Spotify has begun switching on full-length music videos for listeners in the US, taking a big step toward being an all-in-one destination for both audio and video of songs.
It launches with a limited but growing catalog and several early partners, and Spotify is framing the feature as an in-app toggle between audio and video.
- How to watch music videos inside Spotify’s apps
- What’s available at launch for Spotify music videos
- Who gets access to Spotify’s new music video feature
- Why music videos matter on Spotify for artists and fans
- The licensing backdrop and rights clearances for videos
- How Spotify’s music videos compare with rival platforms
- What to expect next as Spotify rolls out music videos
How to watch music videos inside Spotify’s apps
Once a supported track loads, you’ll notice it has a label that says Music video below the title. Tap or click the new Switch to video button to go from any audio track to that music’s official video, then back again at any time.
On desktop, the control lives in the right-hand panel of the Now Playing view. On mobile, this displays above the title on the Now Playing screen. Olivia Dean’s “Nice to Each Other” is one of the videos in the rollout; Spotify points to this track as an example of where a video is available. Early participating artists also include Addison Rae, Ariana Grande, and Tyler Childers.
What’s available at launch for Spotify music videos
Spotify says the rollout is starting with a small subset of songs and will increase over time. That isn’t surprising: licensing music videos is a coordination between labels for the master recordings and publishers who own the compositions, and not every track has a cleared or delivered video ready for streaming.
Anticipate a phased rollout through genres and decades, though major-label priorities will go live first, with deeper catalog to follow. If you do not see Music video on a track you love, it may simply not have been added to that particular song or might not be cleared for this feature in your region.
Who gets access to Spotify’s new music video feature
It’s not clear if US access will be confined to a paid plan, as Spotify hasn’t announced that detail yet. In other markets where the feature arrived earlier, music videos have generally only been available to Premium subscribers. A phased rollout is also typical, so the toggle might show up for some users and not others.
Why music videos matter on Spotify for artists and fans
Spotify had tinkered through the years with short, looped visuals in Canvas, but those clips aren’t sync-perfect and do not substitute for official videos. By including full videos, Spotify will be on par with the way fans discover music today — by watching and listening at the same time — and without having to bounce over to another app.
Chartmetric’s 2024 breakdown revealed that 36 of the top 40 most-streamed tracks on Spotify in 2023 came with their own official music video. On average, the videos for those songs had 374 million views; their audio tracks got about 1.1 billion plays on Spotify, for an average gap of 731 million. The information indicates music videos continue to shape attention and narrative, even as short-form clips splinter viewing time.
Adding videos in the context of where listening is already happening can reduce friction and potentially lead to more completions compared with watching on ad-supported platforms. It also allows artists to make visual storytelling that is directly attached to Spotify playlists, editorial, and algorithmic discovery.
The licensing backdrop and rights clearances for videos
Spotify’s action comes as it also has a new direct licensing deal with the National Music Publishers’ Association. The company has argued that these deals result in better royalty arrangements for independent publishers and songwriters, while also giving Spotify rights to create features on its platform that are video-focused but deepen the bonds between artists and fans. Practically, adding video means securing clearances from multiple rights holders, ingesting high-quality video assets, and aligning metadata to ensure the platform can accurately match each video with its corresponding track.
As rights are different by territory and right holder, availability will vary depending on the catalog. That goes some way toward explaining the “limited” start, and why some artists will stagger into town as deals get done and deliveries conclude.
How Spotify’s music videos compare with rival platforms
YouTube Music has long enjoyed native access to official videos and live performances, while Apple Music and Tidal boast curated video libraries and exclusive sessions. Spotify’s competitive advantage is the quantity of all that listening engagement and personalization. I am not sure how or if that works for Spotify, either; but if the company weaves video content into flagship playlists and intelligently pops up that toggle — say when listeners are in lean-back mode or listening on a TV — this could make a meaningful dent in watch time without getting all cannibalistic with audio.
What to expect next as Spotify rolls out music videos
Look for speedy catalog onboarding, better homepage promotion through editorial hubs, and playlist rows featuring tracks with videos. Look for quality-of-life controls, too, including options to save data on mobile networks and family-friendly filters. As availability widens, live sessions, behind-the-scenes clips, and alternate cuts could be added to official videos, providing artists with additional surfaces where they can tell stories within Spotify.
For now, the best test is the simplest: open a favorite song and hunt for the Music video label — then tap Switch to video. After years of running from sights, Spotify is bringing the full music video experience to where its listeners already are.
