11 places to listen to free music online (bye bye, iTunes)

How to listen to free music online (without iTunes)

Free music is one of the joys of the internet. Countless numbers of teens and adults plug in their headphones and earbuds every day to hear free audio files online.

With Apple's recent announcement that it is ditching iTunes, we thought this would be a good time to go over some other places when you can listed to music for free online.

Forget iTunes: Here’s how to listen to free music online

1. AudioMack

Similar to Soundcloud, AudioMack is a music platform that lets users upload songs that they’ve created. The rest of us can download those songs free and clear.

2. Bandcamp

Bandcamp is popular with smaller artists trying to grow a following. While whole songs used to be free on the site, now only “promos” are free. The songs are available for purchase via iTunes or through the Bandcamp streaming app.

features a free MP3 download button.

3. CCTrax

CCTrax is a music site that allows you to listen to free audio via Creative Commons license. That means the creators make the content — songs, sounds, instrumentals — free for use.

4. Jamendo Music

Jamendo Music is another site aimed at connecting independent artists to fans. The good thing with Jamendo.com is that you don't have to create an account to download music, just click on the Start button.

5. Last.fm

One of the more prominent sites for free music is Last.fm, which provides free downloads to songs uploaded by independent artists around the world.

6. NoiseTrade

NoiseTrade may be an obscure site to many but it's full of free music (and ebooks). To download free music from NoiseTrade, you have to sign up for a Fan Account and go to their Downloads section, which has scores of genres to choose from.

7. ReverbNation

ReverbNation is a platform for musicians to share their music. To download free music from ReverbNation, you must sign up as an artist or fan. Once you select a track, click the download button in the sub-menu.

8. Soundcloud

Soundcloud offers tons of music for free. Just click on the download button. If you don’t see one, that tune is not downloadable.

9. Spotify

Yes, Spotify has a free version that lets you listen to music at no cost. While you can stream songs, you can’t download them unless you have the paid version.

10. Soundclick

Another free platform is Soundclick.com. Like many other sites, this one also caters to emerging artists. The site features a free MP3 download button.

11. YouTube

Featuring millions of tracks, YouTube is one of the best resources for free music online. You can subscribe to playlists or search for “free music” to listen to countless audio libraries.