Verithiathe honest score on any app
Updated July 2026 · real, multi-region App Store reviews
Head-to-head

Shazam vs YouTube

Shazam 4.9★ · Free to download 75
Winner Shazam
YouTube 4.7★ · Free to download 60

Shazam is better for quickly identifying music, while YouTube is better for general video content despite its recent issues with ads and app stability.

Full reviews: Shazam · YouTube

Shazam excels at its core function of identifying songs, though recent updates have introduced accuracy issues and integration problems. YouTube, while a dominant video platform, is currently plagued by frequent app crashes, excessive ads, and unpopular UI changes.

Head to head

Core Functionality (Song Identification vs. Video Playback) edge: ShazamR1R5R8R11
Shazam Shazam's primary function of identifying songs is highly valued by users, with many calling it 'amazing' and 'helpful' for finding new and old music R5R8R11. However, a significant number of recent reviews indicate a decline in accuracy, with the app frequently identifying the wrong song or failing to recognize music altogether R1R12R13R16.
YouTube YouTube's core functionality of video playback is generally appreciated, with users enjoying the wide variety of content available . However, many users report severe issues with the app crashing frequently, making it unusable R61R67R76R79.
User Experience and Interface tieR4R7R26R28
Shazam Shazam users report issues with navigation and changes to the interface R4. Some find the constant promotion of Apple Music annoying R26R28 and dislike that the app shows the previous song identified when trying to Shazam a new one . There are also complaints about erratic Siri integration and the inability to look back at identified songs in the library R7.
YouTube YouTube's user experience has been negatively impacted by recent changes, including the replacement of the 'like' button with a 'heart' and the removal of the 'dislike' button, which users want back for content moderation . Users also report issues with algorithms providing irrelevant suggestions and the home screen not loading properly . Playlists are also difficult to rearrange .
Reliability and Performance tieR1R16R32R48
Shazam While some users praise Shazam's reliability over many years , many recent reviews highlight significant performance issues, including the app freezing, not recognizing songs, or giving multiple different results for the same song R1R16R32R48.
YouTube YouTube suffers from frequent app crashes, with users having to delete and reinstall the app multiple times R61R67R76R79. Other performance issues include videos buffering halfway through, glitches, and shorts failing to load .
Monetization and Ads edge: ShazamR15R22R26R28
Shazam Shazam users complain about intrusive advertising, particularly ads for Apple Music that pop up and interrupt the song identification process R22R26R28R32. One user also mentioned being forced to provide credit card information for a free app R15.
YouTube YouTube users are overwhelmingly frustrated with the excessive number and frequency of ads, many of which are unskippable, long, or irrelevant R66R69R70R72. Many feel forced to pay for a premium subscription to avoid the ads .
Features and Integrations tieR6R7R21R25
Shazam Shazam is praised for providing lyrics R25. However, users report that the Apple Watch app has disappeared R6 and that account login and song syncing across devices are no longer possible, making it difficult to track music R21. Siri integration is also described as erratic R7.
YouTube YouTube offers features like Shorts, which are compared to TikTok . Users appreciate the ability to restrict comments for kids . However, there are complaints about the lack of useful new features and issues with bot accounts and inappropriate content .
Pick Shazam if

You primarily need an app to identify songs quickly and are willing to tolerate occasional inaccuracies and Apple Music promotions R5.

Pick YouTube if

You need a broad platform for watching videos, including educational content and shorts, and are prepared to deal with frequent app crashes and a high volume of advertisements .

Evidence note: Shazam's reviews show a recent negative trend regarding accuracy and ads, despite its high lifetime rating. YouTube's recent reviews are heavily skewed by app crashing issues and ad complaints, which significantly impact its perceived quality.

Frequently asked

Is Shazam still accurate at identifying songs?
Recent reviews for Shazam indicate a decline in accuracy, with many users reporting that the app identifies the wrong song or fails to recognize music 50-60% of the time, compared to its previous 90-95% accuracy R1R12R13R16.
Why does the YouTube app keep crashing?
Many YouTube users report that the app consistently crashes, particularly on iOS 26.5.2 on iPhone 17, often requiring them to delete and reinstall the app multiple times R61R67R76R79.
Are there too many ads on YouTube?
Yes, a significant number of YouTube users complain about an overwhelming amount of ads, which are often too frequent, unskippable, long (over an hour in some cases), and irrelevant, making the free version of the app frustrating to use R66R69R70R72.

