Spotify rolled out a big update to its free plan on Monday (15). Starting now, users with a free account have more control over how they play music in the mobile app.
This change addresses a long-standing request from listeners who were previously limited when trying to select tracks from playlists or search results.
While Spotify Premium still offers more perks, the company knows most of its 600-plus million monthly listeners are on the free tier. By enhancing the experience without requiring a subscription, Spotify aims to keep more users engaged and satisfied.
How was it before?
Until now, Spotify’s free plan on mobile came with some frustrating restrictions. Users couldn’t always change the order of songs in certain playlists, and searching for a track didn’t guarantee they could play it instantly.
Some playlists only displayed a partial list of songs, which made discovering new music more difficult. And when someone shared a track, free users often got only a short preview instead of being able to listen to the full song.
Spotify Lifts Key Restrictions for Free Users on Mobile
Spotify has rolled out a major update for its free plan, bringing it closer to the Premium experience—though ads will still remain. The biggest change is how users can now control what they listen to with far more freedom.
Free users can now:
- Play any song directly from search, either by typing its title or even using a lyric snippet.
- Listen to shared tracks in full, without being limited to short previews.
- Select individual songs within playlists or across Spotify’s catalog.
For now, these updates are available only in the Spotify app for Android and iOS, with no changes announced for desktop or other platforms. The company says the expanded access will also help refine personalized recommendations and improve features like Blend and Daylist.
The rollout for free accounts began on Monday (15) and will gradually reach users worldwide in the coming days.
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