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Updated July 2026 · real, multi-region App Store reviews
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Is it worth paying for

YouTube Music

65
Value score / 100 Worth paying? Depends It depends

YouTube Music is worth using for its extensive music library and integration with YouTube, but the free tier is severely limited, making a paid subscription almost essential for a good experience.

Free to download seen up to $54.99 4.8★ lifetime (1,514,398) since 2015

YouTube Music offers a vast selection of music, including YouTube videos, and has a strong recommendation algorithm. However, the free version is plagued by frequent, long ads and lacks basic features like background playback, pushing users towards a premium subscription.

Free vs paid

The free tier of YouTube Music allows users to listen to music, but with significant limitations. Users report frequent and long ads, sometimes longer than the songs themselves R10R50. A major drawback of the free version is the inability to play music in the background or with the phone screen off R1R21R35R44. In contrast, the paid premium subscription removes ads, enables background playback, and allows for offline listening R94. Some users note that the app is 'unusable' without paying for the subscription R50.

Value complaints

  • Background playback is paywalled, making the free app frustrating to use.R1R21R34R35
  • Ads are frequent, long, and interrupt songs, making the free tier almost unusable.R10R32R40R50
  • The premium subscription is considered overpriced by some, especially given reported bugs and feature removals.R19R50R91R184
  • Users report being double-charged for their subscription.R6

Where it delivers

  • The app offers a vast music library, including content directly from YouTube, which is a significant advantage over competitors.R25R28R66R94
  • The recommendation algorithm is highly praised for its accuracy and ability to introduce users to new music tailored to their tastes.R28R30R34R131
  • The integration with YouTube Premium is a major selling point, offering an ad-free experience across both platforms.R28R117
  • The user interface is generally considered easy to use and navigate, with some recent updates improving its cleanliness and smoothness.R1R28R30R35
Worth paying if

It is worth paying for YouTube Music Premium if you already pay for YouTube Premium, as it comes bundled and offers an ad-free experience across both platforms R28R117. It is also worthwhile if you value a vast music library that includes YouTube videos and remixes, and appreciate a strong recommendation algorithm R28R30R34R131.

Skip / stay free if

You should skip YouTube Music or stick to the free version if you are unwilling to pay for a subscription, as the free experience is heavily interrupted by ads and lacks essential features like background playback R1R10R21R50. Users who prioritize a stable, bug-free experience or specific features like gapless playback and accurate lyrics might also want to consider alternatives R5R13R15.

Evidence note: Recent reviews show a negative trend regarding app stability, feature removals (like the 'Related' tab), and general user experience, despite a high lifetime rating. Many positive reviews focus on the vast content library and the value of the premium bundle, while negative reviews highlight core functionality issues and aggressive monetization of basic features.

Frequently asked

Can I listen to YouTube Music with my phone screen off or in the background for free?
No, you cannot listen to YouTube Music with your phone screen off or in the background for free; this basic feature requires a premium subscription R1R21R35R44.
Are there many ads on the free version of YouTube Music?
Yes, the free version of YouTube Music is heavily interrupted by frequent and long ads, with some users reporting ads longer than the songs themselves or multiple unskippable ads R10R32R40R50.
Does YouTube Music have good music recommendations?
Yes, many users praise YouTube Music's recommendation algorithm, noting it is very good at suggesting new songs and artists tailored to individual tastes R28R30R34R131.
Can I transfer playlists from other music apps to YouTube Music?
While some users report that transferring playlists from other platforms is easy and mostly successful, others have experienced issues and failures with this feature R23R75R117.
Are there any common bugs or issues with YouTube Music?
Yes, users frequently report bugs such as songs skipping, the app crashing, playlists randomly changing or adding songs, search functionality issues, and downloaded songs not playing offline R3R5R13R15.

What reviewers actually said

Built only from these 120 real reviews (foreign ones translated). Superscripts jump to the quote here. Apple has no per-review links, so [ref] opens that app's reviews on the App Store.