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] Shazam 2/5 · US What happened to Shazam: Shazam used to be great at identifying songs 90-95% of the time. If it didn’t know the answer it would tell me it couldn’t identify the song but something changed. I’m guessing it can identify songs correctly maybe 50-60% of the time. What’s really frustrating is when Shazam says it identified the songs by and it’s completely wrong. I knew the artist but wanted to find the
  2. [R5] Shazam 5/5 · US Keeps us current: Old songs, new songs, songs we forget who sang them, Shazam keeps us current. Thank you Shazam.
  3. [R8] Shazam 5/5 · US BEST WEBSITE FOR SONGS: Thanks to this app I can find my song that I have in mind
  4. [R11] Shazam 5/5 · US I love Shazam!: It’s a gem for millennials!
  5. [R4] Shazam 1/5 · US What did you do!?!?: Made awful changes can’t navigate. Complete fail from what it was the last 5 years. Deleted!
  6. [R7] Shazam 1/5 · US Erratic and inadequate Siri integration: When triggered from Siri Gives out the diff song titles and I cannot look back later in the library :(
  7. [R26] Shazam 2/5 · US Good but annoying: Works great but very annoying if you don't have Apple music. The constant nagging and begging to sign up for Apple Music makes me want to use something else. If I've already declined the offer for the 49th time.. F off🤷🏿
  8. [R28] Shazam 1/5 · US Sidebar: Always trying to make me buy Apple Music I don’t want it, don’t even try to tempt me.
  9. [R16] Shazam 2/5 · US Poor: Just did a song 3 times 3 different results
  10. [R32] Shazam 1/5 · US Much worse than the original: Apple took something good and destroyed it when they acquired it. You could touch it 25 times and it still won’t start to recognize the song, it freezes. It’s loaded with ads, I missed the old version and I hope someone launches a viable competitor very soon.
  11. [R48] Shazam 1/5 · US Not working anymore: I tried 5 songs in a row - none was identified by Shazam… I even checked microphone access etc. It just doesn’t work anymore.
  12. [R15] Shazam 3/5 · US Don’t like to be MADE to trial an app: I shouldn’t have to give a credit card when I’m trying to use a FREE app!!
  13. [R22] Shazam 1/5 · US Doesn’t work and has no support: For awhile, this app worked as advertised. Lately I’ve gotten interference from the advertising. I hear a song that I want information on, open Shazam and automatically an ad pops up that insists I respond to it before the app does anything else. Once I respond to the app, it drops me into the last identified song on hold. Now I have to close that window to get the
  14. [R6] Shazam 3/5 · US iWatch?: Where did the iWatch app go??? · translated
  15. [R21] Shazam 3/5 · GB You Can no longer log in to my account via the app or other platforms: It is dumb that I can no longer sign in to my account via the app. I used Shazam on my iPad, Personal mobile phone as well as my work mobile phone. I also use Shazam on my smart watch. I used to be able to sync my Shazam songs using my account, this is no longer the case. How am I supposed to keep track of my music on other
  16. [R25] Shazam 5/5 · US I like it.: It gets most of the songs I put in to identify. Giving me the lyrics is a big plus too. I recommend this app.
  17. [R12] Shazam 3/5 · US wrong song: More and more wrong songs!
  18. [R13] Shazam 1/5 · US CANT PICK UP ANY TUNES: I try to pick up tunes in a cafe and it seems SoundHound outperforms when music is a played at a lower decibel…I’m also impressed with another app that is able to pick up tunes at a low decibel. Apple, maybe implement Ai into Shazam to help with improving/enhancing the experience.
  19. [R61] YouTube 1/5 · US Paying for premium service but not receiving any service: For the past two days, every time I try to open the app it crashes I’ve had to delete and reinstall the app several times. My phone just did an update last night. It’s still crashing. I need you guys to fix this issue immediately.
  20. [R67] YouTube 1/5 · US App crashing on 26.5.2: Cannot use app. It is consistently crashing on version 26.5.2 on iPhone 17. It just recently started happening. I have rebooted the phone, removed the app and installed again. It worked for a little bit and then starts crashing again. It shows the logo and then fails to load the rest of the way. Not sure what to do at this point.
  21. [R76] YouTube 2/5 · US Something’s wrong.: It keeps making me delete the app and reinstall. It’s so frustrating.
  22. [R79] YouTube 1/5 · US App keeps crashing running iOS 26.5.2: App is crashing immediately on tapping to open. Have restarted iPhone 17 pro, have deleted and reinstalled YT app. Working fine on iPad running same iOS.
  23. [R66] YouTube 3/5 · US For the love of YouTube entertainment: Way too many ads they are getting annoying and the advertising rate seems desperate YouTube stop it
  24. [R69] YouTube 3/5 · US Too many ads: There are way too many ads, and with some of them, there is no skip option, so you have to stop the video, go back, and start over.
  25. [R70] YouTube 1/5 · US VINTED!!: STOP. SHOWING. ME. ADS. FOR. A. COMPANY. THAT. AIDS. IN. THE. SALE. OF. CHILDREN.
  26. [R72] YouTube 3/5 · US TOO MANY ADVERTISEMENTS: And stupid advertisements that are not of interest to me at all And they continue and continue and continue to show the same advertisement which is of no interest. I do not know what God algorithm you are using to make you think I want to see these advertisements related to medical products for old people or that sort of thing. First, you know they are fake and they are li

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