With over 80 million users, YouTube Music is on par with the likes of Apple Music and Spotify. Even though people don't talk about the platform nearly as much, YouTube's music streaming service is filled with amazing features like radio stations and playlists.

And while these two features might look similar, they have a few differences that will make you choose one over the other. Let's find out the differences and similarities between YouTube Music's radio stations and playlists.

Similarities Between YouTube Music Playlists and Radio Stations

You won't spot the difference between YouTube Music's playlists and radio stations at first glance because they appear the same. However, the word "Playlist" appears below the title of the former, while the term "Radio" is added at the end of the latter.

Also, playlists and radio stations are somewhat connected in that you can create a playlist from a radio station and start a radio station from a playlist.

Both playlists and radio stations allow you to do the following:

  • Download the playlist or radio station to listen to offline.
  • You can save someone else's playlists or radio stations to your library.
  • YouTube Music lets you share playlists and radio stations with friends and followers on social media.
  • Learn more about the artists included.
  • View an artist's album.
  • You can queue specific tracks.

Differences Between YouTube Radio Stations and Playlists

Despite being similar and even somewhat connected, both radio stations and playlists are completely different, and they both offer different ways to enjoy and discover music. Here are a few differences between them.

1. Radio Stations Are Easier to Create

It's much easier to create radio stations than it is to create YouTube Music playlists because the YouTube algorithm automatically curates stations based on the song you're listening to. With playlists, you only get suggestions at the bottom of the playlist.

The same is true for YouTube's custom radio stations. Although you create a custom radio station from scratch, it only takes a few taps or clicks to complete the process after choosing the artists whose songs you want to include. YouTube automatically fills radio stations with songs from the artists you choose, whereas you need to add songs to your playlists manually.

This makes radio stations the perfect choice for when you want to discover new music from your favorite artists. On the other hand, playlists are better if you want to store songs you already know or want to have a list of songs for a certain mood or activity.

2. Playlists Can Be Private or Public

As with other streaming services, you can set your YouTube Music playlists to either private or public. If you set them to private, you only can stream them. But if you make them public, other users can find and stream your playlists on the platform. It all depends on your preference.

For example, the playlist shown below is a public playlist created by another user on YouTube Music.

essential 90s hip hop playlist on YouTube Music for desktop

You might want to keep your playlists private while you're still building them and only make them public once you're happy with your creation. However, your playlists don't have to be perfect before you make them publicly available, as you can still edit them afterward.

Radio stations, on the other hand, aren't public. And while you can share them with your friends and family, you can't share them with the world via the YouTube Music app.

3. Radio Stations Are Updated Automatically

Playlists require your input from start to finish. As mentioned above, you can edit or update them at any point in time. If you don't, they remain the same.

On the other hand, radio stations are constantly updated by the YouTube Music algorithm, so you have something different to stream. All you need to do is set the tone by selecting the artists, and the algorithm takes it from there. It spices things up and introduces you to new music—like how traditional radio stations work.

4. Radio Stations Are Named Automatically

Both custom radio stations and those created by the YouTube Music algorithm don't have unique names—they're named based on the artists that inspired them. You also can't rename a radio station after it's created.

This isn't the case with playlists; you must add a title when creating them and before proceeding to add songs. Likewise, you can change the name of the playlists whenever you want.

creating a new playlist on YouTube Music on desktop

YouTube Music's playlists and radio stations work similarly to those on other music streaming services. If you're comparing Spotify, Apple Music, and YouTube Music, playlists and radio stations shouldn't make a huge impact on your ultimate decision.

Enjoy Both Playlists and Radio Stations on YouTube Music

There's a time and place for both playlists and radio stations, depending on what you're in the mood for or what you have time for.

If you're in the mood to listen to a genre or vibe you don't have in your playlists but you're strapped for time, start listening to a radio station within seconds. However, if you want to listen to one of your specially curated playlists, you'll know where to go.