The first time I ever used Shazam, the application that identifies music with the click of a button, it felt like magic. To this day, it’s probably my favorite app. Wherever I go, if I hear a new song that I’m vibing to or one from my past that I totally forgot the name of, I’ll shamelessly hold my phone in the air and let Shazam do its thing. It’s amazing that the service is still free for users. Of course, Shazam makes its revenue from ads and commissions from referrals to music and streaming platforms. But for the user, it feels like a gift. 

There are lots of amazing apps and software that feel like they shouldn’t be free, and a bunch of redditors recently got together to discuss some of their favorites.