Verithiathe honest score on any app
Updated July 2026 · real, multi-region App Store reviews
User consensusAlternativesIs it worth it?
The verdict on

SoundCloud

60
User verdict / 100 High confidence Divided

SoundCloud remains a popular platform for discovering unique and unreleased music, particularly for smaller artists, but recent updates have significantly increased ad frequency and introduced numerous bugs, leading to a decline in user experience for many free and even some paying users.

4.8★ lifetime (1,916,772) Free + in-app purchases since 2009 by SoundCloud Global Limited & Co KG updated 0.1 mo ago recent negative 13% 120 reviews across 4 regions
Ads & Monetization Bugs & Performance Content & Discovery User Interface (UI) & Experience (UX)
5★734
4★91
3★45
2★25
1★105
recent reviews across 4 regions, vs the 4.8★ lifetime average

SoundCloud is highly valued for its extensive library of unreleased and independent music, serving as a vital platform for both listeners and creators. However, recent user reviews frequently criticize the overwhelming number of ads, various technical bugs, and a perceived decline in content quality due to AI-generated music, which detracts from the overall experience.

What users like

  • Excellent for discovering unreleased and independent music not found elsewhereR3R5R21R22
  • Supports smaller artists and provides an outlet for creatorsR2R3R5R67
  • Offers a wide variety of music from around the worldR5R40

What users complain about

  • Excessive and intrusive ads, often appearing every 2-3 songs or immediately upon opening the app, severely disrupt the free user experienceR6R111R114R140
  • Numerous bugs and performance issues, including lagging, freezing, loading errors, and the app randomly stopping playback or crashingR16R228R281R304
  • Some songs are paywalled, requiring a subscription to listen even if they are available on the platformR129R193R196R338
  • Discovery features are criticized for being repetitive, recommending already favorited or disliked songs, and pushing AI-generated contentR26R67R210R292
  • User interface is considered messy, counterintuitive, and lacks essential features like advanced search filters or clear new music feeds from followed artistsR80R134R422R597
  • Issues with paid subscriptions, including unexpected charges after cancellation, being locked out of ad-free accounts, and price increases without notificationR47R73R139R229

Latest update · v8.68.1

What the developer says changed (the verdict above weighs this against what reviewers report):

We constantly update SoundCloud to keep the tunes flowing and beats bumping. In this version: - We improved performance and fixed bugs. Loving the app? Rate us to make it official. Have questions or suggestions? Find us on Twitter @SoundCloud or the SoundCloud Help Center. We're always listening.

Recurring themes

Ads & Monetization negative
Users are overwhelmingly frustrated by the significant increase in ad frequency and length, often encountering ads every few songs or immediately upon app launch. Many feel the ads are excessive for a 'free' app and are being pushed aggressively to force premium subscriptions. This directly contradicts the developer's general 'performance improvements' note, as the ad experience is a major performance detractor. Some also mention unexpected price increases for premium or being charged after cancellation.R6R111R114R140
Bugs & Performance negative
Despite developer notes claiming 'improved performance and fixed bugs,' many recent reviews report persistent issues. These include lagging, freezing, songs randomly stopping or playing quietly, loading errors, and the app crashing. Some users also experience problems with account creation, logging in, or the app constantly prompting for updates it already has.R16R228R249R257
Content & Discovery mixed
SoundCloud is highly praised for its unique content, especially unreleased tracks and music from smaller, independent artists. However, the discovery feed is criticized for being repetitive, showing already-liked or disliked songs, and pushing AI-generated music, which many users dislike and feel detracts from human artistry. Some users also complain about certain songs being locked behind a paywall.R3R5R21R22
User Interface (UI) & Experience (UX) negative
Reviewers find the UI to be messy, counterintuitive, and lacking essential features. Specific complaints include poor search functionality, difficulty filtering results, a cluttered 'Discover' tab, and a general 'tacky' look and feel that has worsened over time. CarPlay integration is also noted as needing improvement.R80R134R422R597

Who it's for

SoundCloud is for users who want to discover unique, unreleased, and independent music not available on mainstream platforms R3R5R22. It's also suitable for aspiring artists looking to publish and promote their music R2. It is NOT for users who expect an ad-free experience without paying, or those who prioritize a polished, bug-free app with advanced discovery features R6R16R26.

