MD Vinyl Alternative: Marquee for Apple Music
Updated September 28, 2026 · Marquee Comparisons
Quick answer
If you want an MD Vinyl alternative, Marquee is a free Apple Music player whose Vinyl style spins your album on a turntable. Both apps play Apple Music with a vinyl look and home screen widgets. Marquee adds six more player styles like Cassette and CD, animated deck widgets, Last.fm scrobbling, listening stats, a barcode scanner, and upcoming-release countdowns, and it runs on Macs with Apple silicon.
MD Vinyl is one of the most popular vinyl music player apps, built around a virtual turntable for your music. Marquee is an Apple Music player where Vinyl is one of eight player styles. If you’re deciding between them, here’s how they compare.
Everything we say about MD Vinyl comes from its App Store listing, its release notes, and the developer’s support pages. Where none of them mention a feature, the table says “Not listed” — it may exist, but we couldn’t verify it.
Marquee vs MD Vinyl at a glance
| Feature | Marquee | MD Vinyl |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free download; Marquee Pro by subscription with a free trial, or a one-time lifetime unlock | Free with ads; in-app purchases listed as MD Vinyl Pro $14.99, Premium $1.99, and Premium C $2.99 (as of September 2026) |
| Plays Apple Music | Yes — your library and the full catalog | Yes |
| Spotify | No — Marquee is for Apple Music | Shows and controls Spotify; music plays in the Spotify app |
| Vinyl turntable player | Yes — the Vinyl player style (Pro) | Yes — its main feature |
| Other player styles | Seven more: Classic, Full-Screen, Cassette, CD, Equalizer, Marquee, Retro | Vinyl and radio-inspired layouts |
| Custom color themes | Yes | Yes |
| Home screen widgets | Yes — plus lock screen widgets, and extra-large on iOS 27 | Yes — with playback controls and an extra-large size |
| Animated widgets | Yes — vinyl, cassette, equalizer, CD, and marquee decks (Pro) | A Now Spinning widget that pairs album art with spinning vinyl |
| Last.fm scrobbling | Yes, free | Not listed |
| Listening stats | Yes — Library Insights | Not listed |
| Weekly recap with share cards | Yes — Your Week, free | Not listed; share cards for artists |
| CD and vinyl barcode scanner | Yes, free | Not listed |
| Upcoming-release countdowns and alerts | Yes (Pro) | Not listed |
| iPad | Yes | Yes |
| Mac | Yes — the iPad app runs on Macs with Apple silicon (macOS 26 or later) | Not listed |
MD Vinyl details are from its App Store listing and website as of September 2026. “Not listed” means the listing doesn’t mention it.
What Marquee and MD Vinyl have in common
Both are vinyl music players for Apple Music: they play your music inside the app with a turntable you can watch while the record spins. Both need an Apple Music subscription, both have custom color themes and home screen widgets with playback controls, both run on iPhone and iPad, and both are free to download with a paid upgrade.
What only Marquee does
Eight player styles, not just vinyl. Alongside the Vinyl player, Marquee has a Cassette tape deck with winding spools, a spinning CD, Equalizer bars, a full-screen style, and a theater-style marquee with golden chasing bulbs.
Animated deck widgets. Marquee’s widgets spin the record, wind the cassette reels, and dance to the music, then pause when you pause, without draining your battery. There are lock screen widgets too.
Mac. Marquee’s iPad app runs on Macs with an Apple M1 chip or later and macOS 26 or later, so the turntable works on your desktop too.
Last.fm scrobbling and stats. Marquee scrobbles to Last.fm for free, shows your Apple Music stats in Library Insights, and recaps your week every Sunday with four free share cards.
Barcode scanner and release countdowns. Scan your records to add them to Apple Music, and see what’s coming from the artists in your library with Upcoming Releases.
What MD Vinyl does well
MD Vinyl goes deep on the record itself. You can design custom vinyl styles — color, texture, and label — tied to specific albums, and share them with friends by QR code or a short code. It has a 3D library browser, artist pages with top songs and artist radio, share cards for your favorite artists, and Siri and Spotlight support. It also works as a now-playing display for Spotify, runs on iOS 16.4 and later and on Apple Vision Pro, and the developer describes MD Vinyl Pro as a one-time purchase rather than a subscription.
Which should you choose?
Choose MD Vinyl if you want to customize the records themselves, you also listen on Spotify, or you’re on an older iPhone. Choose Marquee if you want more than one look — vinyl, cassette, CD, and more — along with animated widgets, Last.fm scrobbling, listening stats, and a version that runs on your Mac.
Try it with Marquee — free
The Apple Music player with eight player styles, animated widgets, Last.fm scrobbling, and listening stats. Requires an Apple Music subscription.
Frequently asked questions
Is MD Vinyl free?
MD Vinyl is free to download with ads, and its in-app purchases are listed as MD Vinyl Pro at $14.99 plus two smaller Premium purchases, as of September 2026. Marquee is free to download too, with Marquee Pro as a subscription with a free trial or a one-time lifetime unlock.
Is there a vinyl music player for Mac?
MD Vinyl’s App Store listing lists iPhone, iPad, and Apple Vision, not Mac. Marquee’s iPad app, including its Vinyl player, runs on Macs with an Apple M1 chip or later and macOS 26 or later.
Does Marquee work with Spotify?
No. Marquee is a player for Apple Music and needs an active Apple Music subscription.
MD Vinyl is a trademark of its respective owner. Marquee is not affiliated with MD Vinyl.