RequestNow vs SpecialRequest: Which song request app for DJs in 2026?

The short answer

• How guests request. On RequestNow, a text message to your number, read by automatic song detection that its own user guide says "can occasionally misidentify" requests. On SpecialRequest, a request page where guests pick the exact song, with its cover, from Apple Music, Tidal or Spotify.
• Votes. We found no voting at RequestNow. SpecialRequest guests vote requests up or down, live, so you see what the room wants.
• Price. RequestNow has no free plan: Lite is $7 a month as a limited-time offer, without replies to guests; Unlimited Pro is $30 a month; one event under 100 guests is $19; and its terms make all sales final. SpecialRequest is free for unlimited events, and Premium is US$6.99 a month (CA$9.99 in Canada), the lowest price of the song request apps we compare.
• DJ software. RequestNow works with VirtualDJ's "Ask the DJ". SpecialRequest puts the songs you accept in a Tidal or Apple Music playlist for Serato DJ Pro, rekordbox, djay Pro or VirtualDJ.
• Events. A RequestNow event goes live at 10 a.m. and lasts up to 24 hours, one event per number at a time. A SpecialRequest event can take requests from the invitation, weeks before the night.

What you pay

RequestNow has three plans and no free one. Lite, a limited-time offer at $7 a month, leaves out custom text replies and replies to guests. Unlimited Pro, at $30 a month, has every feature, including tips by Apple Pay and card. Pay Per Event costs $19 for one event of under 100 guests, without a dedicated number. Its pricing page says it bills in local currency in the US and Canada, you cancel by contacting support, and its terms say all sales are final and non-refundable.

SpecialRequest has two plans. Free covers unlimited events, guests and requests, the QR code and link, live votes, song search in Apple Music, Tidal or Spotify, requests before and during the event, an access code, tips and song recognition. Premium adds everything else, DJ software sync, BPM and key, song previews, your repertoire, the booking page, the agenda, posters, guest reviews, refusal reasons and the chat, for US$6.99 a month or US$59.99 a year (CA$9.99 and CA$79.99 in Canada). The Season pass gives three months of Premium for US$17.99 (CA$24.99), paid once.

RequestNow's prices are the dollar amounts on its pricing page on October 25, 2026. SpecialRequest's are on our pricing page, and the stores show them in your currency. A year of RequestNow Unlimited Pro costs $360; a year of SpecialRequest Premium, US$59.99.

A text message, or a request page

RequestNow's idea is that everybody knows how to send a text: the QR code opens a message to your event's number, the guest types a song, and it lands in your Live View. It runs on the cell network, not Wi-Fi, and guests' phone numbers stay hidden from you.

The catch is in the typing. A text is free-form, so RequestNow guesses the song from it, and its user guide warns that detection "can occasionally misidentify" a request. Guests also don't see what others asked for, and can't push a song they like.

On SpecialRequest, the QR code opens your event's request page. Guests search the catalogue, pick the exact version with its cover, see the requests already in, and vote. You get clean requests, with their BPM and key on Premium, and no guessing.

In SpecialRequest

Print the QR code or share the link: guests request from their browser, with nothing to install. Create an event

Votes: let the room decide

We found no voting in RequestNow's features or user guide: each text is one request, and you weigh them yourself. On SpecialRequest, guests vote requests up or down, live, and the most wanted songs rise to the top of your list. On a full dance floor, that tells you more than any single text.

Getting requests into your DJ software

RequestNow's integration is VirtualDJ's "Ask the DJ"; we didn't find a streaming playlist sync on its pages. SpecialRequest puts the songs you accept in a Tidal or Apple Music playlist that Serato DJ Pro, rekordbox and djay Pro read, or VirtualDJ with Tidal, and marks them played on its own once it hears them in the room.

In SpecialRequest

Connect your Tidal or Apple Music account once, and every song you accept lands in the event's playlist, ready in your DJ software. With Premium. DJ software sync

Tips

RequestNow takes tips through Venmo, Cash App and PayPal links, where its guide says 100% of the tip goes to you, and by Apple Pay, Google Pay and card on Unlimited Pro. Its pages don't say what card tips cost or when they're paid out.

SpecialRequest tips are part of the free plan, by card through Stripe, and the guest is only charged when their song actually plays: nobody pays for a song they didn't hear, and you have no refunds to sort out. The fee is 10% + $0.30 per tip, Stripe's fees included, and tips become available about 7 days after the show.

Events on your schedule

RequestNow events go live at 10 a.m. and last up to 24 hours, and a number runs one event at a time. Its pricing page lists the US and Canada, and its site is in English.

SpecialRequest events open for requests when you say so: from the invitation, weeks before a wedding, up to the last song. The app and your guests' request page speak English, French and Spanish.

Where RequestNow does more

To be fair, a text goes through where data doesn't: a guest with a weak connection can still send one. RequestNow also lists raffles, trivia, a photo wall add-on, a request form before the event, and a thank-you text to everyone after the night with your contact card, and it keeps guests' numbers private.

SpecialRequest's thank-you is an email to your guests after the night, with your booking page one tap away (Premium).

Side by side

Switching from RequestNow

Nothing to migrate, and no number to keep: your QR code points to a page instead of a text. Here's how to try SpecialRequest at your next gig without paying anything:

1. 1Create your free account, in the app on iPhone, Android or Mac, or on the web.
2. 2Create your event, add an access code if it's private, and print the QR code.
3. 3Turn on tips with a minimum if you want them: they're in the free plan, and guests only pay when their song plays.
4. 4Want DJ software sync, BPM and key and song previews for a busy season? The Season pass gives you three months of Premium, paid once, no subscription.

In SpecialRequest

The free plan covers events, guests and requests without limits, with tips and song recognition, no credit card needed. See the plans