Listening to music on a record player is having a resurgence, with big artists like Harry Styles and Taylor Swift releasing their new albums on records, but digital is still the best way to listen to music.

Records may be retro and have a specific sound quality that makes people like them, but digital music adds onto that sound and makes it crisper. It allows the listener to hear the song and all of the specific parts that make it up.

Digital music also does not have the threat of being scratched. With records, a scratch means the record will always skip. If an expensive record is scratched, fans will no longer be able to get the full effect of the album because it will always skip that part of the song. Digital albums don’t get ruined.

Unlike records, digital music is easily transportable. There is no need to carry around a large and clunky record player when all that is needed to listen to music is a cell phone. Digital music also can be played on other devices, so even if there is not a cell phone around, digital music can still be listened to on a laptop or blue-tooth speaker, for example.

Digital is also much less expensive than records. For one album on vinyl, the cost can be anywhere from $25 to $100. Spotify, meanwhile, is free with ads or only $10 a month without ads. Digital music gives listeners more for less money.

Another advantage of digital music is how easy it is for independent artists to publish their music. They do not have to spend money on having their music professionally recorded then turned into a record. All they have to do is create an account and publish their music on Spotify or Bandcamp. This allows there to be more diverse music on digital music platforms, and gives great singers and artists an opportunity they would not have had two decades ago.

Overall, digital music takes the good things about records and builds off them to make the way fans listen to music better. It also makes music more accessible for more people.