The Top 10 Streaming Music Apps for the iPad

Pandora Radio

Pandora Radio allows you to create a personalized radio station by choosing an artist or song. Pandora Radio uses its extensive database to pick out similar music. The great part is that this database is based on the actual music, not on what other songs and fans of that particular artist also like. If you want to add variety to your station, add more artists or songs to it.

Pandora is supported by ads. You can get an ad-free version by subscribing to Pandora Plus or Pandora Premium, both of which offer higher quality audio and offline listening.

Apple Music

Unless you deleted it, you don't need to download an app from the App Store to stream music to your iPad with the Apple Music app. It comes installed on the iPad.

Apple's first attempt at streaming (iTunes Radio) was a bit shaky, but after buying Beats (now Apple Music 1), Apple stepped up its game and built Apple Music on the foundation of Beats Radio.

The free subscription includes Apple Music 1 and ad-supported radio stations, but a paid subscription is necessary to access the entire Apple Music catalog.

Spotify

Spotify is like Pandora Radio with more features. You can create a custom radio station based on an artist or song, and you can search for specific music to stream and make your own playlists. Spotify has a number of genre-based radio stations built into it, and by connecting to Facebook, you can share these playlists with your friends.

Although Spotify pushes a hefty subscription to continue listening after a free trial, Spotify Free remains available with access to more than 70 million songs. The Spotify Premium interface isn't quite as slick as it could be. Some of the recommendations are spotty, but considering you can play both personalized radio stations and playlists with specific music, you may find the subscription is a great way to save money on buying music.

iHeartRadio

As its name suggests, ​iHeartRadio focuses on radio. Real radio—with more than 1,500 live radio stations, including rock, country, pop, hip-hop, talk radio, news radio, and sports radio. You name it; it's there. You can listen to radio stations near you or your favorite genre in cities around the country.

Like Pandora and Spotify, you can create a personalized station based on an artist or song, but the bonus of iHeartRadio is access to real radio stations and the lack of any subscription requirement.

LiveXLive

LiveXLive bought out free radio service Slacker Radio to create its premium platform. It's similar to Pandora with hundreds of curated custom radio stations. You'll find a bit of everything here, and each station has dozens of artists programmed into it.

LiveXLive offers live radio stations and goes beyond music with live events and original programs. You can also personalize your listening experience with custom stations and playlists, but the handcrafted stations are the real bonus in this app.

TuneIn Radio

Easily one of the best apps for streaming radio stations across the country, TuneIn Radio is perfect for those who don't need to customize a radio station or who want a companion to Pandora.

TuneIn Radio has a simple interface that is easy to start using. One nice aspect is the ability to glimpse what is playing on the radio station—the song title and artist are displayed below the radio station—and TuneIn Radio packs in more than 100,000 stations, so you'll have plenty of choices.

Shazam

Shazam is a music discovery app without streaming music. Instead, this app listens to the music around you and identifies it, so if you hear a cool song playing on your iPad or while drinking your morning coffee at the local cafe, you can find out the name and artist. It also has an always-listening mode that constantly checks for nearby music.

You can also add songs you've discovered through Shazam directly to your Apple Music and Spotify playlists.

SoundCloud

SoundCloud is quickly taking over as the lesser-known musician's playground. It's a great way to upload your music and have it heard.

For those who love hidden gems, SoundCloud gives you an experience that's unlike the one you'll have on Pandora Radio, Apple Music, or Spotify. However, it is not all about discovering new talent. There are plenty of well-known artists using the service. SoundCloud has also become a favorite way to share music online.

Tidal

Tidal's claim to fame is its high-fidelity sound quality. Labeled a "lossless audio experience," Tidal streams CD-quality music without compromise. However, this hi-fi stream costs more than most other subscription services. Tidal also offers a free subscription, but this one abandons the main feature that sets Tidal apart. Still, for those who want the absolute best music experience, the extra money may be worth it.