Weeks after hiking the prices of its Mac and iPad models, Apple has now bumped up subscription rates of two of its most popular services – Apple Music and Apple One. The Cupertino tech giant has adjusted prices for these two services globally, and Indian consumers also witness the hike in subscription charges. Apple Music, which has been one of the more affordable audio streaming services compared to Spotify Premium and YouTube Music, is now on par with the global behemoths.
The all-inclusive Apple One subscription has also been hiked, and as always, it continues to offer the most value to its customers. Apple hasn’t revealed the reason behind hiking the prices of its services, but industry insiders hint at rising music licensing costs for Apple Music, which the firm is passing onto customers.
The price revisions come just weeks after Apple adjusted the retail prices of its Mac and iPad lineup in India. The iPhone prices stay unchanged for the time being
Apple revises subscription rates in India
In India, the price hikes impact all subscription tiers for both standalone music streaming and all-in-one service bundles:
Apple Music revised plans:
– Student Plan: The price is up from Rs 59 to Rs 69 per month.
– Individual Plan: The standard tier price is now up from Rs 119 to Rs 139 per month.
– Family Plan: The Family Plan saw the largest single jump, climbing from Rs 179 to Rs 229 per month for up to six accounts under Family Sharing.
Apple One revised bundle prices:
– Individual Plan: The price for the standard plan is now up from Rs 175 to Rs 195 per month (includes Apple Music, Apple TV+, Apple Arcade, and iCloud+).
– Family Plan: For this tier, the price goes up from Rs 235 to Rs 295 per month.
Note that the Apple One Premier plan isn’t available in India.
How Apple Music compares with Spotify, YouTube Music
Apple Hikes Music & Apple One Rates in India
6 users
Platinum
6 users
Post the price revision, Apple Music now costs as much as Spotify Premium and YouTube Music. Apple’s feature offerings across its streaming plans remain comprehensive:
Individual Plan (Rs 139/month): This tier grants a single user access to a catalogue of over 100 million songs. Subscribers receive ad-free streaming, offline downloads, Lossless Audio, Spatial Audio with Dolby Atmos, curated playlists, and full access to Apple Music Classical.
Family Plan (Rs 229/month): This tier includes all benefits of the Individual tier and extends access to up to six family members via Family Sharing. Each family member maintains their own private music library, personal recommendation algorithms, and tailored playlists.
Student Plan (Rs 69/month): This is available only to verified college and university students, delivering all Individual plan features and bundles Apple TV+ at no extra charge.
Apple on a price hike spree
Just weeks earlier, Apple implemented substantial price hikes across its Mac and iPad portfolios, citing increasing global supply chain pressures and surging costs of DRAM and NAND flash memory, driven by the AI expansion.
Mac lineup:
– MacBook Neo price hikes from Rs 69,900 to Rs 79,900,
– 13-inch MacBook Air (M5) price increased by Rs 29,000, now starting at Rs 1,49,900.
– 14-inch MacBook Pro (M5) price starts from Rs 2,39,900 (up by Rs 70,000), while the top-tier M5 Max variant hiked by Rs 1,00,000, now starting at Rs 4,99,900.
iPad Lineup:
– The base 11th-generation iPad increased from Rs 39,900 to Rs 49,900.
– The iPad Air (11-inch M4) price climbed by Rs 25,000 to Rs 89,900.
– The flagship iPad Pro (M5) saw a Rs 40,000 jump, bringing its starting price to Rs 1,39,900.