Spotify is at last bringing high-quality, lossless music streaming to its premium users after years of delays. The streaming platform first teased the feature back in 2021, promising CD-quality audio. However, it was pushed back several times due to licensing issues. Last year, CEO Daniel Ek said lossless streaming was still in its early stages. He never gave us a hint about the availability of this new feature, but things seem to be quite clear now.
What Lossless Streaming Offers
With this rollout, Spotify now supports streaming in up to 24-bit/44.1 kHz FLAC quality. This format preserves original audio quality without compression, giving listeners a true-to-source sound. Paid users across more than 50 countries will get access throughout October. Countries like the U.S., U.K., Germany, Japan, and Australia are already seeing the update.
When the feature reaches your account, you’ll get a notification in the app. To enable it, go to Settings and Privacy > Media Quality, then select “Lossless” for streaming on Wi-Fi, mobile data, or downloads. Keep in mind, you must turn it on separately for each device you use — Spotify won’t sync the setting across all your gadgets.
Things to Know Before You Try Spotify Lossless Streaming
Lossless files are much larger than regular streams, so data usage will increase. You can monitor your data consumption within the app. Also, lossless streaming isn’t possible over Bluetooth due to bandwidth limits. To enjoy the best quality, use Spotify Connect with compatible devices like Bose, Yamaha, or Bluesound over Wi-Fi.
This update makes Spotify competitive again, though it’s a little late compared to rivals. Apple Music introduced lossless streaming back in 2021, and Amazon Music made its HD tier free after launching it in 2019. Spotify says “nearly every track” in its 100-million-song library supports lossless quality, but a few songs may still be missing for now.