Make Money Listening to Music: 6 Apps That Actually Pay

How Getting Paid for Music Works

Music apps pay you for two things: your opinion or your attention. Review apps pay more per task because they want thoughtful feedback on new tracks. Passive apps pay less but require almost no effort — similar to how passive income apps work across other categories.

Review-based apps: You listen to songs (often from unsigned artists) and write short reviews. Pay per review is set by the platform and your reviewer rating. Active work, better pay. These function like micro-task apps but focused entirely on music.

Playlist curator programs: Artists pay to get their song in front of Spotify playlist owners. If you already run a playlist with real followers, you get paid per song you review. This is where the highest per-task rates in the niche are.

Passive listening apps: You stream music through their player and earn points over time. Pay is minimal but requires zero effort beyond using their app instead of Spotify.

Neither type will make you rich. Treat these as ways to earn small rewards for time you'd spend listening anyway, not as serious income sources. For better earning potential, check out apps that pay real money with higher returns.

Music Review Apps

These pay you to listen and provide feedback. Higher effort but better pay per minute.

1. Slicethepie

Earnings: Per-review pay set by your Star Rating and review quality; the company publishes tiers, not a dollar figure | Payment: PayPal, Revolut, Airtm or gift cards, $20 minimum | Availability: Global

The most established music review platform, with over 10 million reviews submitted. Listen to a track for at least 30 seconds and write a review. Quality reviews unlock higher pay tiers over time. Also offers fashion, video and game reviews for variety. Read our full Slice the Pie review for how the rating tiers work and tips to move up.

Best for: People who enjoy discovering new music and can write quick, thoughtful feedback.

The catch: Low starting tier and a $20 threshold, so the first payout takes many reviews. Since it pays via PayPal, it fits well into a stack of apps that pay to PayPal.

2. HitPredictor

Earnings: Points for prizes and gift cards, not cash | Payment: Prize store | Availability: US only; site unreachable when we checked in September 2026

Rate short clips of upcoming songs and earn points toward prizes rather than direct cash. Fun if you enjoy predicting hits, but there is no guaranteed payout, and the site was offline during our check, so verify it is running before you invest time.

Best for: Music enthusiasts who enjoy rating songs even without direct payment.

The catch: No cash payout, and uncertain status.

Playlist Curator Programs: The Best Pay, With Requirements

If you already run a Spotify playlist with real followers, these two platforms pay the most per song in the niche. Both publish their rates, both require a real audience, and both have a $20 minimum.

3. Playlist Push

Earnings: "$1.25 up to $15 per song review," based on your Reputation Score | Payment: Bank account, Venmo or PayPal, $20 minimum, paid within 4 business days | Availability: North America and Europe only; playlist needs at least 1,000 organic followers and 30 active monthly listeners

Artists pay to have their songs reviewed by playlist curators. You listen, write feedback, and add the song only if it fits; curators are not required to add anything. Wondering if Spotify itself pays you to listen? It doesn't — but curating playlists through Playlist Push is the closest legitimate option.

Best for: People who already curate Spotify playlists with 1,000+ real followers.

The catch: Building a qualifying playlist takes months. Not for beginners.

4. SoundCampaign

Earnings: "$1 per review for the lowest-ranking playlists to $14 per review for the highest" | Payment: Bank transfer via Wise, $20 minimum, paid after each 30-day campaign ends | Availability: Playlist needs at least 1,000 real followers and 20 tracks

The main alternative to Playlist Push. The model is the same: review tracks artists submit, decide whether they fit your playlist, get paid per review. Rewards land in your balance when the campaign closes, and quality control is both automated and manual, so low-effort reviews get filtered out.

Best for: Curators outside North America, since payouts go through Wise in your local currency.

The catch: Same audience requirement as Playlist Push, and slower payment cycle.

Passive Listening Apps

These pay you just for streaming music through their platform. Minimal effort but minimal pay — the audio equivalent of getting paid to watch videos.

5. Mode Earn App (formerly Current Rewards)

Earnings: Points; "rewards and reward amounts vary by user, activity, and region," no published rate | Payment: PayPal, Amazon and prepaid Mastercard gift cards, crypto; minimum shown in-app; most redemptions complete within 2 business days | Availability: US and select countries

Stream licensed radio stations through the app and collect points in the background, with extra points for games, surveys, videos and even charging your phone. Current Rewards and Mode Earn are the same product today: the Current app now redirects to Mode Mobile. Facial verification is required before your first redemption, and points expire after a year. See our Current Rewards review for how the points add up.

Best for: People okay with switching from their usual music app for background listening, and who want several earning methods in one app.

The catch: Lower music quality/selection than mainstream apps. Music alone earns little; the points come from combining activities.

6. RadioEarn

Earnings: "Every 15 minutes you get points," converted to USD the following month; no published rate | Payment: PayPal, bank wire, Amazon gift card or Bitcoin, paid on a NET30 basis | Availability: 35+ countries

Play radio stations in the background and earn small amounts. Extremely passive but extremely low pay, and payment arrives a month later. Works best running on an old phone or tablet you're not using.

Best for: People with spare devices who want truly passive background earnings. Pairs well with other lazy ways to make money.

The catch: Very low earnings, month-long payout cycle, and a listener counter that suggests little activity. Only worth it on dedicated devices.

Earnings Comparison

Rates and minimums are the ones each company publishes (September 2026). "Not publicly stated" means the platform does not commit to a number. For a deeper comparison with expanded app coverage, see our best music earning apps roundup.

Earnings vary by activity level, location, reviewer rating and availability of songs to review. Curator rates require a qualifying playlist.

Music Gateway, MusicSeed, Deezer: Sites That Rank but Don't Pay You to Listen

Search "get paid to listen to music" and several of the top results are not earning apps at all. Knowing which is which saves you a signup.

Music Gateway: Its page ranks near the top, but the company states plainly that it "no longer offers a direct service for music reviewers." The page is a career guide for professional curators, not a way to get paid for listening.

MusicSeed: An AI music generator. Its ranking page is a listicle recommending the same apps covered here. It does not pay anyone to listen.

Deezer: Pays artists per stream under its artist-centric model, not listeners. The result you see for "earn money for listen music" on Deezer is an artist profile with that name, not a program.

Musicxray: Its old "Fan Match" program paid a few cents per listen. The domain now belongs to a different business and the program page is gone. Treat it as shut down.

Musipay: Widely searched, but there is no store listing, no company page and nothing to download. Our MusiPay review documents what we found.

Can Spotify Pay You to Listen?

This is the most common question in the music earning space, and the answer is no — Spotify does not pay users to listen. Spotify pays artists per stream, not listeners. Any website or app claiming you can earn money directly from streaming on Spotify is fraudulent.

However, there is one legitimate way to earn money related to Spotify: becoming a playlist curator through platforms like Playlist Push or SoundCampaign. Curators with playlists of 1,000+ real followers get paid per song to review and potentially add tracks. It's not the same as "getting paid to listen on Spotify," but it's the closest real opportunity. We break this down in detail in our full Spotify earnings guide.

What to Avoid

Apps promising $100+/day or "$400 daily": No legitimate music app pays this much; the real platforms publish per-review rates of a few dollars at most. These are scams or require you to pay first. The same red flags apply across all money-making apps — if it sounds too good, it is.

Spotify payment scams: Spotify does not pay users to listen. Any site claiming otherwise is fraudulent.

Apps requiring upfront payment: Legitimate music reward apps are free. Never pay to access earning features.

Apps with no published rate, minimum or payout time: If a platform will not say what it pays, how much you need to cash out, or when, assume the answer is "very little, eventually."