Audify vs Poweramp: which Android music player is right for you?
Short answer: pick Poweramp if sound control is the point: a parametric equalizer, presets per output device, hi-res output and a one-time purchase after the trial. Pick Audify if you want a complete offline player that stays free: a 10-band equalizer, lyrics, internet radio, a ringtone cutter, Google Drive backup, and the same app on Android, iPhone, Windows and Mac. Both play the files you already own with no account. Facts below were checked against both Google Play listings in September 2026.
At a glance, September 2026
Price. Audify is free with ads; Premium removes them (monthly or yearly on both platforms, lifetime on Android only). Poweramp is a free trial, then a one-time purchase with no subscription.
Equalizer. Audify: a 10-band equalizer with bass boost, virtualizer and reverb, plus loudness normalization at -14 LUFS. Poweramp: graphic and parametric equalizer with separate presets per output device, hi-res output and its Direct Volume Control.
Playback. Both are gapless. Poweramp adds crossfade, tempo control and visualizations. Audify adds playback speed and an audiobook mode.
Beyond playback. Audify: internet radio with more than 50,000 stations, Calm sounds with a sleep timer, a ringtone cutter, an AI tag editor, Google Drive backup, Mixes for shared playlists, hidden items. Poweramp: lyrics, skins, widgets.
Car and casting. Both support Android Auto and Chromecast. Audify also has CarPlay on iPhone.
Platforms. Poweramp is Android only. Audify runs on Android, iPhone, Windows and Mac.
Scale. Audify: 100M+ downloads and 4.5★ on Google Play. Poweramp: more than fifty million downloads on Google Play.
Where Poweramp wins: sound control
Poweramp is built for people who want to shape the sound. Its equalizer works in graphic and parametric modes, keeps separate presets for the speaker, wired headphones and each Bluetooth device, and its listing describes hi-res output, a custom DSP with tone and stereo-expand controls, reverb, tempo and its own Direct Volume Control for deeper bass. If you own a USB DAC or a serious pair of wired headphones and enjoy tuning, that toolbox is the reason to pay for it.
Audify's equalizer is a 10-band graphic one with bass boost, virtualizer and reverb, and it levels tracks with loudness normalization at -14 LUFS so a quiet album and a loud one sit at the same volume. For most phones and most headphones the difference between the two equalizers is smaller than the difference the headphones themselves make; the equalizer guide shows what each band does. If you know you want a parametric equalizer, Poweramp is the honest answer.
Where Audify wins: the rest of the day
Audify treats a music player as more than an engine. It shows lyrics while you play, streams internet radio from a directory of more than 50,000 stations, plays Calm sounds for sleep with its own timer, cuts a ringtone from any song, fixes wrong titles and artists with an AI tag editor, backs your playlists up to Google Drive, and lets a group build a playlist together with Mixes. Audiobooks and podcast files get their own type and a playback-speed control, and files you would rather keep out of the library can be hidden.
Then there is the second phone, the laptop and the desk. Audify runs on Android, iPhone, Windows and Mac, so a library copied to a PC plays the same way it does on the phone; the desktop apps add ALAC, APE and WavPack decoding. Poweramp is Android only. If you listen on more than one kind of device, this is the deciding line, and the Windows and Mac guide covers the desktop side.
What each one costs
Poweramp downloads as a free trial of the full app; when the trial ends, the full version is a single purchase with no subscription, which its own FAQ states plainly. There are no ads at any point.
Audify is free to use for as long as you like. The free version shows ads between actions, never over the music; Premium removes them and is sold as a monthly or yearly plan on both platforms, with a lifetime option on Android only. Every feature in this comparison is in the free version. If you paid and still see ads, this guide explains why and what to do.
Formats and files
Both players read a normal library without conversion. Audify decodes MP3, WAV, FLAC, AAC, AC3, WMA, M4A, OGG, Opus and AIFF on Android, and its Windows and Mac apps add ALAC, APE and WavPack; it does not play DSD. Poweramp's listing names FLAC among its formats and describes hi-res output; check its own pages for anything more exotic before you rely on it. Android itself decodes FLAC natively since version 3.1 and Opus since 5.0, so neither app needs a codec add-on for the common formats. The full Audify list is in what audio formats Audify supports.
Which one to choose
Choose Poweramp if you tune your sound per headphone, own a DAC, want crossfade and tempo control, and are happy to pay once for an Android-only app.
Choose Audify if you want the whole offline toolkit free: lyrics, radio, ringtones, backup, shared playlists, a sleep timer, and one app across Android, iPhone, Windows and Mac. The 10-band equalizer covers what most people adjust.
Both, if you like: nothing stops you keeping Poweramp for critical listening and Audify for radio, the car and the other devices. Neither app moves or copies your files. Neither downloads or streams music; both play what you already own. For the wider field, see the free Poweramp alternatives and the best free offline players for Android.
Common questions
Is Audify really free?
Yes. Every feature in this comparison is in the free version, which shows ads between actions. Premium removes the ads; it is sold monthly or yearly, with a lifetime option on Android only.
Does Audify have a parametric equalizer like Poweramp?
No. Audify has a 10-band graphic equalizer with presets, bass boost, virtualizer and reverb, plus loudness normalization. Poweramp offers graphic and parametric modes with per-device presets.
Which one is better for a car?
Both support Android Auto and Chromecast. Audify also supports CarPlay on iPhone, which Poweramp cannot, since it is Android only.
Does either app download music?
No. Both play the files already on your device. Audify's internet radio streams live stations but does not save them.
Try Audify free on your phone
Audify Music Player · 100M+ downloads · 4.5★ on Google Play
Sources
“Poweramp offers a free trial so you can test it on your device. After that, you can unlock the full version with a one-time purchase.”powerampapp.com, FAQ
- Poweramp Music Player on Google Play — Google Play, read 25 September 2026
- Poweramp official site and FAQ — Poweramp Software Design
- Supported media formats — Android Developers
- Manage subscriptions on Google Play — Google Play Help