What is Deezer? Here’s everything you need to know in 2022

It has been about 15 years since Deezer launched. In that time, the music streaming service has grown both in its availability worldwide and the number of artists and songs on the platform.

Here’s what you need to know about Deezer, what it offers, and if it’s worth the cash to snag a subscription.

Deezer is a digital, online music streaming service. You’ll have access to music and podcasts if you download the app or use the desktop player. Deezer claims that over 90 million tracks are available worldwide.

You can sift through multiple genres on your own or take advantage of recommendations based on your listening habits. If you want to find new music, there’s also Deezer Originals, where you can find content only available through the platform.

There are multiple subscription levels to choose from, though they aren’t all available in every country that you can use Deezer. We’ll cover each of these subscription levels shortly.

Is Deezer free?

Depending on your country, you may have access to Deezer Free. You can stream music, make playlists, and get recommendations at this subscription level.

You can also take advantage of a feature called SongCatcher. It works like Shazam. If you hear a song out in the world, you can have SongCatcher listen to it and try to identify it. Lyrics, when available for a track, are also available at this subscription level.

Advertisements will occasionally play if you choose the free plan. You don’t get true on-demand playback with limited skips. Instead, there’s a shuffle-based playback regimen. You can’t save songs to listen to offline, either. Your maximum streaming bitrate at this level is 128kbps.

Why upgrade to Deezer Premium?

Subscribing to Deezer Premium nets you some benefits. The big one is no more advertisements. But there are some other advantages found in this subscription tier:

• Better audio quality: if you want lossless streaming, Deezer Premium gives you CD-quality tracks to enjoy.
• Offline listening: you can listen to songs without an internet connection by saving them and then enjoying them later.
• Unlimited skips: no need to sit through songs you don’t like. Just hit skip until you find another banger. Play individual tracks or playlists as you wish.
• Personalized recommendations: Deezer Flow, Discovery, Chill, and New Releases are all accessible so you can find new music.
• Cross-device syncing: play music on various supported devices (up to three at a time) and switch between them.

Like any other streaming service, you need an internet connection to use Deezer. After that, you just need to make an account for the free subscription. Or you can sign up for a trial of Premium.

After that, you’ll need to install the Deezer app on your phone (iOS or Android). There’s also a desktop app you can use on Windows or macOS. If you don’t want either of those, you can also use the web player in your browser.

After setting up an account, you can explore what Deezer offers. You can browse through music based on genre, popularity, musicians, albums, and other criteria. Or you can check out the available podcasts.

The more you listen, the more tailored recommendations will become. The Flow discovery feature will quickly determine your preferences and suggest similar things to listen to.

If you don’t like what the app comes up with, you can easily make your own. Just hit the Playlists option in the sidebar and then hit Create a playlist. You can add songs to playlists any time, not just when creating one.

Additionally, you can find and favorite playlists created by other people. If you don’t want to bother with playlists, there’s always the option of just favoriting a bunch of tracks and then listening to those. Also, you could choose to subscribe to artists by clicking on the Bell icon to get notifications about releases and more personalized recommendations.

How much is Deezer Premium?

Ad-supported Deezer is free, but you have a few options when it comes to Premium.

• Deezer Premium — $9.99 USD per month. Includes access for one user on up to three devices, ad-free listening, unlimited skips, CD-quality tracks, and on-demand playback. An annual subscription is available for 25% off.
• Deezer Family — $14.99 per month. All Premium features plus up to six individual accounts on up to 13 devices and child-specific profiles.
• Deezer Student — A 50% discount on Deezer Premium.

Deezer is available in many countries worldwide, but sometimes only with a paid subscription. Deezer maintains a full list of countries where you can use the streaming service.

If you can’t use Deezer in your home country, fear not, there are alternatives out there that might be available.

Deezer isn’t the only streaming music option out there. There are others, and some of them offer additional features or bigger catalogs of content.

Here are a few to choose from below and some reasons why they might be a better fit for you.

Spotify is the big name in music streaming. It offers a huge catalog of music and podcasts plus availability on many devices. You can even get a discounted Hulu subscription upon signing up in the United States.

Spotify is cheaper than Deezer, with an individual subscription going for $9.99 per month and a two-person option for $12.99. A family plan is $15.99 per month, and a student plan is $4.99 per month.

However, Spotify does not yet offer a hifi option. It was set to launch in 2021, but so far, it has not.

Apple Music

Apple Music is the other big name in streaming. It has a more limited free tier, but the premium plan has over 50 million songs and iCloud integration.

An individual plan on Apple Music is $9.99 per month, and a family plan is $14.99 per month. You can also opt for the Apple One program and get Apple TV Plus, iCloud, Apple Arcade, and more for $14.95 a month. A stripped-down version called Voice is $4.99 per month. You get access to the full library but some features will be missing, such as downloads or multiple device access.

Apple Music offers both 16-bit, CD-quality, and 24-bit tracks when you opt for a paid plan. However, the 24-bit tracks will require an external digital-to-analog converter (DAC).

Qobuz is focused on quality, meaning all plans give you access to lossless streaming. That content catalog might be missing some of your musical preferences, however. There is no free plan, but anyone can buy content from the Qobuz download store even without subscribing.

A single-user Studio subscription is $12.99 per month or $129.99 for an annual subscription, while a two-person account is $17.99 per month or $179.88 annually. It gives you access to the full catalog, offline listening, and editorial content. A single-user Sublime subscription is $179.99 per year with the same benefits and up to 60% off on purchases from the store while a two-person account is $179.88 annually or $17.99 per month. Qobuz family plans are $17.99 a month and support up to six users.

YouTube Music is Google’s offering in the streaming world. It doesn’t offer a high-quality streaming option or many fancy features, but it has a huge content catalog. If you want to find obscure covers or difficult-to-find tracks, this service likely has them. Plus, the recommendations algorithm is quite good.

You can sign up for a subscription at $9.99 per month. However, if you sign up for YouTube Premium at $11.99 per month, you get YouTube Music plus no more ads in videos.

Tidal is another quality-focused music streaming service. You get the option to sign up for HiFi or HiFi Plus. Plus, there’s video content, including music videos, live shows, and documentaries on the platform, with some of them being exclusive.

An individual HiFI plan is $9.99 monthly for access to 16-bit tracks, and a family HiFi plan is $14.99 monthly for up to six people. HiFi Plus is $19.99 per month and goes up to 24-bit tracks plus support for Dolby Atmos and Sony 360 Reality Audio, with a family HiFi Plus plan being $29.99 per month. Discounts are available for students, military, and first responders.