Best Playlists for Retail Stores

Music is one of the most underrated tools in retail. The right playlist doesn’t just fill the silence, it shapes how customers feel, how long they stay, and in some cases, what they buy.

Faster tracks can push shoppers along more quickly, while slower music encourages them to browse. For retailers, this means music is more than background noise, it’s part of the store’s design, working alongside lighting, layout, and décor to shape the shopping experience.

There is no single playlist that works for every retail store. A clothing boutique and a hardware store are selling two very different experiences, and the right retail store background music depends on the store type, the customer, and even the time of day.

Retail Music at a Glance

Best Music Playlists by Store Type

Before picking a genre, think about what kind of store you are running and who walks through the door. A fast-fashion boutique and a jewelry counter are not competing for the same shopper, so they should not sound the same. These playlists draw on SoundMachine’s library of curated stations, so building one does not mean starting from scratch.

Best Music Playlists for Clothing and Fashion Boutiques

Fashion retailers range from fast-fashion chains to independent boutiques, and each needs a soundtrack that reflects the style and energy of its target customer. Pop, dance-pop, and nostalgic throwback pop all work well, since they keep the store feeling current and give younger shoppers a sense that the brand is in tune with culture.

Retailers use these genres to keep energy high in busy spaces without tipping into anything too aggressive. For stores targeting a younger crowd, current chart-toppers signal relevance, while a dose of 90s and 2000s pop adds a retro, fun layer that plays well across generations.

Recommended stations: Pop, 90s Pop

Example tracks:

1. “Anti-Hero,” Taylor Swift
2. “Flowers,” Miley Cyrus
3. “As It Was,” Harry Styles
4. “Levitating,” Dua Lipa
5. “Blinding Lights,” The Weeknd
6. “…Baby One More Time,” Britney Spears
7. “Bye Bye Bye,” NSYNC
8. “Say My Name,” Destiny’s Child
9. “Genie in a Bottle,” Christina Aguilera
10. “Good as Hell,” Lizzo

Best Music Playlists for Grocery, Convenience, and Pharmacy Stores

These stores see the widest range of customers of any retail format, often across a single hour. The music needs to feel familiar and positive without leaning too far into any one demographic’s taste, which is why adult contemporary and easy listening are such reliable defaults.

Tempo matters here more than in most retail settings. Faster music suits a convenience-focused trip, while slower music can encourage a bigger basket by keeping shoppers in the store a little longer. Most grocery and pharmacy retailers land somewhere in the middle, favoring a steady, mid-tempo soundtrack that keeps the pace moving without feeling rushed.

Recommended stations: 90s-10s Adult Contemporary, Easy Listening

Example tracks:

1. “Chasing Cars,” Snow Patrol
2. “Wonderwall,” Oasis
3. “Umbrella,” Rihanna
4. “Viva la Vida,” Coldplay
5. “Home,” Michael Bublé
6. “Better Together,” Jack Johnson
7. “Put Your Records On,” Corinne Bailey Rae
8. “Fields of Gold,” Sting
9. “I’m Yours,” Jason Mraz
10. “Complicated,” Avril Lavigne

Best Music Playlists for Big Box, Home Improvement, and Outdoor Retailers

Large-format stores need music that keeps energy high across a big, often loud, physical space without becoming distracting. Classic rock and country both hold up well here, since the songs are familiar enough to work at volume and carry enough heritage to give a large, sometimes impersonal space a bit of character.

Country in particular suits outdoor gear, hardware, and rustic lifestyle retailers, where the genre’s warmth and storytelling quality feel like a natural fit. Classic rock works almost everywhere else in this category, from sporting goods to general merchandise.

Recommended stations: 70s-80s Rock, Country

Example tracks:

1. “Don’t Stop Believin’,” Journey
2. “Sweet Home Alabama,” Lynyrd Skynyrd
3. “Life in the Fast Lane,” Eagles
4. “Free Fallin’,” Tom Petty
5. “Friends in Low Places,” Garth Brooks
6. “Chicken Fried,” Zac Brown Band
7. “Body Like a Back Road,” Sam Hunt
8. “Wagon Wheel,” Darius Rucker
9. “Old Time Rock and Roll,” Bob Seger
10. “Take Me Home, Country Roads,” John Denver

Best Music Playlists for Bookstores, Gift Shops, and Lifestyle Retailers

Customers in these stores tend to browse rather than rush, which makes them one of the few retail formats where a calmer, more understated soundtrack is the right call. Chill beats and acoustic-leaning artist stations both work well, since they add ambiance without pulling attention away from the shelves.

