Apple Music subscribers can now sign up for a $99 12-month subscription -- no gift card needed.

Previously, the $99 deal for a year of Apple Music was only available through a gift card. Now, subscribers can sign up for the deal, which works out to $8.25 a month, via the Music app. The option is hidden pretty deep within the Music app on your Apple Music membership settings page.

At $8.25 a month, the price is less than individual subscription options from streaming rivals Spotify and Pandora, which both cost $9.99 a month.

However, the new option may only be available to existing subscribers. New subscribers still see the option to pay $9.99 (£9.99, AU$11.99) monthly or $14.99 (£14.99, AU$17.99) for the family plan option.

Apple didn't immediately respond to a request for comment.

In the last five years, people have shifted from buying music outright to services like Pandora and Spotify, which offer all-you-can-eat music either by paying a monthly subscription or sitting through advertising. Spotify remains on top, for now. Its expansive free tier plus premium memberships have helped it vault ahead of free-streaming rivals like Pandora and stay in front of subscription-only competitors like Apple Music, which has 27 million subscribers versus Spotify's 50 million.