Spotify is the most popular music and podcast streaming service today. Here's everything you need to know about it.
Spotify is the first name that comes to mind when you think of music-streaming apps. Love it or hate it, Spotify is currently the most popular music-streaming service, boasting 551 million users and more than 220 million subscribers, putting it ahead of competitors like Apple Music. But what exactly is Spotify, and how does it really work? We’re answering all your questions with this deep dive into what you can expect from Spotify.
Related Spotify is also quite device-versatile, so you can use it on your smartphone, tablet, computer, laptop, TV, smartwatch, gaming console, and even in your car. You get the expected, intuitive controls like play/pause, next/previous, loop a song/playlist, and save favorites. But that’s not all. There’s a lot that Spotify offers, so let’s break down what you can look forward to.
Another touch of social integration is the Facebook login option and the ability to track what your friends are listening to so the whole experience feels a bit more communal. Spotify has also added the lyrics for songs right in the app, so you can have a fun karaoke night without having to leave your couch.
Spotify plans: Is it free? Spotify has a free, ad-based version that gives you full access to the current library, but you have to sit through ad breaks. Some users avoid this problem with an ad blocker, but you can also subscribe to Spotify Premium if you want the ads gone, in addition to receiving some cool features like song downloads and unlimited skips.
Finally, you have the Student plan for $6 a month, which gives you Hulu and Showtime subscriptions along with the usual ad-free listening, download options, and unlimited skips. Desktop, mobile, and tablet streaming starts at 24Kbps on the Low mode and goes up to 160Kbps when set to High. Premium also starts at 24Kbps on the Low mode. but goes up to 320Kbps when set to Very High, giving you much greater sound quality. The big question many people might have is if this quality level is any good. That really depends on you. CD-quality sound is equal to 1,411Kbps, but most people either can’t tell the difference or don’t care.