Spotify Monthly Listeners

Spotify monthly listeners vs Apple Music

Updated 5 October 2026 · 2 min read

Apple Music does not publish a customer-facing monthly listener figure, which is why the two platforms are almost never compared on the same axis. Understanding what each one reports stops you drawing conclusions from incomparable numbers.

What each platform reports

Spotify shows a public monthly listener count on every artist profile and gives artists a deeper breakdown in Spotify for Artists. Apple Music reports streams and plays to artists and labels through its own analytics, without a public reach metric.

That difference is not an accident of design. The public listener number is part of Spotify’s product, visible to every listener; Apple reports to artists rather than to the audience.

Comparing them honestly

The only defensible comparison is on streams, not listeners, and even then you are comparing different measurement systems. Treat platform-specific stream counts as separate datasets and look at the trend within each, rather than trying to convert one into the other.

If you need a single number for a pitch, use the platform the recipient cares about. A radio programmer thinks in airplay, a playlist curator in plays, a brand in reach, and a distributor in streams.

What artists should watch instead

Track the relative growth of each platform over time. If Apple Music plays are rising while Spotify listeners are flat, your reach is shifting rather than shrinking. If both are flat, the release needs promotion, not analysis.

Frequently asked questions

Does Apple Music have monthly listeners?

Not as a public figure. Apple reports plays and streams to artists, but there is no equivalent public listener count on an artist page.

Which is bigger, Spotify or Apple Music?

Spotify has the larger global user base and the more widely quoted metric. Apple Music’s audience is concentrated in markets where it is strongest, so the answer depends on territory and genre.

Should I promote to both?

Yes. The same outreach — curators, press, radio — often produces results on both platforms, because the people you pitch announce to audiences across services.

Keep reading