Can you download music using Spotify free?
What is Spotify?
Spotify is a music streaming service that was founded in 2006 by Daniel Ek and Martin Lorentzon (https://newsroom.spotify.com/company-info/). It allows users to listen to millions of songs and podcasts for free with advertising or by paying a monthly subscription for a premium ad-free experience.
As a streaming service, Spotify gives users on-demand access to music and audio content without having to download files to their device storage. This allows seamless listening across multiple devices both online and offline.
Spotify is now available in over 80 markets globally, offering both free ad-supported and premium subscription tiers (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spotify). It has grown to become one of the world’s most popular audio streaming platforms with over 406 million monthly active users as of 2022.
Spotify Free Overview
Spotify Free is the free, ad-supported version of Spotify. As described on the Spotify website, Spotify Free allows you to:
- Stream music on demand with ads
- Enjoy unlimited song plays when listening to playlists in shuffle mode
- Skip tracks a limited number of times per hour
- Get base-level audio quality (max 160kbps)
So with Spotify Free you can listen to whatever songs or playlists you want, either in order or in shuffle mode, but your experience will include audio, skip, and shuffle limitations as well as ads. The free service serves as a preview of Spotify Premium, which removes these restrictions. However, Spotify Free still provides substantial access to Spotify’s extensive music catalog at no cost.
Downloading with Spotify Free
With the free version of Spotify, you cannot download songs, albums, or playlists for offline listening. This means if you want to listen without an internet connection, downloading Spotify content for offline use is not an option.
However, the free version does allow you to listen to downloaded playlists in offline mode. So if you had a playlist previously downloaded before going offline, you can still access those downloaded tracks without an internet connection. But the key limitation is not being able to choose specific songs or albums to download for offline listening.
Why Downloading is Limited
Downloading songs for offline playback is one of the key features that Spotify provides to its paid subscribers. For those using the free version of Spotify, downloading is severely limited or even impossible. There are a few reasons for this.
First and foremost, the licensing agreements that Spotify has with music labels, publishers, and other rights holders typically allow downloading for offline use only for paying subscribers. This is one of the major perks that Spotify can offer with its Premium subscription tiers to encourage free users to upgrade. Without those limits in place, there would be little incentive for users to pay, therefore premium downloading is strategic for Spotify’s business model.
Secondly, downloading for offline use takes up storage space on users’ devices. For Spotify, allowing unlimited free downloading could significantly increase its own storage infrastructure costs for hosting audio files as well as cause issues for users who have limited internal storage space on their devices. By keeping offline listening a premium benefit, Spotify limits the needs for larger storage requirements.
Workarounds
Since you can’t actually download music using standard Spotify Free features, some users seek out workarounds. Some of the most popular options include:
- Using a desktop app like Audacity to record streamed music from Spotify.
- Converting Spotify playlists to MP3 format with a third-party service like Audials Music.
These options allow you to save Spotify music to your devices for offline listening. However, be aware that downloading streamed content without permission may violate copyright.
Premium Account Benefits
One major benefit of a Spotify Premium account compared to the free version is the ability to download songs, albums, playlists, and podcasts for offline listening. This allows you to listen to music without an internet connection such as when you’re on a plane or outside of WiFi coverage (https://www.spotify.com/us/premium/).
In addition, Spotify Premium offers higher audio quality up to 320 kbps. The free tier is limited to 160 kbps, so upgrading to Premium provides noticeably better sound. Songs, playlists, albums all sound richer and more dynamic with Premium (https://support.spotify.com/us/article/premium-plans/).
Premium also removes all advertisements that regularly interrupt listening sessions for free members. You can enjoy seamless, uninterrupted music with a paid subscription.
Finally, Premium allows for unlimited track skips. Free members are restricted to only six skips per hour. By upgrading, you have complete freedom over the songs you play without any skip limits (https://www.quora.com/What-are-the-benefits-of-having-a-premium-Spotify-account-What-does-it-do-differently-from-a-normal-one).
Pricing
Spotify offers premium plans at different price points for individuals and families. The standard Premium Individual plan costs $9.99 per month and allows one user ad-free access across mobile and desktop as well as the ability to download songs for offline listening. For families, Spotify offers the Premium Family plan which allows up to six users to have their own individual Premium accounts for a single price of $14.99 per month. This can be an attractive option for households with multiple Spotify listeners looking to save money over multiple individual accounts.
Is Premium Worth it?
Whether Spotify Premium is worth its cost depends largely on your music listening habits. While the free version of Spotify offers full access to its huge library of music, including personalized recommendations, heavy listeners may want the extra features of Premium like offline listening, unlimited skips, and ad-free playback.
Premium is especially beneficial for those who listen to music offline regularly, such as when traveling or commuting and lacking reliable Internet access. The ability to download songs, albums, and podcasts provides seamless listening without the nuisance of ads or limited skips.
For frequent offline listeners, Spotify Premium is a convenient investment to enhance the listening experience. Mobile users also appreciate Premium’s offline mode to save data usage, especially for those with limited plans.
Other Free Music Apps
In addition to Spotify, there are other popular free music apps available for iOS and Android devices that you may want to consider:
Pandora is one of the most well-known free music apps. It offers ad-supported streaming radio that creates personalized stations based on your tastes. However, you cannot download music or access on-demand songs with the free version.
SoundCloud lets you stream a huge collection of music and podcasts, with over 200 million tracks available. The free version has ads and limits how much you can stream without WiFi. Downloading is restricted to premium members.
Amazon Music offers ad-supported on-demand streaming with shuffle play only. Downloading for offline listening requires an Amazon Music Unlimited paid subscription.
While these apps don’t allow downloading with a free account like Spotify, they provide other benefits like radio streaming or access to exclusive content. However, Spotify remains the frontrunner for free music apps overall.
Summary
Spotify Free does not allow users to download music directly to their devices. However, there is a limited offline listening mode that lets users save playlists and podcasts for offline use. The offline limit is fairly restrictive though, with only 3,333 tracks able to be saved offline at one time.
Some workarounds exist to download tracks, such as using third party apps or recording audio output. However, these methods are clunky, lower quality, and may violate Spotify’s terms. The only true way to download anything on Spotify is to upgrade to a Premium account.
With Spotify Premium, there are no restrictions on downloads. Users can download playlists, albums, tracks, and podcasts to listen offline and disconnected from the internet. This makes Premium a great choice for frequent travelers and commuters. Downloaded content stays in the user’s Spotify library as long as they keep their Premium subscription active.