When it comes to music, Pandora is a long-standing name in the competition for music
streaming platforms. It offers users access to a mountainous library of music and podcasts
from a plethora of genres. Like most music platforms, Pandora offers three subscription tiers
to its users, including Pandora Free, Pandora Plus, and Pandora Premium.
The free plan works on an ad-supported service, leaving users to listen to unskippable ads
between songs without paying a dime. However, those who wish to enjoy an ad-free
experience must upgrade to the two paid subscription tiers. While both tiers offer an ad-free
music and podcast streaming experience, they both deliver different levels of premium
features to take your music listening experience to another level.
If you’ve grown tired of having your streaming interrupted by ads, switching to a paid plan
can elevate your streaming experience and allow you to enjoy uninterrupted music and
podcasts. It’s vital to learn the key differences between Pandora Plus vs Premium to learn
about their distinct features and pricing to help you make an informed decision.
Pandora Plus vs Premium: Overview
Before we get straight into dissecting their key features, it’s important to highlight what each
subscription offers to its users. Since each subscription delivers customized experiences to
different preferences and needs, their overall features differ slightly to cater to those needs.
Pandora Plus
To elevate its users’ music experience beyond the free version, Pandora Plus serves as the
basic paid subscription plan. By paying for the Plus version, the user gets access to ad-free
music and podcast streaming. They also gain access to unlimited skips which allows users
to easily navigate skip and shuffle tracks. Pandora Plus users can also create custom radio
stations to let them curate listening experiences that satisfy their musical needs.
Pandora Premium
Pandora Premium grants complete control over musical libraries for those looking to get
more advanced and customized music streaming experiences. The Premium version builds
over the Plus version, letting users access on-demand streaming by enabling them to search
and play the track of their choice. It also takes it a step further and opens the option of
downloadable tracks for its users, allowing them to download any song of their choice and
enjoy an offline music listening experience.
Platform Key Features Comparison
With their general experience out of the way, it’s vital to dive deeper into comparing the key
features of both platforms to understand their true distinction. Here are the key features
compared of Pandora Plus vs Premium to help you gain a clearer idea about their services:
- Ad-Free Music Streaming
Nothing is worse than an ad playing when you’re in the middle of a jamming session. To
avoid that, both Pandora Plus and Premium provide ad-free music streaming experiences to
their users. Users can enjoy uninterrupted music and podcasts without having unskippable
ads play in between tracks to offer a more enhanced listening experience. - Music Streaming Quality and Seamlessness
Users are bound to get an enhanced music streaming quality, regardless of the choice they
make between Pandora Plus vs Premium. The difference between the platforms lies in the
amount of control their users get over the streaming quality.
While Pandora Plus offers a music streaming experience at 192 kbps, Pandora Premium
offers three streaming quality options and allows its users to select between Low (64 kbps),
Standard (128 kbps), and High (192 kbps). This custom level of control serves as an ideal
option for users who wish to save data or enjoy an immersive music listening experience. - Offline Listening Experience
Offline listening allows you to enjoy music despite not having access to an internet
connection. However, when it comes to offline listening between Pandora Plus vs Premium,
only Pandora Premium offers it.
Whether you’re suffering from boredom on a long flight or simply cannot access the internet,
this offline mode serves as the best option to enjoy music by downloading it. Users can also
customize their offline playlists by using the Premium version, which makes it the perfect
option for uninterrupted music listening. - Navigation and User Interface
No one wants to stream music on a platform that’s too confusing and overwhelming to use.
To offer an enhanced user experience, both Pandora Plus and Pandora Premium maintain a
simple and easy-to-use interface that enables fast and seamless navigation.
Pandora Plus stands out from the free version with its smooth integration with smart devices,
offering control via voice command and remote access. On the other hand, Pandora
Premium takes it a step further by offering an intuitive user interface integrated with a search
option and a high customization level. - Pricing Structure
Pandora, generally, is an affordable music streaming platform when compared to others in
the competition while offering premium music listening features. The pricing of both
subscription plans is set per the enhanced features they offer. Here’s the pricing structure for
Pandora Plus and Premium:
● Pandora Plus offers a subscription of $4.99/month and $54.89/year.
● Pandora Premium offers a subscription of $9.99/month and $109.89/year.
Both platforms offer flexible payment options and models, catering to every user’s
convenience. Users can also benefit from the discounted plans offered by Pandora for both
subscriptions annually.
Pandora Plus vs Premium: Which Should You Choose?
There’s no right answer to this question since the ideal choice for you between these
subscription plans depends on your listing preferences, budget, and level of music
enthusiasm.
You can choose Pandora Plus if:
● You have a small monthly or annual budget
● You are an enjoyer of a curated radio experience and need some essential streaming
control
● You wish to access high-quality music streaming
You can choose Pandora Premium if:
● You wish to have complete control over track selection and streaming
● You want to create and share customized playlists
● You want to enjoy offline listening
It’s important to see which of these features appeal to you the most to choose the right
subscription plan for your music streaming needs.
Enjoy Enhanced Music & Podcast Streaming Experience With Pandora’s Paid Plans
If you’re a music enthusiast and podcast lover, Pandora offers an unrivaled music and
podcast streaming experience that can be enhanced further by accessing its paid plans:
Pandora Plus and Premium. It’s vital that you consider every feature, pricing, and
personalization option before you choose the right subscription plan between Pandora Plus
vs Premium. Since both tiers deliver unique and boosted streaming features, it’s unlikely
you’ll regret your decision regardless of the plan you pick.
