BTR AMP
Apple Music and BTR AMP solve different problems. Apple Music is a $10.99/month streaming catalog with offline downloads that stop working when you unsubscribe. BTR AMP plays music files you own — including FLAC, which the Apple Music app can’t play — offline forever, with no subscription required to start.
Plenty of people use both: Apple Music for discovery, BTR AMP for the collection they’ve built over decades. Here’s where each one wins.
At a glance
| Apple Music (built-in app) | BTR AMP | |
|---|---|---|
| Model | Streaming subscription | Player for files you own |
| Price (as of July 2026) | $10.99/mo individual | Free · Pro $3.99/mo or $59.99 lifetime |
| Plays FLAC | ❌ No | ✅ Yes |
| Your own rips/files | Via iTunes/Finder sync | Direct: Wi-Fi, cloud, SMB, WebDAV |
| Offline listening | ✅ While subscribed | ✅ Always — files are local |
| Hi-res | Up to 24-bit/192kHz (USB DAC for Hi-Res) | Up to 96kHz/24-bit and beyond via USB DAC; DSD to DSD256 |
| Custom navigation | Fixed layout | ✅ Custom tabs, per-section layouts |
| Smart playlists on device | Created on Mac, synced | ✅ Created and updated on device |
| Metadata editing on device | ❌ | ✅ ID3, MP4/iTunes, APE, Vorbis |
| CarPlay | ✅ Fixed layout | ✅ Your custom tabs |
| Music stays if you stop paying | ❌ Downloads are DRM | ✅ Files are yours |
Choose Apple Music if…
- You want a 100-million-song catalog and personalized recommendations — that’s streaming’s job, and Apple does it well.
- Your listening is playlist- and discovery-driven rather than collection-driven.
- Lossless streaming quality matters and you don’t own the files anyway.
Choose BTR AMP if…
- Your library is files you own — rips, Bandcamp and store purchases, live recordings — especially in FLAC, which the Music app won’t play at all. (How to play FLAC on iPhone.)
- You want music that can’t disappear — no license removals, no subscription lapse wiping your downloads.
- You’ve outgrown fixed Artists/Albums/Songs navigation: BTR AMP’s custom tabs, smart playlists, and custom tags are built for 50,000+ song libraries, and they carry into CarPlay.
- You want your own files on the phone without iTunes sync — BTR AMP imports over Wi-Fi, SMB, WebDAV, Google Drive, or OneDrive.
The detail that surprises people: your own files in Apple Music
You can put your own rips into Apple’s ecosystem — convert FLAC to ALAC, add to the Mac Music app, then sync over a cable or pay for iTunes Match. It works, but you maintain a second library, sync after every change, and give up on-device organization. BTR AMP plays the same iTunes-purchased tracks alongside everything else, so switching doesn’t mean abandoning past purchases.
FAQ
Can Apple Music play FLAC files? No. The Music app supports ALAC, Apple’s own lossless format, but not FLAC. Converting FLAC → ALAC is lossless but adds a maintenance step.
Is BTR AMP a streaming service? No. BTR AMP has no catalog — it plays files you already have, fully offline. It’s rated 4.7 from 1,400+ App Store ratings worldwide.
Can I use both? Yes — many BTR AMP users keep Apple Music for discovery and BTR AMP for their permanent collection. BTR AMP can also play your DRM-free iTunes library directly.
Apple Music facts from apple.com as of July 2026. BTR AMP facts reflect the current App Store version.