From a startup in 2008 to more than 100 million active monthly subscribers in 2018, Spotify has become the most popular music streaming mobile app. Nowadays having a smartphone is also synonymous to listening to music. With so many customers which are also easy to reach, how much does it cost to develop a mobile app like Spotify is a hot discussion right now. Recently music streaming business is on the rise as people do not have to download anything. In this article, we will discuss about estimating the cost of developing a mobile app like Spotify. Spotify has right now 50 million monthly paying subscribers.

How does Spotify work?

Spotify is basically a music streaming and playlist social sharing service available in more than 60 countries and it has been built using music app development by carefully analyzing the requirements of the people. It has more than 30 million songs in its library and works across almost all devices.  Using Spotify, users do not have to download songs and store them on a hard drive to listen rather they just need to find a song or album and play it online right away. Of course for this there should be faster internet connection in mobile devices.

First you need to be a registered user to have access to basic Spotify features for free. But you won’t be able to listen to music offline as you will see in-app advertisements. If you become a paid member then you will be granted full features like downloading, no ads or hi-fi sound quality. Basically there are 2 version of Spotify i.e. free and Spotify premium for $10/month.  To listen Spotify offline just select a playlist, tap Edit, and check if the arrow icon next to it is grey or green. Tap the grey ones to turn it green which means a playlist is synced to your device. Afterwards just press done.

Major Benefits of an Online Music Streaming Service

You need to Hire App Developer if you also want to develop an online music streaming service. Let’s discuss the various benefits these offer

• Quick access
• Affordability
• Unlimited storage
• Social engagement

Spotify offers an inexpensive alternate to piracy. The monthly charges are not so much hence users can enjoy their favorite music songs and give some credit to artists.

What are the Cost forming factors of developing a music streaming app Like Spotify?

There is a long process involved in creating a music streaming app. Here we are discussing it in brief

• Planning and estimating
• Finding the Mobile App Developers
• Getting licensed
• Developing features

Now we will discuss each of these stages in detail.

Planning

Before starting to develop a music app, first do thorough planning of the project. Check the main competitors and find out what is special about them and how to beat them. You have to also find out what kind of people are going to use your music app. What is their age? How do they live? For what purpose they need your music app? Customize your music app features and design to match the needs of your target audience.

Finding the Mobile App Developers

After having a vision of what your music app is going to be now it’s time to find the Mobile App Development Company or mobile app developers which will build the app for you. There are many factors like rates, location, language etc. which needs to be considered while finalizing the app development company. Check the project history of the company. Check whether they have relevant experience in creating music streaming application. Is the company a reputed one? You can even check their application in App Store.

Designing the App Like Spotify

After finalizing the team of developers which is going to create your music streaming app, now it is time to make wireframes for the project. The app’s purpose and objective should be clear and every action and feature has to be intuitive and easy to use. Users like the apps which are easy to use.

Deciding on a Platform

This is one of the important point which influence the final development cost. It is better to create a native application for each platform i.e. Android and iOS so that they can offer users the most authentic user experience. Spotify SDK are available for both the platforms and they make it easy for the developers to make features like music streaming.

Getting license to Play the Music

For using and playing the music and songs in your mobile app, you have to apply for the license. You have to follow the copyrights and legal procedures which should be followed. To provide users with high quality audio or video content, you have to receive a Public Performance Rights License. Also a particular share of revenues will have to be paid to artists as royalties for using their music.

Developing features in Music Mobile App

Authentication

Spotify uses the freemium business model which requires the user to sign up before using the app and it lets users access the content for the trial period before purchasing a subscription. You can even login to Spotify using your Facebook account.
Time required to develop this feature: 24 hours in front-end and 16 hours in building the backend.

Music Streaming:

In streaming, the audio is delivered in small packets of the data which is buffered into the device and played instantly. It does not require the whole file to be downloaded. You have to work in the direction so that the stream remains steady and uninterrupted and clear sound comes.

• Time required to a Simple MVP
• Front-end : 60-80 hours
• Back-end : 50 hours

Search

In Spotify, users can search the track by artist, album or a particular genre. The MVP needs about 50-60 hours to develop the front-end and 50 hours for back-end.

• Sharing Music:
• Front-end : 5 hours for each platform
• Back-end : 60 hours

Playlists

You can create related playlists suitable for a special occasion like having a party with friends or family. Users can set up their own music collections on their own or with their buddies.

• Front-end : 40 hours
• Back-end : 70 hours

Offline Mode

This feature allows the users to listen to their favorite songs even when internet is not working. It uses the local storage of the device to cache the audio data.

• Front-end: 40 hours
• Back-end: 20 hours

Hence based on the above discussion the total time needed to develop an MVP of a similar music streaming app like Spotify can take about 550-600 hours of working time. But if you need the high quality and usability like in Spotify then you can take even double that time.

Approximate Overall Cost of Building a Music Streaming App Like Spotify

As we have just discussed the important features required to be built in the music streaming app like Spotify alongwith the required time taken hence now we can make a rough estimate about the total cost of developing such an app. Total time it will take will be minimum of 530 hours of development time. Hence the development cost is going to be around $16-20 K.

Conclusion

The initial cost of building a simple Spotify like music streaming app starts from $16,000 and can only grow more. If you really want to build a music streaming app which has full potential to become successful, then you have to do thorough research and include all those features and benefits which Spotify offers to the users. Although it is a difficult task but not at all impossible. You just need to make a proper plan and implement it carefully.