Spotify has to do two jobs at once: keep the catalogue, search and your library in sync, and stream audio fast enough that playback never stutters. The check on this page sends a request to spotify.com from a server outside your network, so you can see whether the service itself answers before you start changing settings on your phone.
What a Spotify check can tell you
A reachable result means Spotify’s web front door is open and responding normally. It does not mean every part of the service is healthy. Spotify runs search, recommendations, podcasts, lyrics and the audio stream on separate systems, and one of them can struggle while the website still loads. A slow or unreachable result points to a broader problem. In that case, nothing you change on your device will help, and the most useful thing to do is wait a few minutes and check again.
If the result is reachable and Spotify still refuses to play, the cause is most likely the app, the device or the connection between them. The steps below cover those in the order that solves problems fastest.
Spotify not working? Try these in order
- Check the status above
A failed or very slow result means the problem is not on your side, so there is no need to reinstall anything.
- Toggle airplane mode
This forces the phone to reconnect and often clears the “Spotify is offline” message within seconds.
- Restart the app completely
On a phone, swipe the app away; on a computer, quit it from the system tray or menu bar rather than closing the window.
- Clear the cache
In the app settings, open Storage and clear the cache. Downloads are kept, but temporary files that cause skipping are removed.
- Sign out everywhere
Signing out of all devices from the account page fixes sessions that got stuck after a password change.
- Update or reinstall the app
Old versions lose features after server-side changes, sometimes without showing an error.
Common Spotify problems and what they mean
| What you see | Likely cause | What to try |
|---|---|---|
| “Spotify is offline” | App lost its server connection | Toggle airplane mode, then restart the app |
| Song plays for a few seconds, then stops | Weak connection or full cache | Lower the streaming quality, clear the cache |
| Search returns nothing | Search service disruption | Check the status, try again in a few minutes |
| Device missing in Spotify Connect | Devices on different networks | Put both on the same Wi-Fi, restart the speaker |
| Greyed-out songs | Track not available in your country | Nothing to fix on your side |
Phone, desktop, web player and speakers
Spotify behaves slightly differently on every platform. The phone apps are the most tolerant of short connection drops because they buffer ahead. The desktop app keeps a large local cache that can become corrupted, which is why clearing it fixes so many odd problems on computers. The web player at open.spotify.com is the quickest way to test the service without any local data: if it plays in a private browser window while the desktop app does not, the desktop app is the problem.
Smart speakers, TVs and game consoles depend on Spotify Connect. They need the same network and the same account as the phone that controls them, and they rely on their own firmware being up to date. When a speaker suddenly disappears from the list, a router restart is usually faster than reinstalling anything.
When Spotify problems are more likely
Spotify’s busiest moments are predictable: mornings and evenings on weekdays, the release hour of a major album, and the first days of the annual listening recap in early December. During those peaks, search and the home screen can become slow while playback keeps working. Premium listeners with downloaded music are least affected, because downloads play from the device itself.
Downloads and the 30-day rule
Premium downloads keep playing during an outage, with one condition. Spotify asks you to connect to the internet at least once every 30 days to keep downloads active and the library in sync. A phone that has stayed offline longer, on a long trip for example, can show downloads as unavailable even though Spotify itself is working. Going online once lets the library sync, and Spotify says the downloads then work again without being downloaded anew. Free accounts cannot download music for offline listening at all, so a free account that loses its connection simply stops playing. Each device can hold up to 10,000 downloaded tracks, on up to five devices. Reinstalling the app or downloading to more than five devices can remove downloads, so skip the reinstall as a fix when you depend on offline music. If the app shows an offline message while other apps work, the checklist for local connection problems is the next stop.
Official Spotify help
- Spotify Supportsupport.spotify.com
- Spotify Status on X@SpotifyStatus
Questions about Spotify
Why does Spotify say it is offline when my internet works?
The app can lose its connection to Spotify's servers while other apps still work, usually after switching networks or waking the phone from sleep. Toggle airplane mode on and off, or sign out and back in. If the check above also fails, the problem is on Spotify's side.
Why do songs skip or stop after a few seconds?
Short stops usually come from a weak connection or a full storage cache on the device. Lower the streaming quality, free some storage space and restart the app. Songs that are no longer licensed in your country are also greyed out or skipped.
Can I still listen to downloads when Spotify is down?
Yes, as long as the app has been online within the last 30 days and you are a Premium subscriber. Downloaded songs and podcasts play from the device without contacting the servers. Switch the app to offline mode to stop it from retrying the connection.
Why does Spotify work on my phone but not on my computer?
The desktop app and web player keep their own cache and settings. Restart the desktop app, clear its cache folder or try the web player at open.spotify.com in a private window to see which part fails.
Why can't I control my speaker with Spotify Connect?
Connect needs the phone and the speaker on the same network and signed in to the same account. A router restart or a quick update of the speaker's firmware fixes most cases where devices disappear from the list.
How long do Spotify outages usually last?
There is no fixed length. Many incidents affect a single feature, such as search or podcasts, rather than the whole service. Spotify posts updates on its status account on X while an incident is ongoing, and the check above shows when spotify.com answers normally again.