Which is More User-Friendly for the Visually Impaired, Spotify or YouTube Music?

Welcome back to our app and tech showdown segment! Instead of bothering to compare our own achievements with the success of the neighbor's kid—which only leads to overthinking, acid reflux, and excessive stress at night—it's much better to dissect something clearly beneficial: apps and technology. Much safer for our collective sanity, wouldn't you agree?

Allow me to introduce myself, I'm Celine. Your ever-cheerful, endlessly energetic, and, of course, super-friendly sunshine girl. And right next to me, leaning back very casually, is our reliable "small fry source": Riyan. Just a heads-up for those of you visiting this blog for the first time, my incredibly annoying best friend is embarking on a new chapter in his life after permanently losing his sight almost a year ago.

"What's this, Cel? Suddenly opening with a TV presenter voice. Are we playing journalists now?" Riyan protested in a lazy tone I knew all too well. His head turned slightly towards me, relying on his hearing, which had become his primary radar for responding to his surroundings.

"Hey, be a little professional! This is for educational content that benefits humanity, you know," I retorted quickly.

The atmosphere this afternoon was actually quite relaxed. We were sitting together, enjoying the gentle breeze. However, I had been observing Riyan's movements for a while. It was unusual for him to be so quiet. He seemed so calm, sitting still and motionless with one earphone in his left ear, while his head occasionally nodded slightly to a rhythm.

"What are you doing, Yan? You've been so quiet, like someone meditating and waiting for a revelation," I asked, breaking the silence.

"Oh, this? Just listening to music," he replied casually, his fingers nimbly tracing and swiping the smartphone screen on his lap. Faintly, the voice of a screen reader from his device could be heard mumbling at a very fast speaking pace—typical of the listening speed of visually impaired friends, which often makes ordinary people dizzy to hear—as it navigated an application's interface.

Hearing the word "music" and seeing his interaction with the phone, an imaginary light bulb seemed to glow brightly above my head. My writing instinct and curious spirit immediately yearned to be unleashed.

"Wow, what a coincidence! Perfect timing. In that case, today the two of us will thoroughly discuss: among the two current audio streaming giants, which music app is the most disability-friendly!" I exclaimed enthusiastically, leaning my face closer so my voice would be more dominant than the music in his ears.

Riyan flinched slightly, his expression instantly turning confused. "Huh... why so sudden? I thought on the way here you only promised to treat me to snacks, not an agenda to think and dissect apps like this."

Without giving him room for further protest, my fingers smoothly landed and playfully pinched his waist.

"Ouch!" Riyan yelped in surprise, rubbing his waist, which had fallen victim to my deadly pinch.

"Just go with it and follow the flow," I whispered, laughing triumphantly. So, let's begin this dissection. When it comes to digital music, two big names immediately come to mind...

Yes, exactly what you're thinking. Spotify and YouTube Music.

These two music platforms are very well-known by Indonesians, especially for those of us whose daily lives revolve around playlists. True, there are many other names floating around like Apple Music, Joox, Resso, or Amazon Music. But honestly, let's be realistic. For the average Indonesian, those apps feel less relatable or less popular. Whether it's because of their price, their overly exclusive ecosystem (ahem, Apple Music), or their slowly fading popularity overshadowed by time. So, the real battleground in our country right now is dominated only by these two giants.

To understand their magnitude, let's get acquainted for a moment.

First, let's discuss the reigning champion: Spotify. Much like how ChatGPT exploded and defined what AI is in the public's mind, Spotify is a revolutionary pioneer that completely changed the way we listen to music. Born in Sweden around 2008, this green-and-black logo app slowly but surely succeeded in killing off the era of illegal MP3 piracy that we used to secretly download. They arrived bringing magic: millions of legal songs in your pocket, ready to play anytime.

Spotify has been hugely successful in building top-of-mind awareness. If people want to stream songs or podcasts, the first name that reflexively comes out is Spotify. It's like the "Indomie" or "Aqua" of music apps. It set the standard for how an algorithm should work to recommend songs, and it also created the annual pop culture trend that netizens always look forward to: Spotify Wrapped.

