Deezer Music Streaming Service: In-Depth Review of Features, Pricing, and Platforms

We've all heard of giants like Spotify, Apple Music, Pandora, and Google Play Music. In fact, we've compared the big three—Spotify, Apple Music, and Google Play Music—to help you choose the best fit. But have you tried Deezer? Launched in 2007 and finally available in the US in July 2016, Deezer impressed me during my hands-on testing. As someone who's explored countless streaming services, I can say it's worth your attention.

Unlike promising but struggling competitors like Tidal, Deezer delivers reliably. Here's what you need to know if you're considering a switch.

Free vs. Premium: Feature Breakdown

Deezer offers three account tiers, though details vary by region: Discovery (free basic), Premium+ ($10/month full access), and Elite (Sonos-exclusive). Family plans are available for sharing, similar to other services.

Discovery (Free) Limitations:

• Periodic audio ads between songs.
• 128 kbps MP3 quality only.
• 5 skips per hour.
• No offline listening.

Note: Free access often requires starting with the 30-day Premium trial and canceling. Free users get these core features:

• Playlists: Over 100,000 public playlists from a 40+ million song library, with 30-120 tracks each, filterable by 27 genres.
• Flows: Dynamic sequences of similar-sounding tracks by artist or genre—like an artist radio.
• Flow: Personalized mixes based on your listening history, favorites, and evolving tastes.

Premium-Only Features:

• Moods: Playlists curated by feeling (romance, party, workout, chill, etc.) across seven categories.
• New Releases: Daily updates of albums and singles by genre to keep you current.
• Hear This: Personalized recommendations for artists, albums, and playlists to discover new music.
• Offline Playback: Download tracks for anytime listening—essential for any streamer.
• Audio Quality: Upgrade to 320 kbps max.
• 5-Band Equalizer: Fine-tune your sound.
• Casting: Native Chromecast integration.
• Lyrics: Instant lyrics for vocals.
• App Extensions: 18 optional apps like Chordify (chord extraction) and IFTTT integration.

Deezer's free tier lags behind Spotify's, but Premium matches it closely in features.

Supported Devices:

• Web (Chrome, Firefox, Opera, Edge, Safari)
• Windows 10/8 (PC & mobile)
• macOS
• iPhone, iPod, iPad
• Android
• Roku
• Smart TVs (Samsung, LG, Toshiba, WD, Panasonic)
• Sonos
• And more!

Web Player: Solid with Room to Grow

My initial web player impression wasn't stellar—it's not as sleek as Spotify's. But it grew on me. The unique sidebar design suits discovery-focused navigation over browsing.

Muted whites and blacks with album art pops create a clean aesthetic. Browsing the full library isn't intuitive; it's built for discovery. Search shines: Instant results for hashtags, artists, albums, tracks, playlists, and Flows. Hit Enter for full results—play directly, filter by type, or combine tags like #classic + #sad.

No crashes in my tests—reliable once you're acclimated.

Desktop Apps: Functional Beta Builds

Windows and Mac apps are in beta, missing non-essentials like Hear This. Still stable and usable.

Mobile-first design means stretched elements on desktop and buried options (e.g., artist page via submenu). Minor annoyances, but daily-driver worthy. Mac's cleaner look edges out Windows.

Mobile Apps: Polished and Intuitive

Android/iOS apps are Deezer's strongest—smooth, spacious, with smart status bar use.

Customizable audio quality for mobile data/Wi-Fi streaming/downloads. Minor submenu navigation hiccups, but overall impressive.

Is Deezer Right for You?

Deezer's 40 million tracks cover mainstream and niche, but misses some mid-tier hits from Spotify or Amazon Prime. It's a strong Spotify rival—not better or worse. Try the 30-day free Premium trial.

Have you used Deezer? How does it compare? Share in the comments!