How much data Spotify uses depends largely on the sound quality you use when listening to music or other audio from Spotify. We estimate Spotify data usage when streaming to be around:
- 40MB/hour (normal quality)
- 70MB/hour (high quality)
- 150MB/hour (extreme quality)
Spotify is a great platform to use for listening to your favorite music (especially while exercising) and podcasts. However, like any other streaming service, Spotify does use data, and if you’re on a low-limit cell phone plan, or you are worried about using all of your high-speed data, you might be very concerned with just how much data Spotify uses.
How much data does Spotify use in an hour?
This depends largely on audio quality. Spotify offers three audio quality settings: Normal (96kbps), High (160kbps), and Extreme (150kbps). The higher the audio quality, the more data will be used.
The approximate breakdown of Spotify data usage for each option of sound quality is as follows:
- Normal: 40MB/hour
- High: 70MB/hour
- Extreme: 150MB/hour
This means that if you have a cell phone plan with 5GB of data, it’ll take about 125 hours of streaming with Spotify on the Normal setting to use up all that data. That’s a little over three weeks of typical office hours.
It’s important to note that these are just estimates. The problem with figuring out just how much data you'll use up while streaming music on Spotify is that there isn't really a perfect formula. For instance, Spotify actually caches snippets of the songs you play so that when you play them again, you already have part of the song, which means less data needs to be transferred. If you’re listening to a lot of the same music repetitively, you should be going through less data than if you were solely listening to songs you’ve never played before.
Do Spotify audiobooks or podcasts use more data?
Streaming audiobooks on Spotify shouldn't use more data than streaming music does, unless you're streaming them at a higher sound quality. Podcasts, on the other hand, may include video that may eat up data faster.
Though Spotify doesn't let you disable videos in podcasts, the good news is that they only play when you're actively looking at your phone screen. If you lock your screen while listening to your podcast, you'll only use audio data.
Reducing Spotify data usage
Depending on how much data you use and what kind of mobile data plan you have, managing how much data Spotify uses might be a bigger priority to you than it is for others. There are a couple things you can do to help control data usage while streaming with Spotify.
Choose a lower sound quality
Remember, the higher the sound quality, the more data will be used. Unless you are a major audiophile, or you have really good speakers or headphones, you likely won’t notice much of a difference between the different audio settings. You can change the audio quality on Spotify by going into the Music Quality section under settings. In addition to the Normal, High, and Extreme settings you’ll also see an Automatic setting, which changes audio quality according to how strong your internet connection is. To save data, you’ll want to choose the Normal setting.
Download playlists to your phone
If you are a Spotify Premium member, you can download songs to play while offline. While this will require use of storage space on your phone, it will save you from using data while listening to these songs. You can even change settings on the Spotify app to make sure that songs are not downloaded using cellular data. You can download playlists, albums, or podcasts on your mobile device by hitting the download button (arrow facing downwards) next to whatever it is you would like to download. Once downloaded, you can listen offline by setting Spotify to its Offline Mode under Playback in Settings.
Connect to Wi-Fi
One of the best ways to reduce mobile data usage with Spotify (or any other app) is by not actually using your mobile data at all. Whenever possible, connect your phone to a safe and secure WiFi network. This way, Spotify isn’t using any of your limited cellular data as you listen.
About Spotify
Spotify has emerged as the most popular music streaming service in the world. Currently, Spotify hosts more than 50 million songs and over 700,000 podcasts for listeners to enjoy. Users can listen to ad-supported Spotify for free or pay for a monthly subscription of ad-free Spotify Premium, which also comes with perks like offline listening of your downloaded songs, Spotify playlists, and more. All Spotify users have access to Spotify Wrapped, an end of year analysis of your listening habits.
Prices for Spotify Premium are:
- Premium Individual: $11.99
- Premium Duo: $14.99 (two accounts)
- Premium Family: $19.99 (up to 6 accounts)
- Premium Student: $5.99 (single account)
Best cell phone plans for streaming Spotify
Many cell phone carriers offer free subscriptions to streaming services as incentives to join their networks. Unfortunately, no carrier currently offers free Spotify. AT&T once offered Spotify Premium for free to customers on their now defunct Unlimited&More Plan. If you are a heavy Spotify user, or your top priority with data usage is streaming music, you might want to consider a US Mobile unlimited plan. With this MVNO you can stream all the music you want with its unlimited premium data offering—and if you add three lines or more to create a family plan, you can choose a free streaming perk including Spotify, Audible, and more.
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#1
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US Mobile
Unlimited Starter Plan
$25.00/mo
$20/mo. for 6 months; $25/mo. thereafter
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#2
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US Mobile
Unlimited Starter Plan (Dark Star)
$25.00/mo
$20/mo. for 6 months; $25/mo. thereafter
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#3
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US Mobile
Unlimited Premium Plan
$39.00/mo
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#4
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US Mobile
Unlimited Premium Plan (Dark Star)
$39.00/mo
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#5
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US Mobile
Unlimited Starter Annual Plan
$199.00
Pay $199 for the first year or $16.60/month<br>(Regular rate is $270 for 12 months or $22.50/month)
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Angelo Ilumba
Senior Writer
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