Then, in the other corner of the ring, stands the challenger: YouTube Music.

If Spotify is a singular professor dedicated solely to audio, YouTube Music is exactly like Gemini—a giant product with many tentacles born from the Google ecosystem. Replacing its predecessor (Google Play Music), YouTube Music was released carrying a "nuclear weapon" that no other platform possesses: YouTube's own massive database.

Don't underestimate an app directly connected to the Google ecosystem! YouTube Music's main strength lies in its sometimes absurd completeness. Official songs from labels? Check. Acoustic cover videos from street musicians in Jogja? Check. Blurry live concert recordings from the 90s? Check. Even obscure indie underground remixes by unknown DJs are all available there. They unite the experience of watching videos and listening to music under one roof.

"Now, the question is," I said, turning back to look at Riyan, who was slowly starting to accept his fate as my impromptu source for the day. "As someone who navigates the digital world using a screen reader every day, among these two giants, which app interface is the most friendly for visually impaired friends? Which one has clear buttons, and which one makes your fingers curl from being so messy?"

"YouTube Music, of course," Riyan answered quickly, almost without a pause for thought.

"Oh really? A landslide victory?" I prodded, a bit surprised because I thought he would choose Spotify, which is arguably more popular.

"A clear win when it comes to disability-friendliness," Riyan nodded firmly. He then felt his phone, showing a black screen that immediately responded with the screen reader's chatter as his fingers touched the glass. "YouTube Music's User Interface (UI) design is very organized, neat, and not cluttered. It's really simple."

Riyan began explaining like a professional gadget reviewer. "Google seems to have really thought about button placement for easy access. In fact, their design updates make the app even more accessible. Do you realize that the 'Search' feature used to be tucked away in the top right corner of the screen? Well, now it's been moved to a main navigation menu button lined up at the bottom, parallel to the 'Home' and 'Library' tabs. For visually impaired users, this seemingly trivial change is actually a huge help! Our fingers don't have to bother reaching far to the top of the screen just to find a song."

I nodded in understanding, amazed at how detailed Riyan was in observing the menu layout. "Makes sense. So, what about the king of streaming, Spotify?"

Riyan sighed softly, as if he had just been asked about a thesis revision rejected by his professor. "To be honest... for Spotify, it's a bit sad. This app is not very friendly for screen reader accessibility. The placement of buttons and menus, from a screen reader's perspective, feels very messy and overlapping. If I want to find a specific song or just play a favorite playlist, I have to work extra hard swiping the screen back and forth. The navigation often makes my fingers curl."

However, Riyan's facial expression suddenly changed. A faint smile, full of nostalgia, appeared on his lips.

"But Cel, even though I often grumble when using Spotify now, I completely understand why they designed their app that way," Riyan continued, his voice softening slightly. "If we compare visuals with YouTube Music, Spotify is clearly the aesthetic champion. Its UI design is very pleasing to the eye, its visual elements stand out, and its vibe perfectly suits Gen Z's taste. In short, it's very Instagrammable! I still remember clearly... when my eyes could still see, opening Spotify felt so cool and modern."

We both fell silent for a moment. The afternoon breeze swept across our faces, while from Riyan's phone, soft music still played.

"But..." Riyan spoke again, this time with a tone that suddenly made my chest feel a little tight. "What does all that aesthetics mean when your eyes can no longer see it, Cel?"

I stared at him intently, speechless.

"In my current situation, Instagrammable visuals are worthless. When you lose your sight, your priorities change completely. I now prioritize ease of use, accessibility, and how quickly an app can help me play the song I want, far more than how aesthetic the animations playing on the screen are."

Riyan's words successfully silenced me. I pondered. He was right. Something that we (who can see) have always considered very cool and visually pleasing, can apparently transform into a difficult barrier for friends with visual impairments.

