In November 2015, Apple launched its streaming Apple Music app on Android which is the most popular mobile Operating System on this side of the Sahara. Since then, the App has been pimped up with several features– including Beats 1, Connect, and custom music suggestions to mention but a few. Since then, many people have had the option to choose among other streaming apps like Spotify and Tidal.
There are three plans available for Apple Music subscribers— these include Student, Individual and Family plans. In usual Apple tradition, Apple Music users in the USA and other developed countries pay $9.99 (UGX 38,000) after the 3-month trial, and in developing nations mostly in Africa and Asia, they get to pay $4.99 (UGX 19,000) per month for the Family plan to enjoy the service. At that price, the service will allow you do download any music new or old onto your local storage, Count me in!
ALSO READ: Apple Music quietly added a UGX 170,000 annual subscription plan
Apple Music is available in iTunes, and for iOS and Android devices. But, which subscription plan is good for you?
| Student | Individual | Family | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Price | UGX 5,700 | UGX 12,000 | UGX 19,000 |
| Access to 60 million songs | YES | YES | YES |
| Listen online or off | YES | YES | YES |
| Free trial with no commitment* | YES | YES | YES |
| Stream ad-free music and music videos | YES | YES | YES |
| Download 100,000 songs to your library | YES | YES | YES |
| Access across your devices | YES | YES | YES |
| See what your friends are listening to | YES | YES | YES |
| Original shows, concerts, and exclusives | YES | YES | YES |
| Beats 1 live and on-demand radio shows | YES | YES | YES |
| Access for up to six people | NO | NO | YES |
| A personal account for each family member | NO | NO | YES |
| Sharing what you want, when you want | NO | NO | YES |
| Sharing of your existing music library | NO | NO | YES |
| Apple TV+ Access | YES | NO | NO |
The Individual plan is the most popular Apple Music plan
The most popular plan on Apple Music is the Individual plan but all plans offer a free trial, which means no commitment is required and the plan automatically renews after the trial is done until canceled. University student’s plans turn out to be very cheap at only UGX 5,700 per month but there is a catch, you will need to verify with Apple and prove to them that you are actually a student with a university Identity card.
Sharing of your existing Apple music library is confined only to the Family plan and Sharing makes it easy for up to six family members to use the same account. It includes the ability to set up an Apple ID for kids, set permissions remotely with Screen Time, and approve spending and downloads from a parent’s device. When you set up purchase sharing, the songs and albums purchased by family members are immediately available to everyone else in the group. And, of course, so are new purchases. The content appears automatically in the Purchased page in the App Store or iTunes Store for each family member.
As you notice Apple gives students accounts access to their Apple TV+ streaming catalogue. It should however be noted that this is a limited-time offer; offer may end at any time. Free Apple TV+ access for students ends when you no longer qualify or do not renew your Apple Music Student subscription. Offer is only good for verified university students and does not extend to a Family Sharing group.
At the end of the day it comes down which category suits you better, most people fall in the Individual plan category plan, but those with families can always subscribe to the Family Apple Music plan.