Evidence note: The recent reviews skew heavily negative, particularly concerning ads and bugs, which contrasts with the high lifetime rating. This indicates a significant decline in user satisfaction in the short term, possibly due to recent changes in monetization strategy and app performance. The developer's release notes mention 'improved performance and fixed bugs,' but recent reviews strongly contradict this claim.

Frequently asked

Why are there so many ads on SoundCloud?
Recent reviews indicate that SoundCloud has significantly increased the frequency and length of ads, often playing ads every 2-3 songs or immediately upon opening the app, which users perceive as a push to encourage premium subscriptions R6R111R114R140.
Does SoundCloud have a lot of bugs?
Yes, many recent users report numerous bugs and performance issues, including the app lagging, freezing, songs randomly stopping, loading errors, and occasional crashes, despite developer claims of recent bug fixes R16R228R281R304.
Can I listen to all songs for free on SoundCloud?
No, some songs on SoundCloud are paywalled and require a premium subscription to listen, even if they are available on the platform R129R193R196R338.
Is SoundCloud good for discovering new artists?
SoundCloud is highly regarded for its ability to help users discover new and independent artists and unreleased music not found on other platforms R3R5R21R22. However, some users find the 'Discover' feed to be repetitive and cluttered with AI-generated content R26R67R210.

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. [R3] 5/5 · US Great switch from Spotify: I got sc a while back after finding out that Spotify’s ceo invested millions in ai military drone tech and the platform incentivizes bigger artists instead of promoting smaller artists to help them grow, I didn’t want to support the platform anymore after finding this out and SoundCloud was an amazing switch!! The only advantage Spotify has over sc is that Spotify has no
  2. [R5] 5/5 · US My go to: This music app has been my outlet for stress, mainly because people from all around the world post their sounds and I love that
  3. [R21] 5/5 · US Listen to colion made the beat: Good for listening to unreleased colion made the beat
  4. [R22] 5/5 · US Fun: It is really good for losing to music that is not on another apps
  5. [R2] 5/5 · US SoundCloud: Published my first song here and ended up making some more music
  6. [R67] 1/5 · US AI Music Suffocating Human artist: A view SoundCloud for years to find new & upcoming artist and people learning how to express their creative processes for the world to see. This is the Place Billie Eilish gained acknowledgment, XXXTENTACION, Lil Peep, Ski Mask, etc., so how did one of the most creative applications for music turn so AI driven, Was it Money? Was our memberships not enough of a fe
  7. [R40] 5/5 · US Incredible accessibility: Get access to all songs broadcasted in each corner of the world. I really love listening music through Sound Cloud
  8. [R6] 1/5 · US Sucks: Too many adds you turned into YouTube with ur three adds dude. Ruined my experience and I did recently did the 7 day free trial just for it to not work when I get a new phone. This app used to be good
  9. [R111] 3/5 · US Ads: I hate the length of the adds and the amount of them
  10. [R114] 3/5 · US Ads: I’ve had this app since I was in middle school. I understand the ads but if I just opened the app and get an immediate ad I just go to Apple Music or YouTube. Every 3 songs is annoying
  11. [R140] 3/5 · US Too many ads: Too many ads; I know I have the free version but geez.
  12. [R16] 2/5 · US Boring: Bad song recommendations and for me laggiest app ever
  13. [R228] 3/5 · US Decent but too many ads and a few bugs: There’s suddenly too many ads, it’s becoming another Spotify. You don’t need too many ads. But the app is decent overall but weird bug where it just completely stops playing a specific song until u reload and loop feature on app is broken completely
  14. [R281] 1/5 · GB Bad experience: Your app is constantly crushing nowadays. I’m just saying