This is also a category where customers often spend real time in the store, sometimes reading, testing, or comparing products, so consistency matters more than variety. A steady, warm playlist that never surprises anyone tends to outperform something flashier.

Recommended stations: Chill Beats, Ed Sheeran Artist Radio

Example tracks:

1. “Photograph,” Ed Sheeran
2. “Thinking Out Loud,” Ed Sheeran
3. “Let Her Go,” Passenger
4. “Riptide,” Vance Joy
5. “Budapest,” George Ezra
6. “Holocene,” Bon Iver
7. “Banana Pancakes,” Jack Johnson
8. “Little Talks,” Of Monsters and Men
9. “On Melancholy Hill,” Gorillaz
10. “Best Part,” Daniel Caesar ft. H.E.R.

Best Music Playlists for Jewelry, Luxury, and High-End Boutiques

High-end retail is the one category where music is most clearly working to signal quality. Smooth jazz and vocal standards both do this well, since they carry sophistication without needing to say anything at all.

Because these purchases are often considered and occasionally significant, the music should encourage customers to slow down rather than move quickly. Instrumental jazz has a practical advantage here too, since lyrics can compete with a salesperson’s conversation at low volumes.

Recommended stations: Smooth Jazz Instrumentals, Frank Sinatra Artist Radio

Example tracks:

1. “Fly Me to the Moon,” Frank Sinatra
2. “Come Fly with Me,” Frank Sinatra
3. “The Way You Look Tonight,” Tony Bennett
4. “Sway,” Michael Bublé
5. “That’s Amore,” Dean Martin
6. “Butter,” Boney James
7. “Just the Two of Us,” Grover Washington Jr.
8. “Breezin’,” George Benson
9. “Feels So Good,” Chuck Mangione
10. “The Nearness of You,” Norah Jones

Recommended Retail Stations

These are SoundMachine’s top 10 stations for retail stores, ranked by the platform’s own usage numbers. Each one is a real, ready-to-play station on the SoundMachine platform today, not just a genre label, and each can be scheduled on its own or blended into a larger rotation.

20 Songs That Work in Almost Any Retail Store

Some songs perform well across nearly every retail environment, regardless of store type. These are broadly familiar, positive, and easy to work into a rotation alongside the more targeted playlists above.

1. “Happy,” Pharrell Williams
2. “Uptown Funk,” Mark Ronson ft. Bruno Mars
3. “Can’t Stop the Feeling!,” Justin Timberlake
4. “Lovely Day,” Bill Withers
5. “September,” Earth, Wind & Fire
6. “Walking on Sunshine,” Katrina and the Waves
7. “I Wanna Dance with Somebody,” Whitney Houston
8. “24K Magic,” Bruno Mars
9. “Dancing Queen,” ABBA
10. “Signed, Sealed, Delivered (I’m Yours),” Stevie Wonder
11. “Valerie,” Amy Winehouse
12. “Mr. Blue Sky,” Electric Light Orchestra
13. “Good Vibrations,” The Beach Boys
14. “Superstition,” Stevie Wonder
15. “I Want You Back,” The Jackson 5
16. “Shut Up and Dance,” Walk the Moon
17. “Best Day of My Life,” American Authors
18. “Higher Love,” Kygo and Whitney Houston
19. “Faith,” George Michael
20. “You Make My Dreams,” Hall and Oates

Rather than looping these 20 songs on repeat, treat this as a starting point for a larger, professionally curated rotation. Retail environments perform best when the playlist is refreshed regularly and tailored to the store’s brand, customers, and traffic patterns.

How Music Affects Retail Shopping Behavior

One of the most cited findings in retail music research found that playing French versus German music could shift which country’s wine customers bought, even though most had no idea the music had influenced them at all.

Product choice. A classic 1999 study in the Journal of Applied Psychology played French and German music on alternating days next to a supermarket wine display. French wine outsold German wine on the days French music played, and the reverse happened on days German music played, despite most customers saying afterward that the music had not affected their choice.

