How much data does Spotify use?

From Spotify's bitrates to megabytes per hour

• Low, about 24 kbit/s: roughly 11 MB per hour.
• Normal, about 96 kbit/s: roughly 43 MB per hour.
• High, about 160 kbit/s: roughly 72 MB per hour.
• Very high, about 320 kbit/s (Premium): roughly 144 MB per hour.
• Lossless (Premium): up to 24-bit/44.1 kHz, with no per-hour figure from Spotify.

The bitrates come from Spotify's help page on audio quality, which calls them approximate. The megabytes are plain arithmetic: kilobits per second, times 3,600 seconds, divided by 8,000. Real use moves a little around these numbers, because the app also loads covers, lyrics and the tracks coming up next.

On a phone, the free version offers Automatic, Low, Normal and High. Very high and Lossless are Premium options.

Automatic is the default, not the cheapest option

Out of the box, Spotify adjusts audio quality by itself so that music plays without stuttering. It does not say which level Automatic picks, only that it adapts to the connection. On a strong 4G or 5G signal, nothing stops it from sitting at one of the higher levels, so if you want a figure you can plan with, choose the level yourself.

The setting lives behind your profile picture: Settings and privacy, then Media Quality. Spotify lets you set quality separately for Wi-Fi streaming, cellular streaming and downloads. That is the useful part on a trip: keep Very high on the hotel Wi-Fi and put cellular streaming on Normal or Low, and the difference only shows up on the data counter.

Data saver and the switches around it

Spotify also has a Data saver mode. According to its help page on data usage, it reduces what the app uses by showing fewer images and lowering audio quality. You turn it on from your profile, Settings and privacy, Data-saving and offline.

The same section has Downloads over cellular. Turn it off and downloads only happen on Wi-Fi, which matters if you add an album to your library on the bus and forget about it. Spotify's other suggestions in that page are small but add up: turn off Autoplay so the app stops after what you chose, switch off Canvas, the short looping visuals on the Now Playing screen, and use audio-only streaming for video podcasts.

Podcasts, and the video ones

Spoken podcasts are light. Spotify gives about 96 kbit/s for podcasts on the app, roughly 43 MB an hour, and says that setting audio quality to Low on a phone or tablet takes them down to about 24 kbit/s, close to 11 MB an hour. A long episode on a train costs less than a few minutes of video.

Video podcasts are a different matter, and Spotify publishes no figure for them. The setting to look for is under Downloads and streaming, where you can turn on audio-only streaming and downloads for video podcasts. You still get the episode, just without the picture, and the data use goes back to audio levels.

Lossless on mobile data

Lossless can be chosen separately for Wi-Fi, cellular streaming and downloads, so it is possible to use it on mobile data. Spotify's own advice points the other way: it says lossless uses significantly more data and recommends a steady connection of 1.5 to 2 Mbps for it, mainly over strong Wi-Fi. It also notes that an unstable Wi-Fi or mobile connection can stop lossless from playing.

On a travel data plan, the sensible split is lossless for downloads at the hotel, if you want it, and Normal or High for anything streamed on the street. Downloaded lossless tracks take more space on the phone, but not a single megabyte of your plan once they are saved.

What a trip looks like in numbers

Two hours of music a day for ten days, all streamed on mobile data, comes to about 0.9 GB on Normal, 1.4 GB on High and close to 2.9 GB on Very high. The same listening on Low is around 220 MB. With Premium, downloading your playlists before the trip takes music out of the count completely; the guide to downloading before a flight covers the rules, including the 30-day check-in.

To see what Spotify really used, check the per-app list in your phone's mobile data settings after a day or two; this guide shows where it is. Then add the rest of your habits in the data calculator.