Apple has quietly discontinued the Apple Music Voice Plan nearly two years after its release. The $5 plan was the cheapest way to subscribe to the company’s music streaming service.
Going forward, you cannot subscribe to the Apple Music Voice Plan. If you are an existing subscriber, your membership will expire at the end of your current billing cycle.
Bye Bye, Apple Music Voice Plan!
Apple Music Voice Plan debuted in December 2021. It was available in several countries, including the US, Canada, India, Australia, Japan, and others.
Compared to the regular Apple Music subscription, the Voice Plan was 50% cheaper in most regions. But it had its own set of limitations, as you could only control it through Siri across your devices. And while you could access Apple Music’s entire catalog, spatial audio and offline playback support were missing.
Below is what Apple’s support page says about the Voice Plan’s discontinuation, as spotted by MacMagazine:
“Beginning in November, Apple will discontinue the Apple Music Voice plan. We are focused on delivering the best, most robust music experience possible for our customers, with features like immersive Spatial Audio, Apple Music Sing with real-time lyrics, intuitive browse and discovery features, and so much more. All Apple Music plans already work seamlessly with Siri, and we will continue to optimize this experience.”
The subscription tier was likely meant for HomePod who wanted to enjoy Apple Music but were not keen on paying the full price for an Apple Music subscription.
Time to pay more for Apple Music or look at alternatives
If you are an Apple Music Voice subscriber, you can switch to the regular Apple Music plan, which costs $10.99 monthly. That’s more than twice as expensive as the Voice tier, but you get more flexibility and additional features. If you are a student, you can subscribe to Apple Music’s Student plan for $5.99 per month.