Tempo and pace. The original 1982 study on retail background music, published in the Journal of Marketing, found that slow-tempo music reduced the pace of in-store traffic and increased daily sales volume compared with fast-tempo music, establishing the basic finding that has anchored retail music research ever since.

Weekday versus weekend effects. A 2023 study in the Journal of Marketing Research analyzed roughly 150,000 supermarket shopping trips and found that pleasant background music boosted sales on weekdays but had no measurable effect on weekends, an effect the researchers linked to shoppers being more mentally depleted after a workday.

Impulse buying. A 2024 study in Sage Open found that ambient music shapes impulse buying behavior, with the strength of the effect differing between male and female shoppers, underscoring that the same playlist can land differently depending on who is listening.

The wine study is the one worth sitting with. If music can shift which country’s wine ends up in someone’s cart without them noticing, it is doing real work on every kind of purchase decision, not just the obvious ones like how long someone lingers.

How to Choose the Right Playlist for Your Store

Music should be intentional, not an afterthought. A few practical guidelines make the decision easier:

Match your brand identity. A rustic outdoor retailer might lean on country, while a sleek boutique might use chill beats or current pop.

Think about demographics. Younger shoppers may connect with current chart hits or 90s pop, while older customers often respond better to adult contemporary or classic rock.

Control the pace. Upbeat playlists encourage quicker movement through the store, while slower tracks invite lingering and browsing.

Daypart your music. Morning hours might call for softer, easy listening or jazz, while afternoons and evenings can handle pop or rock.

Stay consistent. Mixing genres is fine, but aim for a steady mood throughout. A sudden shift from country to dance music can feel jarring.

Do Retail Stores Need Licensed Music?

Playing music from a personal streaming account in a commercial space is a licensing violation that can result in fines. Personal accounts are built for private listening, not for all-day play in a store open to the public.

SoundMachine covers the necessary performance rights, so a retailer can stream legally across one location or hundreds without managing separate agreements. Start your free trial to see how the licensing and the station library work together before committing to a plan.

Common Questions About Retail Store Playlists

What is the best type of music for retail stores?

It depends on your brand and audience. Pop and easy listening are versatile choices for most environments, while niche retailers may benefit from more specific playlists like smooth jazz, country, or classic rock.

Does background music actually increase retail sales?

Research consistently shows that tempo and genre influence shopping pace, mood, and purchase decisions when the music is aligned with the brand and the store environment.

Should playlists change throughout the day?

Ideally, yes. This is known as dayparting. Playing something upbeat during busy hours and softer in the evenings keeps the experience fresh and supports the natural rhythm of customer traffic.

Can I use Spotify or YouTube for my retail music?

For personal use, yes. For a business, a licensed music service is necessary to handle the legal requirements and provide playlists suited to a commercial environment.

Is it better to mix genres or stick to one?

Consistency matters more than variety. Genres can blend as long as the mood stays aligned with the brand, but a sudden jump from hard rock to Sinatra tends to feel disjointed.

How loud should background music be in a retail store?

Loud enough to be clearly audible without interfering with conversations, customer service interactions, or announcements. The right volume depends on store size and foot traffic.

Design the Soundtrack of Your Store

Music in retail is more than background, it is a tool for shaping the customer journey. The best playlists align with brand identity, appeal to the target audience, and set the right tone for the shopping experience.

From pop hits that energize a boutique to smooth jazz that refines a jewelry counter, the stations covered above represent some of the strongest starting points for building a soundtrack that keeps customers engaged and comfortable. Start your free trial with SoundMachine and put your first station together today.

References

North, A. C., Hargreaves, D. J., & McKendrick, J. (1999). “The influence of in-store music on wine selections.” Journal of Applied Psychology, 84(2), 271-276. semanticscholar.org.

Milliman, R. E. (1982). “Using background music to affect the behavior of supermarket shoppers.” Journal of Marketing, 46(3), 86-91. journals.sagepub.com.

Ahlbom, C.-P., Roggeveen, A. L., Grewal, D., & Nordfält, J. (2023). “Understanding how music influences shopping on weekdays and weekends.” Journal of Marketing Research, 60(5), 987-1007. journals.sagepub.com.

Manzoor, A. (2024). “Impact of Ambient Music on Consumer Perceptions and Impulse Buying Behavior with Moderating Role of Gender.” Sage Open, 14(2). journals.sagepub.com.