"So, in terms of audio quality and song collection, can YouTube Music also beat Spotify?" I asked, trying to shift the mood so it wouldn't be too melancholic.

"For this question, the answer is a bit complicated, Cel," Riyan adjusted his sitting position. His hands rested on his knees. "Because these two giants live in completely different ecosystems."

"What do you mean by different ecosystems?" I asked, demanding an explanation.

"Here's the thing, YouTube Music is like a zoo or a night market. Its song collection is truly beyond reason, it's so free! Do you want to find a trendy DJ remix song like those played in public minivans? It's there. Impromptu acoustic covers by street musicians? Plenty. And even, the latest thing I've been enjoying lately... YouTube Music also provides AI-generated music." Riyan chuckled before continuing, "And for some reason, sometimes these AI-generated results sound even better than the original singers!"

I chuckled softly. "Wow, that's a bit mean. But it makes sense, YouTube has always been a place for free content from anyone."

"Exactly! Now, Spotify is like a fine dining restaurant with a super strict doorman," Riyan continued, his tone sounding more authoritative this time. "They win hands down when it comes to exclusivity. Spotify doesn't just release any song onto their platform. You'll be hard-pressed to find obscure audio. Forget strange music, even cover songs are very limited in number and rarely found."

"But there's one thing about Spotify that feels incredibly hard for any platform to beat, Cel: Their incredibly genius algorithm," Riyan praised, raising his index finger. "Spotify is like a psychic. For example, you're listening to a song that's perfectly your taste. When that song ends, in the next rotation, their algorithm will present a list of other songs with the exact same vibe as your taste. The mood transition is so smooth, nothing goes astray."

"Wow, YouTube Music's engine is from Google, so how can its algorithm be less smart?" I prodded.

Hearing that, Riyan just let out a long sigh. "Well, this is the main problem. YouTube Music's algorithm is considered... a bit chaotic and often causes sudden mood swings."

"How chaotic?"

"Okay, imagine this. I'm happily listening to an upbeat, energetic song. Then suddenly, in the next automatic rotation, a really sad, melancholic song plays instead. Before I've even finished adjusting my emotions, in the third rotation, it's EDM music! My feelings are completely shattered, aren't they?" Riyan complained with a feigned miserable face. "My ears and head feel like they're on an emotional rollercoaster."

I couldn't hold back my laughter anymore. Imagining Riyan, who was feeling mellow, suddenly being hit by the thumping bass of EDM music truly made my stomach cramp.

"Honestly, this auto-play feature is the most annoying thing for me when using YouTube Music," Riyan added, grumbling. "Because of that, if you ask for my advice as a loyal user, I'd recommend you curate your own playlist first before hitting play. Don't surrender your mood's fate to YouTube Music's algorithm, unless you're ready for a heart attack."

"So, if we talk about price, which one is more wallet-friendly?" I asked, shifting to the most realistic question. Money, of course.

Riyan adjusted his sitting position. "Actually, the basic prices of both apps are quite similar. But there's a special trick if you want to enter the Google ecosystem. If you want to subscribe to YouTube Music, my advice is never to buy the subscription from within the YouTube Music app itself."

I furrowed my brow. "Oh, why?"

"You'll lose out!" Riyan chuckled. "It's better to subscribe to YouTube Premium directly through the regular YouTube app. For a still quite affordable price, you automatically get ad-free video access and YouTube Music at the same time. Kill two birds with one stone. Plus, there are Student and Family plan options that can be shared. Much more profitable."

"What about Spotify?"

"Spotify's pricing is standard. There's a Standard version and also a Platinum version. The difference is, with the Platinum version, you can invite two other accounts, so there are a total of three users in one paid package. Additionally, this Platinum version offers lossless audio features."

"Wow, lossless means super clear audio quality, right?" I prodded.

Riyan nodded, but his fingers tapped the earphone in his ear. "Yes, but I think this lossless audio feature is a bit wasteful if you're just using standard headphones. The difference is only truly noticeable if you use In-Ear Monitors (IEMs) or very high-quality expensive headphones. If your listening device is ordinary, then you won't feel the difference."