  1. [R1] 5/5 · US Pretty good but..: This app is a lot more less confusing then Spotify or really any other platform for music but the thing is that we have to pay to have music playing in the background that’s all I have to say other then that this app is lovely.
  2. [R21] 1/5 · US Sucks: Your phone screen must be on or it won’t play… seriously? There are so many music apps with that basic feature so I will stick with Pandora and Spotify. This app is the worst I’ve seen basically due to that simple feature. YouTube is already a nightmare with its advertising. Uninstalled and I won’t be back.
  3. [R34] 5/5 · US Great because I have premium.: It’s only good because my dad pays for premium, if I didn’t it’d be HELL. Like no background play unless you pay? That’s SUFFERING. Although the algorithm is really good, like I started playing “He’s My Man” by luvcat and “Sienna” by the Maria’s played next 🥹🥹. It cares about what YOU listen to, not what others do. The playlists are also great because I love the va
  4. [R35] 5/5 · US AWESOME: I love this app it so easy and cool to use, like how i can just shortcut my music RIGHT THERE everything about it is amazing buttt the only thing that i don’t like is that the music turns of while you leave the app or when your phone locks. that’s the only concern i have but everything else is GREAT
  5. [R10] 1/5 · US Long ads. I’m Switching back to Spotify: Ads are longer than the songs I want to hear. Ads shouldnt be longer than 1 minute, and should not be a whole history lesson or TurboTax lecture.
  6. [R32] 1/5 · US Forget this: YouTube music was cool until they started showing 2x ads and they started showing music videos in the albums instead of the video option like I get it everyone wants to listen and watch something on high definition but an an album, that’s just wrong I wanted to listen to an album with no interruptions but it just won’t work for me “so for that reason I’m out🦈”(UNSUBSCRIBED)
  7. [R40] 3/5 · US In the middle huh.: You gave me an AD in the MIDDLE of a SONG, does that make ANY SENSE‽ if you’re gonna give me an ad at least make it at the end or beginning of a song. And if you’re gonna give an ad, don’t make it two un-skipable 15 second ads. That’s just ONE un-skipable 30 second ad.
  8. [R50] 1/5 · US Don’t download unless you’re gonna pay for the subscription: App is unusable unless you pay for the subscription. You cannot turn off your screen or minimize the app. Ads are longer than songs, and run between each song. Some hours are as long as 10 minutes. Subscription is more than other apps.
  9. [R19] 1/5 · US Poor functioning app: The premium is over priced for the service, and the speed dial option does not clear clear the artist you said don’t recommend. Making the speed dial useless
  10. [R91] 3/5 · US it’s good but not the best: this app is amazing but only if u have a subscription that costs more than 30$ a month there’s adds every skip i used to listen on it with my dads account that has the subscription but when i used it on my account i couldn’t listen to one song calmly. If u want to listen to music calmly without paying use spotify it has adds without a subscription but like 1 add per 50
  11. [R184] 3/5 · US High price: I’ve had you tube music and the increase in subscription fee was disappointing. I cancelled the subscription. Apple Music has a better fee and three months for a penny.
  12. [R6] 5/5 · US Doble cobro: Hola buenas noches quisiera saber porque me estan cobrando dos veces el 07/09/2026 y el 07/10/2026 quiero saber porque espero respondan pronto gracias o
  13. [R25] 4/5 · US OMG MJ: OK, my favorite artist is Michael Jackson man do they offer for every song for free
  14. [R28] 5/5 · US New Update is Nice: the new update has made the app cleaner and smoother. i would seriously recommended getting a youtube music subscription over spotify or apple music, heres why: 1. comes with youtube premium. watching ads is so obnoxious on youtube to me now. i got spoiled by premium. 2. sleeper algo. youtube music cooks with its suggestions. dont sleep on its algo. 3. you can put youtube video
  15. [R66] 5/5 · US I have bug: It’s good. I like it cause it’s having all the music I want straight from the YouTube. But I am having bug in my playlist mixing up by it self 😭 solve it please please please
  16. [R94] 5/5 · US YouTube music is better than Spotify: The title is self explanatory. YouTube music is better than Spotify. Even if you can't listen to music outside of the app, premium is an option! And as we all know, Spotify has a LOT of problems like only shuffle, no skipping, and a LOT more. Guess what? YouTube music doesn't! It's worth it and it links to your YouTube account, so if you make a playlist on You
  17. [R30] 5/5 · US Better than Spotify: The quality of this platform is just amazing. Great recommendations, great taste, great ui, and great platform. Deserves way more hype for how good it is and you should def get it
  18. [R131] 5/5 · US Only music app I need!: I’ve been using YouTube Music for years, and it’s literally the only music app I have! I use it almost 24/7 because it’s so easy to use. I love how you can organize your music, create playlists, shuffle everything, and discover new songs without any hassle. It seems like every song I think of is on here, and I rarely have trouble finding the music I want. The recommendatio
  19. [R117] 4/5 · US Sooo close to perfect: Love that YT music comes with YT premium so I don’t have to pay for two platforms! Super easy to transfer over music/playlists from other platforms but unfortunately you will lose a few in the process but atleast 98% transfer over correctly. Some of my only complaints is podcasts are super hard to follow in order, and are kind of formatted strange which is frustrating. Musi
  20. [R44] 5/5 · US Cannot play music when I am not on the app: I got off this app while playing music but the music stopped
  21. [R23] 3/5 · US Transferring Playlists: I’m sure I will be able to edit this review after an update happens but right now there is no way to transfer over playlists from other music apps like apple music or iTunes or spotify etc. this is a really important feature that needs to happen. Even Apple music has this feature!
  22. [R75] 4/5 · US LOVE, but HATE that transferring is not working: I’ve had yt music for a few years now and while I have grown to love the app, transferring playlists from other streaming services has been an issue. I have not been able to successfully do it with the recommended services, so I’ve been stuck manually doing it. WHICH IS SO TIME CONSUMING. I’ve followed directions every time and it continues to fail!
  23. [R3] 1/5 · US Skipping: For some Reason every song skips like a CD. I restarted my phone, I’m apart of a plan that doesn’t affect others music, I cleared the cached I’m not sure what else to do
  24. [R5] 1/5 · US Gapless never work properly: Trash. Gapless playback never work properly on ios with a premium account
  25. [R13] 4/5 · US Bugs: In general.
  26. [R15] 2/5 · US Frequent malfunction.: The keyboard will appear and be stuck until I close the app it’s very frustrating. I need my YouTube music man 💔😩

Synthesized from 120 recent App Store reviews · updated July 2026 · View on the App Store