*Originally published on Jan. 4, 201. Recently updated on Feb. 15, 2018.
Music during meditation is one of the most important factors in influencing your mind – so don’t overlook its quality! There are plenty of high-quality sources for free meditation music online that is easily accessible on YouTube, Spotify, and various apps. Allow me to walk you through our options by listing them in this article.
On a side note, I personally like to use a sound machine – this website offers the most versatile sound machine: mynoise.net/NoiseMachines.
If you’re curious in Buddhist music, I invite you to read up on it! And you can also read up on my opinion in the importance of music and how it affects the body, mind, and spirit.
1. YouTube
Yes, everyone knows YouTube is the best place to find free music for quirky things: Halloween music, 10hrs+ music for dogs, and of course, meditation music. If you have uninterrupted access to the internet, YouTube could be a great source for free music. BUT, I would highly recommend finding or creating a playlist for your meditation music or else YouTube will automatically choose another video after the one you chose is finished. What’s the worst thing that can happen during a meditation? A random cover of Adele blaring over the speakers! Thanks, YouTube, for exposing us to whatever you decide. So, be prepared. Play music through YouTube playlists or choose a long enough video.
Here are some high-quality YouTube sources for meditation music I would recommend:
432Hz Miracle Tone – Raise Positive Vibrations (2hrs in length)
All 7 Chakras Healing Meditation Music (50min in length)
Tibetan Flute Music + OM Chanting (1:10hrs in length)
Super Intelligence: Memory Music (1:45hrs in length)
- Tibetan Singing Bowl Meditation Chakra Healing (3hrs in length)
2. Spotify
Streaming music is definitely an option, but keep in mind free accounts will most likely have advertisements playing every few songs. If this isn’t OK, Spotify is $10 per month or $5 per month for students. Spotify is one of the largest libraries of music and for meditation, you can create a playlist for practically an unlimited length! Here are a few I would recommend trying out:
- Peaceful Meditation | Spotify Playlist (4hrs 38min in length)
- Meditation/Sleep | Christopher Spatola Playlist (4hrs 7min in length)
- Meditation Relaxation | Meditation Relax Club Playlist (11 hrs 38min in length)
If you’d like to read more on Spotify’s meditation playlists, consider this article by Lead Rodriguez: Hear the Cut’s Meditation Playlist on Spotify | The CUT
3. Mobile Phone Apps
Everyone has a mobile phone nowadays and many people know how to plug it into an audio system. Most of the time, music is accessed through mobile devices anyway! So why go through websites, if “there’s an app for that.” I would highly recommend trying out these applications on your smartphone:
- Meditation Music – Relax, Yoga (Relaxio)
- This app contains ads but offers in-app purchases to remove them. Music genres are at the whim of the user, through twelve different categories such as “gentle morning,” “soft piano,” “perfect rain,” etc. The timer functionality is quite useful when falling asleep or in yoga classes. The UI (user interface) is rather minimal but easy to use and understand. Their main focus is to help stop stress: “Meditation is a process of self-healing, all forms of stress is a sign of the presence of negative thoughts that torment our minds.” Read more on the app site through Google Play.
- Meditation Music (Avryx)
- This application has a more slick design, rather than the bright colorful design in the previous app. This app is completely FREE and offers music and beautiful sound “that will aid you in finding inner peace, helping reduce stress and even to fall asleep.” The timer function is useful in many situations, but the playlist functionality is very customizable. When reviewing apps, easy and customization must be in perfect balance and I believe Avryx got it right with this one. Genres and sounds can be chosen from a drop-down menu and playlists can be created with choices such as “natural harmony,” “guitar melody,” “celestial piano,” “ambient peace,” “monks chanting,” etc.
If you’d like to read more about meditation apps in general, consider this comprehensive article by healthline.com – The Best Meditation Apps of 2017 | HealthLINE
4. Websites
Sometimes the quickest solution for quality music/sound streaming is through a browser. Though this could be considered old-fashioned to the younger generations (due to the lack of applications involved), there are quite a number of avenues to explore. Some of which I favor over apps!
- www.calm.com
- Not only is this website dedicated to offering many tools for pristine meditation (including a mobile app!), they also offer a complete blog, sleep stories, and even a “calm masterclass.” This company under the alias, “Calm,” even sells their branded relaxing scent: “SLEEP MIST.” As a concoction of lavender, frankincense, chamomile, and clary sage oils, this “soothing scent” is meant to create a relaxing environment ideal for sleeping peacefully. There is very limited free material, but the user interface itself is gorgeous with a background video playing the entire time your browse their site (which can be changed at will!). Beautifully designed website.
- mynoise.net/NoiseMachines
- As one of my personal favorites that I’ve used for years, “myNoise” offer a highly customizable noise machine app running straight through the browser. Choose a type of sound (such as rain, waterfall, distant thunder, etc.) and begin altering 10 different slidable qualities of the “sound” to create the perfect balance for you! It is truly amazing because each app or sound or online content found on the internet advertises itself as “perfect.” But really, perfection is different for everyone. With the ability to alter your unique sound on the spot, at will, anytime you want is really empowering to the listener. I would highly recommend this website as it comes absolutely free and provides an endlessly running sound machine streamable straight from the browser (accessible through a desktop or mobile devices.)
5. Albums
Though consider truly old-fashioned, there are many albums for meditation still in circulation. If considering finding more about these, consider reading up on this well written and research article: Top Relaxing Music Albums for Study and Meditation | Music by Mood
6. Royalty Free Downloads
If the internet isn’t your friend and connection to online streaming is just plain annoying (which we all can relate), then consider downloading and preparing beforehand for meditation or relaxation. There are many online sources for free music downloads that range from pretty good to just plain wasteful (in other words “bad”). Obviously, I’m being subjective and you can be the judge of this yourself, but I would consider this website before scouring the internet for free music:
- Music by Mood
- This website is specifically catered for listeners in need of relaxing music. They sell royalty free music licenses “as well as give away music for free.” Give them a shot and explore their content! Each track is a full forty minutes of uninterrupted music created for “massage, meditation, concentration, hypnotherapy and more.”
- Free Meditation Music
- This website centers around “high-quality meditation music downloads for FREE!” but what I like even more is the built-in audio player on the website itself. You can explore, discover, listen, and download songs in multiple categories such as “oceanside meditation,” “852Hz Nature,” “Root Chakra Healing,” “Study Aid,” etc. A wonderful source for free music online without the worry of financial troubles or royalties (please be sure to read their terms and conditions before attempting to make or use their music for monetary gains).
Conclusion
Obviously, the best choice for finding free online meditation music varies between contexts and each individual person, because situations change. The right answer is: whatever is most convenient at the time at which meditation strikes your fancy. Go with it! I hope this list aids you in finding some great online sources for free meditation music.
Happy meditating!
– Chase Chandler
January 24, 2018
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