| Site |
Price |
Rating |
Catalog size |
Synopsis |
|
| iTunes |
$.99 a song and $9.99 for most albums |
 |
Hundreds of thousands of songs |
Easy to use, amazing selection, and cooler-than-cool |
More info |
| Napster |
$.99 a song and $9.95 per album |
 |
500,000 songs |
Napster still rocks the casbah! |
More info |
| BuyMusic |
$.79 a song and $7.95 an album |
|
400,000 songs |
Straightforward and utterly mainstream, but well executed |
More info |
| MusicMatch |
$.99 per song and $9.99 for most albums |
|
500,000 songs |
Very straightforward with a very mainstream selection |
More info |
| eMusic |
Tiered subscription
More info |
|
275,000 songs |
If you want old Pixies albums or tweaky new indie cuts, eMusic is the place |
More info |
| Wal-Mart |
$.88 per song and usually $9.44 for a full album |
|
250,000 songs |
If you're not a music fan, but just love that new Jessica Simpson tune, Wal-Mart is for you |
More info |
| MusicNow |
Tiered subscription
More info |
|
400,000 songs |
No one should pay for an internet radio subscription these days, but the download service here is good regardless |
More info |
| AudioLunchbox |
Most individual songs are $.99 cents and most full-length albums are $9.99 |
 |
Tons of artists from a wide variety of independent labels. |
Not super exciting and no real major artists, but this site could be a boon for left-of-the-dial music geeks. |
More info |
| RealRhapsody |
"All Access" for $9.95 a month and "Radio PLUS" for $4.95 a month |
 |
400,000 songs |
Kinda lame. There are far better services out there. |
More info |
| RealPlayer Music Store |
$.99 a song and most albums are $9.99 |
|
Tons of artists from a wide variety of independent labels. |
Easy to use with a good selection. We likey! |
More info |
| Wippit |
Single songs for $.39. Annual Wippit subscription for only $89.99 (one year of unlimited downloads) |
 |
Songs from over 200 labels, including BMG and EMI |
Not a massive major label selection, but pair that with a good selection of indie labels and you have a pretty good download service. |
More info |
| MusicNet |
$8.95 per month for unlimited downloads and streams. There is an additional $.99 fee for every track you want to burn. |
 |
300,000 songs |
The worst of the lot. Steer clear of the AOL behemoth. |
More info |
| Peoplesound |
There are tons of free streaming tracks and downloads on the site. Full albums sold through partner site. |
|
Tons of unsigned bands and a strange selection of major label artists |
Not really a download site, but not a bad place to discover some cool new music. |
More info |
| Soundclick |
Most mp3s are free, though you have the option to buy full-length CDs directly from the artists. |
|
Thousands of unsigned artists and a few major label artists |
Awesome if you're interested in finding totally unheard artists. Also great for artists who want someone to host and promote their music for free. |
More info |