  15. [R304] 2/5 · GB So buggy even in 2026: I put up with soundclouds bs alot cus im so loyal, i have been since 2016 but the app is so laggy it crashes all the time sometimes the stuff i’m pressing takes ages to load or just doesn’t load at all and it’s getting real annoying it’s kind of like they put the bare minimum into the app to keep it running instead of actually monitoring what’s going on and satisfying users,
  16. [R129] 2/5 · US VERY greedy: i thought i’d switch to soundcloud bc of all the controversies surrounding spotify, but i soon (literally the day i started using it) realized that it is VERY GREEDY. i literally got an ad every 2 SONGS…. and i noticed that you have to pay for a subscription to listen to certain songs. the ad thing was already unnecessary, but PAYING TO LISTEN TO CERTAIN SONGS ON A MUSIC STREAMING APP
  17. [R193] 1/5 · US Songs shouldn’t be on go pro: Lame asf
  18. [R196] 3/5 · US Eh: It doesn’t have all the songs you wanna listen to and sometimes if it does you have to literally pay to listen to it and absolutely not i love SoundCloud but cmon man🫩
  19. [R338] 3/5 · GB SoundCloud: I hate the fact I have to get SoundCloud go or smth it’s really annoying bc I just wanna listen to my song and I can’t without that coming up
  20. [R26] 1/5 · US Discover Feed Feels Pointless and Repetitive: 1 star The Discover page is terrible. It keeps recommending the same repetitive songs over and over, including tracks I already favorited in my library. Why would I need Discover to show me music I already saved? It also keeps pushing songs I’ve already heard and didn’t like instead of giving me new similar songs I haven’t listened to yet. The recomm
  21. [R210] 3/5 · US GEN AI SUCKS: Idk it seems like there’s a marketing push for content made with generative AI and it’s like eating the worst fast food you can think of, sickly. Plus it’s harmful for a range of reasons, from sustainability to exploitation to IP theft
  22. [R292] 1/5 · GB Dead algo: Only pushes generic slop , barely any organic real listeners
  23. [R80] 1/5 · US Search feature non existent?: Can we get like an actual search feature? I’ll never pay for this app if I can’t filter search results, organize by release date or when the set was posted, it’s difficult to see information on the track, just overall not user friendly and it’s annoying to search for something and sets from like 2016 show up before sets from 2025. Let’s get into the modern era
  24. [R134] 1/5 · US Dark UX: App is fine but web is nearly unusable, forcing you to download the app? Zero stars if I could to reward dark UX.
  25. [R422] 3/5 · GB CarPlay needs improvement: It looks a mess and you can’t really fast forward or rewind in a track. Just 3 stars until it’s improved.
  26. [R597] 3/5 · CA Loads slowly and runs heavy: Using an up to date iPhone 14 max pro and the app takes about 10-15 seconds to open initially, and causes my phone to run hot. UI is counterintuitive and lacking.
  27. [R47] 1/5 · US Money Grab: I canceled my premium account in June. The continued increase in monthly subscription price isn’t justified. Nothing is getting better and nothing more is being offered so why is it $20 now? It’s also not appreciated that the increases are never mentioned til billing time. Why would you think charging by people more and not saying you’re doing so is alright? You lost me as a paying cus
  28. [R73] 1/5 · US charged me after canceling: they charged me after i canceled a day before
  29. [R139] 1/5 · US Locked out & upgrade needed after already paying for full month ad free account: I was locked out needed to sign back in “set up” account and then was given option to upgrade to ad free which I already paid for … will cancel account next month !!
  30. [R229] 2/5 · US loading error: why tf can i not play the songs i want to play even tho i payed for the subscription ts pissing me off i downloaded it to play unreleased songs that aren’t on regular apps FIX TS
  31. [R249] 1/5 · US Sound: When i listen to music it will randomly go really quite and i can barely hear the songs nd b4 yall say its my phone. Its not, it happens on different phones to.
  32. [R257] 2/5 · GB Can’t open my own profile: It keeps saying to try again but it doesn’t work at all.

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