Why Am I Getting Ads on Spotify Premium? (Answered)

In short: Even with Spotify Premium, you’ll get short ads on podcasts. If you’re getting ads while listening to music, check if you’re not mistakenly logged in on a different account.

The only way to get rid of annoying ads is to upgrade from the free version, but some people keep getting ads even on Spotify Premium. Here are a few reasons why. 

You’re listening to a podcast with endorsements

The first thing you’ll need to do is to determine whether you’re getting ads while listening to music or listening to a podcast episode. Which one is the case?

If it’s a podcast episode, you should expect ads.

Some podcasts may include advertising, host-read endorsements, or sponsorship messages, even when you are subscribed as a Premium user on Spotify.

Podcast creators often choose to monetize their podcasts via short advertisement breaks. Spotify doesn’t have any influence on the choice of ad placement in podcasts. 

Unfortunately, many Spotify Premium members think otherwise.

“Why do I have to listen to ads during podcasts, if I have a premium account? The user experience is terrible. I pay you, you’re responsible for it. You simply cannot walk away from it.”

Spotify Premium user

Complaints like the one above are very common across the web. You’ll find plenty of Spotify Premium members complaining about ads while listening to podcasts.

If you read the fine print, Spotify never promised anyone an “ad-free podcast” listening experience. They only promised Premium members “ad-free music”.

However, if you hear ads while listening to music. I’d recommend logging out from your Spotify account, restarting your device, then logging back in to sync up your subscription status.

Your account needs to be synced across devices

If you’re logged into your Spotify Premium account on multiple devices, you might experience ads on one device even though you have a Premium subscription.

This can happen if the device needs to be properly synced with your account. To fix this, log out of your account on all devices and log back in to sync your devices properly.

You could also reinstall the Spotify app for good measure. After doing a simple login and reinstall, I’ve yet to receive an advertisement since – give it a shot.

You’ve logged into the wrong account

Speaking of multiple devices, are you sure you’re logged into the right account?

You’ll be able to listen to music ad-free on a Premium account. By saying that you’re still seeing ads, you got me thinking that you might be logged into an account that doesn’t have Premium.

Head to your account page and double-check your membership.

You should see Premium on your account page. If that’s not what you’re seeing there, you’re logged in to another account. Log out and log back in using the correct account details.

Since it’s very easy to register for a Spotify account, you may have different accounts under the same email address. Not to mention, registering using your Facebook credentials.

Spotify has a helpful article to verify you’re using the right account right here.

If you have multiple accounts under the same email in the system, you’ll need to get in touch with the customer service team directly using this online contact form.

They’ll be able to track it down and get it changed over to the right account for you.

Your Premium membership has expired

If you feel like you’re getting ads on Spotify Premium, there’s a possibility that your Premium membership has expired or has reached the end of the billing cycle (not renewed).

It may sound simple, but many people often forget to renew their Premium membership. 

You can view your plan and payments on your account page, under Your Plan. If your plan is associated with a partner, you need to make any changes with them.

Alternatively, if you cancel your subscription, you can continue to use Spotify Premium until the end of your current billing cycle, which is typically one month.

After that, your account will be automatically downgraded to the free version and you will lose access to the Premium features, which means you’ll be served ads in between several songs.

Someone removed you from Spotify Premium

If you’re using the Spotify Premium Duo (for 2 people) or Premium Family (for 6 people), there’s a possibility that the plan manager removed you, accidentally or not.

Check with your plan manager and confirm that you are still registered with the Spotify Premium membership. If you’ve been removed, you’ll get ads on Spotify.

Technical issues and server glitches

As with any other software, Spotify can occasionally experience temporary technical issues and server glitches, which could cause ads to show up on Premium accounts.

If this is the case, there’s nothing you can do other than wait until the issue is resolved by the Spotify team. Until then, you could listen to your downloaded songs from your device.

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