The long-awaited launch of lossless music streaming for Spotify’s Premium subscribers has arrived. Users can now stream music in FLAC format at a maximum of 24-bit/44.1 kHz, thereby preserving audio fidelity without compression.
This feature is currently accessible in more than 50 countries. This decision aligns Spotify with its competitors, such as Apple Music and Amazon Music, which have been providing lossless music for years.
Lossless music streaming rolls out to millions
Users in the US, UK, Australia, Germany, Japan, and Sweden have access first. Spotify will roll out globally in October over time. Premium subscribers receive app notifications and can enable lossless streaming by selecting “Lossless” under Settings > Media Quality for Wi-Fi, cellular, or downloads.
Spotify’s Vice President of Subscriptions, Gustav Gyllenhammar, said, “The wait is finally over; we’re so excited lossless sound is rolling out to Premium subscribers. We’ve taken time to build this feature in a way that prioritises quality, ease of use, and clarity at every step.” Users will see a lossless badge while streaming to confirm they’re listening to the highest quality.
Spotify Connect is supported by a feature that enables streaming on various devices, including mobile, desktop, and tablet devices. This includes Sennheiser, Bose, Samsung, and Sony products.
Amazon and Sonos device support will be implemented in the near future. Due to bandwidth limitations, Bluetooth connections compress lossless audio, so Spotify suggests using wired headphones or speakers for the optimal experience.
Unlike earlier speculations, Spotify is rolling out lossless audio as part of its Premium subscription without extra charges. This signals a significant step forward in audio quality for Spotify users who have long waited for this upgrade that rivals have offered for years.
Spotify Premium users worldwide can now unlock richer, more detailed sound across nearly every song on the platform, finally bringing them closer to the original studio recording experience.