If you’re a movie and TV junkie, we’re betting that thePlexmedia server platform needs no introduction. For years now, it has been the go-to choice for people who want total control over their media library, and the ability to watch that content on every conceivable device.
But lately, Plex has been getting a lot more serious about other kinds of media as well. It has added podcasts, a capable photo organizer and even alive TV plus DVRoption. Last year, the company augmented its music chops in a big way byadding Tidal to its list of supported services. On Friday, April 26,the company announcedthat integration was expanding even further, including a new “Artist TV” feature that adds music videos to artists’ profiles and lets users fill in missing records in their Plex library using Tidal.
In this case, Plex essentially merges your music collection with that of Tidal, thus enabling a host of features that you could previously only find on services likeApple Music, andGoogle Play Music. There is also a new music video platform, allowing you to watch videos by your favorite artists with just a single click.
The big win for people who want to listen to a certain artist or song, without trying to guess where that music lives, is a universal search. It looks a lot like Sonos’ universal search, which we believe to be the industry standard. Matching results from Tidal and your collection are presented as a unified list, so you can get to the music you want faster. Playlists are similarly enhanced and can contain tracks from any collection you have access to, including Tidal.
Perhaps the most clever thing about the Tidal integration is the recommendation engine, which attempts to guess what Tidal content you’ll be interested in, based on your existing collection of songs. That same background process will show you albums that you don’t already own, from artists that you like. Plex’s artist radio feature which pulls together thematically tied music from your collection, and which debuted on the company’sPlexamp player, is now embedded in all of the Plex apps, and also includes tracks from Tidal.
These are the same prices for the same plans thatTidal charges directly, but buying them through Plex comes with some great benefits. With Tidal Premium, you get access to Plex’s premium music features — some of which are described above — that are not part of the free Plex experience. With Tidal Hi-Fi, you get a full monthlyPlex Pass, which would cost $5/month on its own.
Here’s hoping that Tidal is just the first of many streaming music services offered through Plex, as the platform continues to evolve.
Updated on June 03, 2025: Added information about new music videos and expanded recommendation features.
