Apple Music Price in India Cut for All Tiers, Now Starts at Rs. 99 per Month

Apple Music has slashed its subscription rates in India across the board — Rs. 49 per month for students, Rs. 99 per month or Rs. 999 per year for individuals, and Rs. 149 per month for families — to make it more competitive in the nascent Indian music streaming market. Earlier, Apple Music was priced at Rs. 60 per month, Rs. 120 per month or Rs. 1,200 per year, and Rs. 190 per month, for students, individuals and families, respectively, which amounts to a savings of 18.33, 17.5 or 16.75, and 21.5 percent with the new pricing structure.

The new Rs. 99 per month price for individuals brings Apple Music in line with all of Google Play Music, Gaana, Hungama Music, JioSaavn, Wynk, and YouTube Music, which cost Rs. 99 per month as well, for an individual subscription. Only YouTube Music has a family subscription among those six, which costs Rs. 149 per month. With Apple lowering its rates, Spotify is now the most expensive of the lot. It costs Rs. 59 per month for students, and Rs. 119 per month or Rs. 1,189 per year for individuals.

Amazon Music, which is part of the Prime membership — Rs. 129 per month or Rs. 999 per year — is even more expensive if you pay monthly, but a lot more affordable if you pay annually. Of course, when it comes to annual plans, local competitors have the upper hand. Both Gaana and JioSaavn recently slashed their yearly rates, bringing it down to Rs. 299. Gaana also has an annual student offering at Rs. 149 per year.

Even though all international players — be it Amazon, Apple or Google — have priced their music streaming offerings in India in accordance with people's purchasing power, paid subscriptions form a negligible part of the Indian music market: 1 percent.

We discussed Spotify's India launch on Orbital, our weekly technology podcast, which you can subscribe to via Apple Podcasts or RSS, download the episode, or just hit the play button below.