Spotify Adds In-App Messaging for Free and Premium Users

Spotify launches in-app Messages to share music, podcasts and audiobooks

Spotify is rolling out a built-in messaging feature called Messages to mobile users in select markets. The feature is available to both Free and Premium accounts for users aged 16 and older. It lets listeners share songs, podcasts and audiobooks and carry a 1:1 text conversation without switching apps.

To send something, tap the share icon in the Now Playing view and pick a friend. You can message people on the same plan or those you’ve already interacted with through features like Jams, Blends and Collaborative Playlists. Any shared audio appears in a Messages inbox under your profile picture for easy retrieval.

• Direct 1:1 text chats with emoji reactions
• Message requests you can accept or reject, plus blocking and opt-out controls
• Reporting tools and proactive scanning for certain unlawful or harmful content

Spotify says messages are protected with "industry-standard encryption" and that it will review reported chats. Users can hold down a message to flag content or accounts. The company frames Messages as a complement to sharing on social apps like Instagram and WhatsApp, not a replacement.

Making messaging available to free users is notable — it lowers the barrier for organic recommendation flows and could increase the discovery loop inside Spotify. At the same time, it raises moderation, privacy and spam challenges that platforms must anticipate before scale.

Product teams should watch for three immediate operational impacts: a rise in message-driven content discovery, increased moderation workload from unsolicited messages, and new data-retention requirements for shared media links. Labels, creators and marketers may gain a new distribution channel but will need safeguards to prevent abuse.

Questions remain, such as whether artist accounts can message fans directly, how long shared items persist in the inbox, and how Spotify balances encryption with its stated scanning for harmful content. That tension between user privacy and proactive safety moderation will shape uptake and trust.

What organizations should plan for

Engineering, trust-and-safety, and marketing teams building or integrating in-app messaging can prepare by:

• Designing clear message controls (requests, block, opt-out) to limit harassment and spam
• Estimating moderation costs and setting up automated filters for known abusive content
• Measuring impact on retention and discovery to see if messages drive more streams or playlist activity

Spotify’s move is a straightforward attempt to keep discovery and social sharing inside its walls. If Messages reduces friction and scales safely, it could become a major source of organic discovery. If not, it may be another vector for spam and moderation headaches.

Organizations preparing to add in-app messaging can benefit from analytical modeling of message flows, early-stage trust-and-safety playbooks, and UX patterns that put recipients in control. That combination helps unlock the value of social sharing while keeping risk manageable.