There is a wide range of different music services, such as YouTube or Spotify, to assure one always has music playing throughout the day. All apps have advantages and disadvantages, such as whether the service is free or if the app has a wide range of genres, but which music app is best according to RHS students and why?

In a poll of 100 RHS students, 59 percent primarily use Spotify. Spotify is an app widely used for its good quality and music selection. The top charts and auto-generated playlists create a world of music for Spotify users to enjoy and explore.

“I love Spotify because it has all types of music. I listen primarily to pop and, although they have everything, they primarily have pop music featured,” sophomore Mikki Mesfin said.

Out of the 59 percent that use Spotify, 30 percent use the app pay for Spotify Premium. Spotify premium allows users to download music onto their phones to use offline as well as listen ad-free.

“I don’t think it’s worth it to pay $10 a month [for Spotify Premium] because I use other apps as well and I don’t think it’s worth it to pay if I am not going to be on it all the time,” freshman Athena Archer said.

Ranking second to Spotify in the most used music sources at RHS is Apple Music. 13 percent of RHS students use Apple music and results show the class of 2020 uses it the most. Apple music launched June 30, 2015 and starts new subscribers out with a free three month trial to test out the app. Apple music costs $9.99 per person a month or $14.99 per month on the family plan.

Apple music is well liked for its music variety and lack of ads to interrupt music. Like Spotify, Apple music has generated playlists as well as the ability to create your own. Users find the app user friendly and convenient due to the fact that any music formerly owned on iTunes will appear in the new Apple Music library once subscribed.

“I have an iPhone and the app was already there. I used the free trial when it came out and really liked it. It was convenient and every song I’ve searched for I found,” sophomore Henry Jones said.

15 percent of the school used other apps such as Music Packet, Pandora, Youtube, Google play, Playtube or different music downloading apps.

“I use Playtube because it’s free and I can listen to music without wifi. I’ve tried Spotify but it wasn’t very user friendly. I found it confusing,” senior Lauren Brosoto said.

Although these apps seem very similar, the music selection is what really sets them apart. While Spotify and Apple Music promotes billboard 100 music, sources such as Soundcloud, Spinrilla or PlayTube include unsigned and upcoming artists with smaller fanbases.

According to a study done at Stanford Medical, “The brain partitions information into meaningful chunks by extracting information about beginnings, endings and the boundaries between events.”

Music can help bring meaning to information learned and make connections in the brain to better retain material. Therefore, no matter what source students use, music can help students learn and make sense of information taken in throughout their school day.