WARM or MusicTrace: which one tracks your radio airplay?
MusicTrace, a Fraunhofer spin-off founded in 2004, monitors radio and TV around the clock and compiles the official airplay charts for Germany, Austria and Switzerland. It sells airplay data mainly to labels, promoters and radio stations. WARM tracks radio airplay worldwide for anyone who signs up. Here is how they compare, using what each company publishes.
| Feature | WARM | MusicTrace |
|---|---|---|
| Coverage | WARM: Radio: 21,000+ stations in 160+ countries | MusicTrace: Radio and TV; airplay charts in more than 20 countries; no station count on the pages we read |
| How plays are found | WARM: WARM recognises the song in the audio of the broadcast | MusicTrace: Audio recognition of the broadcast signal, not stations’ playlists |
| What each play shows | WARM: Station, country, city, start time and duration of every play | MusicTrace: Station, time and length of each play |
| Official charts | WARM: Weekly genre charts ranked by airplay | MusicTrace: The official airplay charts for Germany (for the BVMI), Austria and Switzerland (for IFPI), weekly on Fridays with a daily trend |
| Tracking a song | WARM: Add songs yourself, on a monthly or yearly plan | MusicTrace: Register a single title or a whole album, and receive play statistics |
| Prices | WARM: From €15 a month for 2 songs, billed monthly or yearly | MusicTrace: Not published; contact the company |
| Free option | WARM: Yes: 5 songs for 30 days, no credit card | MusicTrace: Selected airplay charts on RadioCharts.com, free for everyone |
MusicTrace figures are as published on its own website, read on 2 November 2026: MusicTrace homepage (German), MusicTrace services (German), MusicTrace regions (German), MusicTrace technology (German), About MusicTrace (German). Products change; check their current pages before you decide.
Where MusicTrace is stronger
- It compiles the official airplay charts in Germany, Austria and Switzerland.
- Radio and TV in one service, with custom analyses on request, such as yearly reports for royalty purposes.
- Station hit lists for music programmers.
Where WARM is stronger
- Prices on the website, and a free trial you start yourself.
- Radio in 160+ countries, beyond Europe.
- Artists and managers can sign up and add their songs themselves.
The short answer
If you need the official airplay chart positions in Germany, Austria or Switzerland, or radio and TV data for a label, MusicTrace is the source. If you want every radio play of your songs worldwide, at a published price and with a free trial, WARM is built for that.
Free trial: 5 songs for 30 days. No credit card required.