Tidal has already been closing gaps with the competition by adding a free tier and similar upgrades, but its latest improvement may be one of the most important. The streaming music service has finally introduced user profiles that let you easily share your playlists. Make a playlist public and Tidal users can discover your musical tastes through search, or share that track listing through links. You could technically share before, but it was much more difficult until now.
Profiles (and thus playlist sharing) are available now through Tidal’s Android, iOS, desktop and web apps. They replace the “My Collection” saved content section in the mobile app. Don’t worry about having to start from scratch — your existing saved material will still be available after you create a profile.
Tidal is free to use with ads, although it’s limited to a 160Kbps bitrate and doesn’t support offline tracks or unlimited skips. Pay $10 per month for Tidal HiFi and you’ll remove the ads and restrictions while jumping to a much higher 1,411Kbps quality. At $20 per month, the HiFi Plus plan offers “master quality” 9,216Kbps audio for some songs and direct payouts to the artists you listen to most often.
The addition is arguably overdue when Apple Music, Spotify and other services have had playlist sharing for years. This might not do much to help Tidal grow beyond a small slice of the market. However, you might have a stronger incentive to stick around. The feature will not only let you see what your friends enjoy, but might help you find a new running mix or workday soundtrack.