Apple Music or Gesture Demo
Is Apple Music down? Recent data shows a massive spike in user complaints, and while Apple’s status page remains hit-and-miss, other services like the App Store are definitely struggling Screenshot via YouTube/Brandon Butch

Whenever you find yourself asking, 'Is Apple Music down?' the sudden silence can be incredibly frustrating. Rather than waiting for a connection to return, many fans are exploring other ways to keep their playlists running. Switching to a different service ensures you never miss a beat when your primary app hits a technical snag.

Data from the monitoring site Downdetector showed a sharp rise in Apple Music issues during the late hours of 20 January, suggesting a potential service outage. Figures indicate that shortly after 8 p.m. ET, more than 1,000 users flagged problems, a massive increase from the typical average of just 2 notifications.

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Is Apple's Status Page Telling the Full Story?

Interestingly, while Apple's dashboard claims the music service is fine, it confirms that things like Maps and Apple TV are currently broken. Since there's clearly a bit of a wobble across their whole network, you don't have to wait around for them to fix it. Plenty of other apps are working perfectly right now—here are five of the best ones people are moving to.

5 Great Apps to Use While You Wait

1. Spotify

Spotify is still the go-to for many who love finding new music. Its smart algorithms are brilliant at finding new tracks based on what you already like, so you're never short of something to listen to. Plus, the way it handles shared playlists and social sharing feels much more natural than most other apps.

2. Tidal

If you really care about how your music sounds, this is the one to pick. It offers high-fidelity audio that makes standard streaming sound a bit flat by comparison. It is perfect for anyone who wants to hear every crisp detail in a recording, and the exclusive live performances are a nice bonus.

3. YouTube Music

This is a solid choice if you spend a lot of time watching music videos or live sets. Since it pulls from such a huge database, you can find almost anything here, from official albums to rare covers and remixes. It is also incredibly easy to set up if you are already signed into a Google account.

4. Amazon Music Unlimited

For those who already pay for Prime, this is often the most sensible and cheapest way to keep the tunes going. It works flawlessly with Alexa, so you can just ask out loud for whatever song you want to hear. The catalogue is massive, so you won't feel like you are missing out on any big releases.

5. Deezer

What makes this one special is the 'Flow' feature, which basically acts as a personal radio station that learns exactly what you want to hear. The layout is very clean and easy to navigate, and having things like lyrics and song ID built right in makes it a very handy all-in-one player.

Don't Let an Outage Stop the Tunes

It is always a bit of a shock when a massive service like Apple Music hits a snag, but luckily, there are plenty of other brilliant options out there. Whether you want the best audio quality or just a simple way to find new songs, these platforms have you covered. Give one a go, and you will be back to your favourite albums in no time.

Writer's pick
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