Americans now have another option when it comes to music services.

French music service Deezer has fully launched in the States, bringing its catalogue of more than 40 million tracks to US customers who are willing to pay $10 a month for it. Unlike in other countries, the service has no free tier, but with that monthly fee you get fancy perks like no ads, unlimited listening, offline capabilities, and more. The only question is: Can it succeed in the already-crowded music space?

The US is a tough market for paid music-streaming services because of free internet radio. Pandora, for instance, has nearly 80 million active monthly users - and that service is completely free for Americans to use. Only time will tell in terms of whether Deezer can make an impact, but for now, here's everything we know so far about the new offering and its expansion to the US. 

What is Deezer?

Deezer is a music service based in France. It is 9 years old and has about 6 million subscribers world-wide. In comparison, Spotify, which is based in Sweden and launched a year after Deezer, has more than 30 million paying subscribers world-wide and 70 million free users, while Apple Music, which is based in the US and launched last year, has about 15 million paying subscribers. 

Deezer stands out because it's popular Europe, and it offers more music than its competitors. It has roughly 40 million tracks in its catalogue, while both Spotify and Apple Music claim to offer more than 30 million tracks. Deezer’s chief executive, Hans-Holger Albrecht, told The Wall Street Journal that Deezer is also unique in that it carries more local tunes from across the world. 

When will Deezer be available in the US?

Deezer announced on 19 July 2016 that its service would launch in the US "this week". The launch is technically considered a wider launch, as Deezer had been exclusively available in the States to only AT&T Cricket Wireless customers or on Sonos and Bose speaker systems. Deezer basically tested the waters in the US by offering its service to owners of specific speaker brands. 

How much does Deezer cost?

Deezer has both free and paid tiers in several countries, but in the US, it'll be available to all US customers for $9.99 a month after a 30-day free trial. That said, Deezer said it will continue to offer Sonos customers a $20 standalone high-fidelity plan called Deezer Elite. So, if you're looking to try out a Hi-Fi music service but don't own Sonos, you're better off trying something like Jay Z's Tidal service. 

Which devices work with Deezer?

Deezer is available in the App Store, Google Play, the Windows Store, and from Deezer.com. 

It therefore works with iOS devices, Android devices, Windows Phone devices, and PCs and Macs. It's also available on select TVs, cars, and Hi-Fi setups.You can learn more about which devices work with Deezer from this support page

How does Deezer work?

Here's a list of some of Deezer's most notable features.

  • Flow: Deezer offers something called Flow. It's a button that users can press for a personalised soundtrack based on their tastes and listening habits. It's described as an "instant and personalised radio channel based on what is in your music library".
  • Lyrics: Deezer has lyrics to over 2.5 million tracks available on your computer, mobile, and tablet. You can see a track’s lyrics no matter what subscription type you have.
  • Hear This: Deezer offers users their own personal music feeds. It replaced Deezer Picks and Recommendations and offers suggestions for albums, playlists and artists based on your listening habits and your favourites.
  • Podcasts: Stitcher is the leading podcast app in the US. It has recently been acquired by Deezer. 
  • Playlists: Like most music-streaming services, you can make playlists with Deezer. There's even an collaborative playlist feature, which allows other Deezer members to add but not to delete tracks.
  • Artist Radio: The is a smart radio channel that automatically generates a musical program based on an artist and generates other similar artists. You can launch these channels by clicking on the "Radio Channels" button on an artist's page.
  • Offline listening: You can download your music to listen to even when there's no connection.

Are there adverts on Deezer?

In the US, as a paid subscriber, you can listen to all the tracks you want without any interruptions. There are no ads.

Want to know more?

Check out Deezer's US website for more details.