Qobuz vs Tidal 2024: Which One Is Better?

Part 1. Qobuz & Tidal: Brief Overview

Qobuz, a French digital music store and streaming service with over 100 million tracks, established in 2007, is the premier music service platform to provide high-resolution music and boasts the world's largest library of Hi-Res lossless music. As of February 2024, Qobuz is available in 26 countries. It emphasizes compatibility with diverse platforms and has its own dedicated apps for Microsoft Windows, macOS, iOS, and Android devices. Many users on the Internet claim, "Qobuz is one of the places where I can purchase music in lossless CD quality." Apparently, Qobuz's pursuit of music sound quality has been well-received by numerous users.

Tidal, founded in 2014, is a Norwegian-American music streaming service with over 110 million tracks. Since being acquired by the renowned rapper Jay-Z in 2015, Tidal has gradually gained popularity and become a mainstream music platform. As of April 2024, Tidal is available in 61 countries. In contrast to Qobuz, Tidal is more of an artist-centered platform. It pays artists more than other music platforms and guarantees them high-fidelity (HiFi) and lossless music. Also, due to Tidal's loyalty to audio quality and music creation, it offers integration with different DJ software, making it more widely used by its audience.

Part 2. Pricing & Subscription Plans

Qobuz offers two subscription plans: Qobuz Studio and Qobuz Sublime. With Qobuz Studio, you can stream and download Hi-Res music and have access to over 100 million tracks and original editorial content. The Qobuz Sublime plan has an additional feature of purchasing music compared to the Studio plan. As Qobuz is not only a music streaming platform but also a music digital store. These two different subscription plans again have different pricing depending on the number of people using them, as shown in the table below.

As of April 2024, Tidal has combined the previous Tidal HiFi and HiFi Plus into one plan called TIDAL. Similar to the previous Tidal HiFi Plus plan, the TIDAL plan offers more than 110 million lossless, high-resolution FLAC and Dolby Atmos tracks, providing listeners with ad-free music streaming and download features. In addition to this, Tidal recommends personalized remixes and curated content for users. And a DJ extension to help users integrate Tidal with their DJ program for music creation. Like Qobuz, Tidal offers different pricing depending on the number of users, as shown in the table below:

Winner: Tidal
In comparison, Qobuz's plans are more diverse and provide users with more options. However, Tidal's plans are more affordable and have more features than Qobuz. Additionally, both platforms offer a 30-day trial. Tidal, on the other hand, offers a 2-month trial for just $2 for all users. This makes Tidal a better choice in terms of price.

Part 3. Sound Quality

In terms of audio quality, Qobuz offers MP3 320Kbps, CD Quality (16-Bit/44.1 kHz) and Hi-Res Audio (24-Bit/ up to 192kHz). Tidal offers three levels in audio quality, from low to high they are: Low (up to 320kbps), High (Up to 16-Bit/44.1 kHz) and Max (Up to 24-Bit/192kHz).

It is important to note that although both platforms offer lossless quality, it does not mean that all songs can be played in a lossless format. There are two key factors that may affect the sound quality when it comes to being able to listen to lossless music. If the identical copy of the file provided by the artist are in low-quality, you won't be able to listen to the Max quality the platform provides. The second is the device you are using, some devices do not support Hi-Res FLAC format or some settings may affect the sound quality output. For example, the volume normalization on Tidal and Qobuz may alter the quality, and if you turn them off, you can get the lossless quality in these device:

Winner: Tidal
While Qobuz, with its strong emphasis on sound quality, is only available in FLAC format. Tidal, following its July 2024 update, has replaced the former MQA format with Hi-Res FLAC format. This new format is much more targeted at realistic, uncompressed sound quality compared to the traditional FLAC format. Additionally, Tidal is compatible with the output of a greater number of devices.

Part 4. Music Library & Catalog

Winner: Tidal
Tidal is a great app for users who want access to mainstream music and exclusive content. Qobuz excels for niche music lovers, especially classical and jazz.

Part 5. Feature & User Experience

Qobuz Features:

1. App Interface: Clean and minimalist, though some users may find it less intuitive compared to others.



2. Editorial Content: In-depth articles, album reviews, and artist interviews.
3. Downloads & Offline Listening: Available on all plans. However, there's still a way to download Qobuz music without a Qobuz subscription. By using ViWizard Audio Capture, a tool that helps you rip music from Qobuz to various universal formats such as MP3, FLAC, WAV, AAC, M4A, and M4B, without losing the Hi-Res quality. This way, you'd access the Qobuz download feature without any cost.

How to Download Music from Qobuz for Free

This tutorial shows the best ways to download free music from Qobuz, including dedicated Qobuz downloader and Qobuz dl. Let's explore how to download music from Qobuz without a subscription.

Free Trial Buy Now

Free Trial Buy Now

Tidal Features:

1. App Interface: Polished and user-friendly, with easy access to playlists, recommendations, and exclusive content.



2. Music Discovery: Tidal's algorithm provides personalized recommendations based on listening habits.
3. Downloads & Offline Listening: Available on the TIDAL plan. However, the download feature only works on mobile devices. On Windows and Mac, Tidal doesn't support downloading any tracks on it, even with a TIDAL subscription. If you want to download lossless quality music on your desktop, you can use ViWizard Tidal Music Converter, which will help you download and convert all Tidal music tracks to lossless MP3, M4A, M4B, WAV, AAC, and FLAC formats on both Windows and Mac desktop, even without a TIDAL subscription.

How to Download Tidal Tracks/Playlists/Albums on Phone/Computer

Wanna download music from Tidal to your devices? This post is introducing how you can download Tidal music to phones, computers, and more.

Winner: Tidal
Compared to qobuz, tidal's interface is more user-oriented, and its algorithms are more focused on providing users with personalized content than qobuz's, rather than letting them sift through a large number of songs to find the ones they like. To sum up, Tidal provides users with its well-rounded content, including personalized recommendations, and other resources, like audio-books and music videos.

Part 6. Device Compatibility & Integration

Qobuz Device Compatibility:Available on iOS, Android, Windows, macOS, Web player, and a variety of Hi-Fi audio systems (e.g., Sonos, Bluesound).
Qobuz Integration: Roon.

Tidal Device Compatibility: Available on iOS, Android, Windows, macOS, Web player, and integrates with smart devices like Amazon Echo, Google Home, and smart TVs.
Tidal Intergration: Roon, Tidal Connect, Car integration (Carplay, Tesla, Android Auto and more), DJ integration (Rekordbox, djay, DEX 3 and more).

Winner: Tidal
Tidal has broader compatibility across more devices, although Qobuz is better for Hi-Fi equipment integration.

Part 7. Comparison Overview Chart

Part 8. Conclusion

According to the comparison above, Tidal is a better choice if you're looking for a more well-rounded streaming service with personalized and exclusive content, mainstream music, and better device compatibility. However, Qobuz has its advantages, if you prioritize sound quality above all else, especially if you're an audiophile who enjoys classical, jazz, and niche genres. Ultimately, both services offer free trials, so the best way to decide is to test them out for yourself!