Apple Music has a new $5 plan that may make you cancel Spotify

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Apple Music has a new $5 Voice Plan

Apple Music
Apple Music (Image credit: Apple)

Say hello to the $5 Voice Plan! It's a new subscription service the Cupertino-based tech giant added to the Apple Music app. Prior to the Voice Plan, one could only subscription to two plans: Individual ($10) and Family ($15).

Spotify must be sweating bullets. It, too, offers a $5 plan, but it's only available to students who are currently enrolled in an accredited higher-education institution (sorry high schoolers). Apple swooped in to undercut the competition with a $5 plan that everyone can use.

Apple Music: New $5 Voice Plan

Hey Siri, check on Spotify to see if it's still breathing! Apple has a new $5 Voice Plan that could threaten its music-streaming service rival. The $5 Voice Plan was unveiled at the October Apple Event alongside two new chips, a 14-inch MacBook Pro and the AirPods 3.

So how does the $5 Voice Plan work? You can currently request specific songs and artists with Siri on the Apple Music app, but the tech giant kicked it up a notch this year.

Apple Music Voice Plan

Apple Music Voice Plan (Image credit: Apple)

Apple enlisted "music experts" to create new playlists for hundreds of moods and activities. For example, if you're feeling tropical, give Siri a shout and say, "Play an island vibes playlist." Or if you're feeling creatively blocked, you can say, "Play a playlist for creative focus." No matter how you're feeling or what you're going through, the Apple Music app will have a playlist for you. 

This new feature is available to every music subscriber, but with the $5 Voice Plan, you can only use your voice — via the power of Siri — to access songs, stations and playlists in Apple Music. Unlike the other subscriptions (Individual and Family), you can only use Voice Plan on Apple devices. You also will not have access to spatial and lossless audio support.

Apple Music Voice Plan

Apple Music Voice Plan (Image credit: Apple)

Apple didn't specify a release date for the $5 Voice Plan, but you should expect it to arrive later this fall.

Kimberly Gedeon
Kimberly Gedeon

Kimberly Gedeon, holding a Master's degree in International Journalism, launched her career as a journalist for MadameNoire's business beat in 2013. She loved translating stuffy stories about the economy, personal finance and investing into digestible, easy-to-understand, entertaining stories for young women of color. During her time on the business beat, she discovered her passion for tech as she dove into articles about tech entrepreneurship, the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) and the latest tablets. After eight years of freelancing, dabbling in a myriad of beats, she's finally found a home at Laptop Mag that accepts her as the crypto-addicted, virtual reality-loving, investing-focused, tech-fascinated nerd she is. Woot!