Spotify subscribers should start preparing for higher prices.
The music streaming platform has announced that all of its premium subscription plans will be going up in price – for the first time since launching in the U.S. in 2011.
“The market landscape has continued to evolve since we launched,” the company wrote in a statement. “So that we can keep innovating, we are changing our Premium prices across a number of markets around the world. These updates will help us continue to deliver value to fans and artists on our platform.”
Higher prices for all subscribers
Spotify announced that the price increase will go into effect as of July 24, 2023. Premium subscribers will receive an email from the company detailing their specific price increase, and the new prices will be charged following a one-month grace period. This means that users can expect their upcoming bill to reflect the current prices, while the next one will reflect the price increase.
The changes to the Premium subscription prices are as follows:
Premium Individual: $10.99/month (from $9.99)
Premium Duo: $14.99/month (from $12.99)
Premium Family: $16.99/month (from $15.99)
Premium Student: $5.99/month (from $4.99)
Spotify won’t make any changes to its free user accounts. However, these types of profiles come with some restrictions that Premium users don’t have to deal with.
For example, free account users listen to ads in between a certain number of songs, they aren’t able to choose the order in which they listen to their songs, and they can’t download music for offline listening.
Streaming services are raising prices across the board
While this is Spotify’s first price increase in over 10 years, they’re the latest streaming service to make adjustments to its subscription prices as of late.
Most recently, Netflix announced that its $10 subscription tier will no longer be an option for customers. The cheapest option is now the $7/month tier, which comes with commercials, or users will have to upgrade to one of the two premium options – which run $15.50/month or $20/month.
Last summer, Disney+ raised its subscription prices, going from $7.99/month to $10.99/month. Users who wanted to stay at $7.99/month could do so but would have to sit through ads while streaming.
Recently, both Peacock and Paramount+ increased their prices. To watch these services ad-free, consumers saw their bills increase from $9.99/month to $11.99/month.