SoundCloud or Mixcloud? Making the Right Choice for Your Music

Discussions about the best music streaming service continue all the time. People compare various platforms to decide which one suits their expectations and offers the highest number of options for musicians. Some fairly choose Spotify as the most popular and attended music streaming platform. Others go for Apple Music, partly because they already use Apple devices and don't want to switch to something else.  

Still, if we go on the level below and look at other platforms, we find two competitive services: Mixcloud and SoundCloud. Such services allow you to upload tracks, share them, and monetize your content. You can start your path and gather a community of individuals with the same music taste. Still, if there's a need to decide between SoundCloud and Mixcloud, which one is better? In this article, we will compare major aspects of both services to help you decide which platform is better.

Paid Subscriptions for Creators

The first component that is similar for both platforms is paid subscription. If we compare SoundCloud vs Spotify or Apple Music, we would say that SoundCloud will lose because of this factor. Still, these platforms are equal in this component because paid subscription gives musicians access to advanced capabilities. 

On SoundCloud, you can subscribe to SoundCloud Next Pro and get access to advanced editing, publishing, and sharing options. It includes

• Unlimited track uploads
• Unlimited distribution via other music platforms (Spotify, TikTok, Apple Music, etc.)
• Custom features for profile management. For example, you can spotlight the five best tracks so listeners will see them when visiting your profile.
• Detailed reports with stats about streams, engagement, unique track engagements, etc.
• Exclusive partner offers to increase your revenue and get bigger income

You can get a monthly subscription or get a package for one year without permission to extend it every month. Moreover, if you invest in promotion, publish your music regularly, and share tracks across social networks, the subscription will pay off.

What about Mixcloud? This service also has an advanced package for creators. With it, you are able to:

• Upload an unlimited number of tracks
• Stream video and audio content without limits
• Have a better quality of your audio
• Have access to advanced stats and analytical tools
• Upload tracks according to your custom schedule
• Make tags for hosts in your shows
• Promote your content on Facebook and Twitch
• Launch private streams
• Monetize your content

As we see, there is no big difference in the number of options that become available with a paid subscription.

The most important part, monetization, becomes available after the activation, so you can start pushing your music to make money. Some users say it's unfair because, on other platforms, you have to unlock royalties. For example, on Spotify, you have to reach at least 1000 streams over the last 12 months, and only then you will get paid. At the same time, Mixcloud and SoundCloud are two services that offer a simple start to the career. You need to pay to get paid, and you also receive additional tools to have better promotion. Moreover, you are not limited to uploading single tracks or have time limits. You can manage your posting schedule and set releases for specific times.

How Artist Push Elevated Alex's SoundCloud Presence

Discover how Artist Push helped an independent electronic music producer, Alex, significantly enhance his SoundCloud presence through a strategic promo campaign lead to making money on Soundcloud. This case study demonstrates the effectiveness of targeted promotions in increasing plays, followers, comments, and overall engagement on the platform. Learn from Alex's experience and see how you can achieve similar success with your music.

Engagement and Community Activities

Being a music creator is not just about recording, sharing, and promoting. It's also about building a community and expanding your global audience. You can start with a small group of people who enjoy your music and end up with one million active music listeners who support you and share your tracks. Still, what is the best place to build your future community?

SoundCloud has a small advantage due to its larger user base. The platform has over 76 million registered users and around 25 million creators. The music library contains over 200 million tracks and shows, and this number is growing each month as new artists and podcasters enter the service.

Mixcloud focuses on curated content and unites users to create a community of music enjoyers. A platform is comfortable for everyone who wants to listen, share, and leaver reactions to selected songs. The most engaged songs move to the top.

Subscriptions for Listeners

Paid options are available not only for musicians but also for listeners. Let's start with Mixcloud. This platform offers several benefits for those who upgrade their membership. For example, you have unlimited replays, offline listening, access to the complete tracklist, and an ad-free music listening experience.

On SoundCloud, you can select between three different types of subscriptions: SoundCloud Go, SoundCloud Go+, and SoundCloud DJ. Let's have a look at the main differences.

• SoundCloud Go allows you to listen to music offline and access tracks without ads.
  
  
• SoundCloud Go+ adds new features. You can access full catalogs instead of single tracks and listen to selected songs in better quality. Also, you can integrate with DJ tools.
  
  
• SoundCloud DJ includes all the previous upgrades and one more option. You can save unlimited tracks and launch them offline using the selected DJ tools.

Despite the fact that SoundCloud is more familiar to average users, the offer from Mixcloud looks more affordable. You have the same options, and you don't need to pay more to upgrade your access. You still can download music, explore new artists, share radio shows, and play songs as many times as you want.

Mixcloud or SoundCloud: What Should You Prefer?

If we sum up our compartment and decide what service is the best, we won't give you an exact answer. A lot depends on personal preferences and experience in music distribution. On one hand, SoundCloud has a simple interface and a solid number of features for beginners. At the same time, Mixcloud has a better subscription plan, so you literally have the same options to upload and share, edit and analyze, and form playlists from your tracks.

If you have a tough start and you want to give yourself a push, consider using paid promotion. High-quality music promotion from experienced specialists will give you the needed push, increasing overall engagement (streams, likes, shares, etc.), so you will see how mixes or shows appear in charts and get higher ranks. For example, you can purchase SoundCloud organic push and receive complex organic promotions. Unlike low-quality promotions, there are real users who engage with your content. Anyway, it's not bad to get your music promoted at the start because you make a step toward success.