I don’t have to pay for Spotify anymore thanks to this free app

• Deezer has a free ad-supported tier
• Deezer desktop is pretty sad
• Deezer mobile is where the quality is
• You can import your favorite playlists
• More Deezer free features

Everybody has a preferred way to consume audio, especially when it comes to music. Some people are still strictly listening to records, not only for the nostalgia but also because it still sounds fantastic. But most people are streaming music from different platforms and services. It’s the easiest way nowadays.

Right now, more people are spending time listening to paid streaming platforms for their music than free streaming. It’s because you can get so much from them, the most popular being platforms like Apple Music, Spotify, Tidal, and Amazon Music. These can come with you wherever you go and give you a customized experience that lets you basically build your own music platform. You can get all the music that you want in your pocket, whether you have Wi-Fi or not.

However, if you’re not interested in paying for your music, you can rely on services like YouTube, which has most of the music and podcasts that you might be looking for, but not all of it. For those dead set on not paying for audio, Deezer might be the right move for you. The service offers a free subscription plan that is rather impressive. Here’s what comes with it.

Deezer has a free ad-supported tier

It does limit certain features

When you create an account for the first time, you can try Deezer Premium for free for a month before having to commit to a subscription.

When you sign up for a Deezer account, you can either choose a free account or immediately jump into a paid one. Paid accounts, known as Deezer Premium, cost $12 per month. Deezer Premium provides you with unlimited streaming with no ads, the ability to play any track at any time, and lets you listen to music offline. You can also enjoy more high quality sound with the High Fidelity sound options.

But, if you don’t want to pay the monthly $12, Deezer Free still offers a lot. When you choose an account, Deezer asks you to select your favorite artists, so it can better build your algorithm. I opted for 12 artists, ranging from pop to folk to EDM and house. You also have access to tons of music and podcasts from your phone — I say from your phone because Deezer desktop is different from Deezer mobile, which I’ll go into below.

Deezer desktop is pretty sad

It’s not even worth having if you don’t have Premium

Little did I know, on the desktop version, you can only listen to 30 seconds of a track. That’s all you get. What’s nice is you can choose the song to listen to if you want, which is different from Deezer free on mobile, which only allows you to shuffle playlists and artist profiles.

Only being able to listen to 30 seconds of a song is such a weird quirk for the streaming service. It also just jumps into the middle of the song for those 30 seconds, so it’s not even the beginning. If you’re someone who relies on their computer to listen to their music, such as those who want to listen while they’re working, it’s pretty much impossible to enjoy a streaming session on Deezer’s desktop version without a Premium subscription.

Only being able to listen to 30 seconds of a song is such a weird quirk for the streaming service.

Even if you want to listen to podcasts, the only ones that would show up on Deezer’s desktop version were Spanish podcasts. And even then, I could only listen to 30 seconds of an episode.

Deezer mobile is where the quality is

Listen to plenty of well-known favorites

Deezer offers music from specific artists, radio stations you can jump right into, and a wide selection of podcasts to stream. Many of your favorite podcasts (minus ones that have special deals on other streaming platforms) are also available. Unlike music, you can choose individual podcast episodes to play. You’re also able to favorite specific shows or episodes, which helps Deezer tailor your recommendations.

I found that Deezer’s interface is less crowded than Spotify’s, which can feel a bit overwhelming with highlights of new artist releases and incredibly loud and vibrant color schemes. Deezer keeps things simple and streamlined — refreshingly so. Whether you want to browse radio, artists, or podcasts, the options sit neatly in bubbles at the top of the app. The search bar is readily available, making it easy to look up an artist or show.

You can import your favorite playlists

This links with other streaming services

One of the most notable things in recent history for Apple Music is being able to transfer playlists over directly from other streaming services. It helps people cut the cord between previously used platforms, and is found in Settings > Music > Import my music. It brings you to TuneMyMusic.com which then has you log in to any of a number of streaming services. They include:

• Spotify
• Apple Music
• YouTube Music
• YouTube
• Tidal
• Amazon Music
• SoundCloud
• Yandex Music
• Qobuz
• Beatport
• Beatsource
• iTunes
• Napster
• Pandora
• Anghami
• KKBOX
• Lost.FM
• Soundmachine
• Boomplay

From there, you just need to log into your previous streaming service to sync the two up and the transferring takes care of itself. Then, you don’t have to recreate playlists that you’ve likely spent a long time working on. It’s an easier process that only requires a login.

More Deezer free features

A lot for $0

Deezer takes your suggestions and builds an algorithm of customized playlists to shuffle through. It calls these “Mixes inspired by” to deliver personalized listening. Your most recently played artists, podcasts, and radio stations appear at the top of the main page. Flow provides mood-based recommendations — you can choose from options like Party, Workout, or Sad, and it will shuffle from a pre-built playlist. The “Made for you” section features daily rotating playlists based on your preferences or listening history, updating in a way similar to Spotify.

They then offer you playlists you’ll love with more based on your algorithm. If you follow or favorite artists, the “100% for you” section plays shuffles of songs by those specific artists. You can also explore “New releases,” “New releases for you,” and “Only on Deezer,” the latter featuring exclusive recording sessions done at Deezer HQ. For those who want more collaboration, you can use the Shaker feature, which lets you make playlists with friends, Music Quiz to challenge friends in trivia, and Concerts which will help you find concerts in your area.

I was pleasantly surprised by how much was available and didn’t feel like anything was glaringly missing.

For being a free streaming service, Deezer’s ad-supported tier offers a lot. It creates a personalized listening experience and helps customers curate their own mixes and playlists. You get quite a bit from the free option, and there’s always the choice to upgrade if you want more. I was pleasantly surprised by how much was available and didn’t feel like anything was glaringly missing.