time to familiarize yourself with the entire process of contriving and strategizing the music streaming app.

• Define the Requirement

Not knowing the business-centric needs can be an obstacle in the path. Before beginning with the full-fledged entertainment app development, decision-makers must align their ideologies and come up with a concrete idea of a music streaming app like Spotify that must also inventive ideas never seen by the public. Similarity and differentiation together result in an imaginative Spotify-like music streaming app idea.

What is it that your users need? How can you make a difference with your app? What exactly is the problem in current-day music streaming, and how can we overpower it? All questions must have a user-centric answer. Basically, of the people, for the people, by the people applies during this requirement-defining phase. 

• Hire an Entertainment App Development Company

As soon as the decision-makers find themselves with a sufficient amount of information, they move on to their next quest to find a music streaming app development agency. Assistance and alliance with these client-focusing app development companies are imperative throughout the development process to build music streaming apps like Spotify. But while finalizing them, you must be cautious and hire them after multiple interviews and an analysis of their previous working background. 

It becomes peremptory for decision-makers to convey their music app needs and even more imperious for these companies to comprehend them. Since the further stages of the music streaming app development process rely on collaboration, mutual understanding venerates the further process.

• App UI/UX Design

Visual appearance and user accessibility are a part of post-deployment engagement. The first-hand interaction of users occurs with the app interface. To keep music lovers hooked to the app, it must offer them a smooth design that is easy to navigate and straightforward to access, with information right around every corner.

To make that happen, a music streaming app development company, in collaboration with the decision-makers, must design rivet on the UI/UX layout. Wireframing is done according to the user’s intentions, and features are located close to their thumb’s proximity while showcasing the brand’s value. That brings forth an app layout that is worth the hassle for the clients and targets their audience.

• Front and Backed Development

The phase to focus on frontend and backend begins with this phase of entertainment app development. The frontend developers concentrate on building the interface of music streaming apps like Spotify, allowing users to play music, download their songs, and build their playlists. Similarly, the backend developers work hard to systemize the data storage, enable the encryption of terabytes of music data, and ensure user authorization.

The collaborative approach to align them and simultaneously work together results in the seamless functioning of your music streaming app like Spotify. The music app developers also situate their efforts on API integration. The combined development process builds an app like Spotify, which further goes for quality assurance.

• Quality Assurance

As soon as the quality testers receive the app, they commence their texting processes, beginning with building test cases. These QA experts thoroughly test a music streaming app like Spotify and identify the vulnerabilities, errors, and bugs that must be resolved at the development team’s end.

The music streaming app development agency utilizes Agile methodology to pool resources and cooperate through the phase to fix all the app-based issues. Once the back and forth winds up, the quality assurance team approves music streaming with zero issues and robust functioning.

• Deployment and Maintenance

Post-testing, the music streaming is showcased to the business owners to validate it and approve it for the last phase of the entertainment app development process: deployment. The expert team comprehends the market implications and prepares the app to meet all the compliances and regulations it must abide by. Meeting all the requirements winds up, and as soon as the parameters are aligned, the entertainment app development company deploys the app in the market for the users to interact.

This does not end with the deployment, though. App development companies present clients with post-deployment maintenance and support. The purpose is to regain the alliance and concentrate on ensuring regular updates and maintenance for smooth music app functioning and scaling its updated needs. 

Build a Music Streaming App Like Spotify for Monetization

Content-centric apps are procuring the user’s attention by offering them mixed sources of services. These apps present the age of freemium where usability is primary, but convenience costs. For instance, Spotify does allow users to listen to unlimited music for free, but it might interrupt by adding ads to monetize the app. As long as the purpose is being resolved, these content-based apps offer accessibility while making money. OTT app development is all about investment and returns, which can be instilled with the pointers mentioned below while providing services. 

• In-App Ads

As we have mentioned above, entertainment businesses earn revenues via in-app ads. Switching between the tracks enables different brands to advertise their products and services through these and becomes an effective marketing medium. Music streaming app owners bind their revenue stream through in-app ads.

• Premium Model

As mentioned, Spotify interrupts its users with in-app ads, but it also looks for music app users with premium models. Suppose the user finds the app’s services on point but wants a version without ads, download facilities, and collaborative streaming. In that case, Spotify offers users cost-effective premium packages. You can also monetize by including premium modes during the Spotify app development.

• Coupons and Promotions

Impeccable services hook the user, and so do coupons and promotions. Time-to-time coupons on purchases are no harm but an advantage for building the user’s interest and retaining them occasionally for your music streaming services. A music streaming app development agency can assist in creating the coupon and promotion segment in your Spotify-like app and equip your brands for handouts.

How Much Does it Cost to Build a Music Streaming App Like Spotify Based on Distinguished Factors?

Surety about the Spotify-like music streaming app development, features, and monetization options must have raised your spirits. The quest to go in-depth must not impede right here, though. We are left with one segment, the understanding of Spotify app development cost, hovering on your mind. There is no exact figure to elaborate the segment, but you must comprehend how it is calculated based on the necessities and requirements.

Different parameters pose to cost diversely. For instance, a basic music streaming app with singular functionality would cost around $50,000 to $80,000, but the same may not be the case with an advanced app. An app with a media player, playlist, podcast, advanced search bar, subscription models, and an extensive features list might lie in the capital investment bracket of $100,000 to $150,000. The factors below must be considered when devising the project requirements as they fluctuate the conclusive Spotify app development cost.

• Music Streaming App Development Platform

• Music Apps like Spotify Size

• UI/UX Design for Music Streaming Apps

• Location of Music App Developers

• Entertainment App Development Hiring Model

• Features of Entertainment App Development

The figures indicate that the cost of music app development is dependent on multiple factors that substantially influence it. 

Conclusive Spotify-Like Music Streaming App Development Cost Breakdown

Reaching the final stage of the discussion, the entertainment business and decision-makers must have estimated music streaming app development costs for making their decision. As we have mentioned above, multiple factors impact capital investment, but you must be aware of the bracket into which the entire process falls.

The mobile app development cost to build a music streaming app like Spotify ranges between $50,000 and $150,000, depending on factors such as the intricacies, size, and platform. 

Determining AppsChopper as Your Trusted Music Streaming App Development Company

Systematically building a music streaming app like Spotify is among the concerns of entertainment businesses and enterprises. That can be feasibly resolved with a market-focused music streaming app development company with industry-specific experts on the run. 

AppsChopper, a reliable entertainment app development services provider, enables businesses to vocalize their inventive ideas and bring a mid-tempo music streaming app to market. With a team of 100+ developers, an updated and intelligent technology stack, and industry-backed knowledge, we assist you restructure the market.