Totally free mp3 downloads don’t have the clout or pull they used to have. At the turn of this century it seemed everyone and their pet poodle were making out like banditos with free songs from various free downloading sites.

This resulted in the need for cash in order to download safe and decent sounding audio and video files. Yes, I know, there are still tons of services that offer free downloads of your favorite music. They’re great and wonderful, without any problems. Right?

A History of Computer Violence

I know because I’ve used many of them. One site in particular offered unlimited mp3 music downloads and to date my computer has crashed, and everything on it lost, six times. You can imagine my consternation when, after the fifth complete re-installation of the operating system on my laptop, I continued using the aforementioned site yet once again.

I guess the sixth complete crash of my operating system did the trick for me. I was scared straight. There were a few services that offered (relatively) risk free mp3 downloads. I did a little research and came up with this list of features that makes downloading services a step above your average service:

•    Quick and safe downloads
•    Peer groups that give quality recommendations
•    Creative playlists that help make the best mixes
•    The best sites charge a monthly subscription fee for unlimited downloads (the money you spend on pay-per-song services really adds up fast)
•    Search options that are specific to you (one that has playlists sorted by mood, artists, discography, or recommendations is far superior to simply typing in a word)


As you can imagine, I left my former mp3 downloads service and went to a new one.

And in the End…

When it comes down to the pears and pickles of it, paying a subscription for a premium service pays for itself after ten songs. After that, you are truly getting free mp3 downloads. And it matters more to get your money’s worth in something of quality than it does to pay nothing and suffer six computer crashes in two years.

There are some things to look out for when you do decide to sign up for a subscription service:

•    Do you download enough songs or videos each month to justify the fee?
•    Does the subscription include unlimited mp3 downloads?
•    Are you able to burn the music onto a disk?
•    Are there songs available to download without paying the subscription fee?
•    Do you ultimately get your money’s worth from your subscription?
•    Does the service carry rare songs that can’t be found elsewhere?

Making Your Cash Count

Getting your money’s worth is priceless. That’s why making your cash count is an essential element to finding totally free mp3 downloads you would actually pay for.

But what are you actually buying with the subscription? Services that offer clean file-sharing have rarities that simply can’t be found on other services are a step ahead of the rest. A live version of a song by a popular artist that isn’t available on other services has a greater shot of being on a legitimate file-sharing service.

Half the fun of downloading music is finding the rarities. For rare live and studio recordings by millions of artists, bearshare.com leads the way. They offer premium service with a subscription for unlimited free downloads.