"Okay, makes sense. Now, since Spotify often boasts about their Podcasts, do you think that's a plus for choosing Spotify?"

Riyan scoffed softly. "It's a bit disappointing, actually. For me, podcasts on Spotify aren't that special. Why? Because the majority of podcasts available on Spotify are ultimately also available on YouTube. You can access them on those creators' channels in video form. There are indeed a few labeled as exclusive only to Spotify, but their number is very small."

"Then, if we discuss the worst-case scenario... what if we're broke and forced to use the free version? How aggressive are the ads?"

This time Riyan smiled wryly. "This is where the difference lies, Cel. If you don't subscribe, both will definitely be annoying because of ads. But the ads on free Spotify are still quite tolerable. They usually only appear once every few songs, for example, after five songs, there's one ad. But what about free YouTube Music?"

Riyan shook his head dramatically. "It's a disaster. Every time a song finishes, an ad appears! And if you don't skip it—which is a bit troublesome for screen reader users because they have to feel around for the skip button—the ads can last for minutes. That's why I think you absolutely must buy a subscription to YouTube Music if you want to enjoy it."

"But wait, Spotify also has a very annoying drawback lately," Riyan suddenly frowned, his tone turning irritated. "This is quite bothersome for me, who's used to using In-Ear Monitors or headphones. You know how we can usually double-tap the button on our headset to play the previous track, right?"

"Yes, I know! I do that often too," I quickly replied.

"Exactly! For some reason, when I double-tap that button on Spotify, the song won't go back! Even though I remember it used to. I even switched several headsets, and the result was still the same. You yourself just told me you can't use that feature anymore, right?"

I nodded enthusiastically. "Yes! I even thought my earphones were broken!"

"It's not your device that's broken, it's the app that's weird. So, playing the previous song by double-tapping the headset button no longer works. You have to manually tap the screen using a screen reader. It's complicated! What's worse, if you use the free version of Spotify, the feature to go back to the previous song is indeed locked. The music will constantly be forced forward."

Seeing Riyan getting emotional and cursing his headset buttons, I smiled and tried to switch to something else. "Hey, speaking of which, it's almost the end of the year. Usually, people are busy showing off their Spotify Wrapped or YouTube Music Recap. For you—"

"I'm not going to talk about year-end music recaps or rewinds," Riyan cut in firmly, waving his hand casually. "Because I don't think they're important or useful anyway."

I chuckled softly. Given his condition, the aesthetic graphical visualization of year-end recaps indeed offered no value to his screen reader system.

"Okay, okay. In that case, we've arrived at the final and ultimate question!" I exclaimed. "After all these complaints and technical showdowns... if I forced you to delete one of these apps from your phone right now, which one would you delete? Spotify or YouTube Music?"

Riyan smiled. A very wide smile. Instead of answering, he felt his phone screen, unlocked it, and held the screen out towards me.

I peered closer. On his home screen, there weren't just Spotify and YouTube Music icons. Right next to them, there was an Apple Music icon.

"All three?!" I shrieked in surprise.

"Of course, I wouldn't delete any of them," Riyan replied casually. "I subscribe to all the apps. In fact, look, I even subscribe to Apple Music."

He then took a deep breath, his smile softening, blending with the afternoon breeze that had accompanied our conversation all along.

"Cel, because my daily life now relies on my sense of hearing, listening to music has become my world. So, it doesn't matter to me whether I use YouTube Music, Spotify, or any other music app."

Riyan turned his head towards me, as if those eyes could still look at me clearly. "Because truly, that is one of my greatest entertainments right now."

I fell silent, absorbing his concluding words, so simple yet deeply etched in my memory. Behind complicated app interfaces, broken buttons, or annoying ad sequences, technology still holds one noble purpose: to accompany humans and add color, even in places no longer touched by light.