Spotify pauses the music you’re listening to when it detects another audio source, such as something on Facebook or Twitter, so you don’t get interrupted. This is expected behavior.
Currently, Spotify doesn’t have administrator audio access, so the OS gives priority to whatever is in the foreground that requests multimedia access unless it is muted.
Here’s what you can do if Spotify stops whenever you open another app. Keep in mind that there are different settings on different devices so there’s no one-fix-for-all.
1. Give Spotify permission to run in the background
Apps that play audio need permission to run in the background. If you have not given Spotify permission to run in the background, the music will stop playing once you close the app.
How to give Spotify background permission on iOS
If you’re using an iPhone or an iPad, the term is called “Background App Refresh”. This feature refreshes apps that are running in the background by downloading updates and new content.

Here’s how to allow Background App Refresh on your iOS device:
- Go to Settings.
- Select General.
- Select the “Background App Refresh” tab.
- Select the “Background App Refresh” option again.
- Choose “On”.
Once you have allowed Spotify to run in the background, the app can run to its maximum capacity and should be able to keep playing even when you open other apps.
How to give Spotify background permission on Android
It’s important to allow Spotify to run in the background if you want the app to keep playing together with other apps. All you have to do is to allow the background activity.

Here’s how to allow background activity on Android:
- Go to Settings.
- Select Apps.
- Select Spotify from the list of apps.
- Under Usage, tap Battery.
- Turn on the toggle for “Allow background activity”.
- Now you have allowed the background activity for Spotify.
You’re not finished, there’s more. Go back to the Spotify “App info” page. Tap on “Mobile data” and allow both “Allow background data usage” and “Allow app while Data saver is on”.
Although Spotify will use more data, you now have allowed Spotify to use mobile data to run in the background without limitations, even when the Data saver is on.
2. Disable battery optimization
Not only should you give Spotify permission to run in the background, but you also need to exclude the app from battery optimization settings.
This setting is only available if you are using an Android smartphone. It’s not available on iOS devices. If you are using an iPhone or iPad, you can move on to the next step.
Here’s how to disable “Optimize battery usage”:
- Go to Settings.
- Select Apps.
- Select Spotify from the list of apps.
- Under Usage, tap Battery.
- Select “Optimize battery usage”.
- Select “Apps not optimized” then switch it to all.
- Search for Spotify.
- Turn off the toggle.
Make sure the toggle is turned off. When the toggle is turned on, some functions will be restricted to save battery power. The app would likely close when another app opens.
This feature is designed to preserve battery life by limiting what apps can do in the background. This includes keeping itself running when another app is open.
3. Open the Spotify app before the other app
Once you’ve given Spotify permission to run in the background and disabled battery optimization, do this simple tweak: open the Spotify app before the other app.
I found out about this simple hack when I was doing my workout. I opened Spotify before the workout timer app on my phone and Spotify was able to keep playing songs.
If I turn on the workout timer before Spotify, the music will stop and will get interrupted by the “bell” noise of the workout timer. Give it a try. It doesn’t get any simpler than this.
4. Change settings from the other app
Most mobile apps have sound settings. You can change it to prevent another app from “taking custody” of the media playback. Here are some tactics for different apps.
Spotify stops when opening Facebook
Select the “Never Autoplay Videos” option if Spotify stops when you open Facebook. Then, restart the Facebook app. Spotify should now play music in the background.
If it doesn’t work, turn off Facebook’s access to everything including location, calendars, photos, Bluetooth, microphone, and camera. You can find this in your phone settings.
Restart the Facebook app. You should be able to watch a video on Facebook while listening to Spotify. Although the music pauses for a while, it will start again once the video has finished.
If Spotify still stops when you open Facebook, force quit the Facebook app. Some people have reported a bug in the Facebook app that tells iOS that it’s playing content.
Facebook needs to fix this, not Spotify.
The issue happens when Facebook is opened before Spotify. Close Facebook and make sure Spotify is opened first, then open Facebook second. This should solve the issue.
Spotify stops when opening WhatsApp
Turn off Microphone access for WhatsApp in the settings. Close every app in the background before opening Spotify. Play a song. Open WhatsApp, then turn on Microphone access.
You can leave the Microphone access off, but it means you will not be able to use WhatsApp for calls and voice messages. You can still use it for messaging without interruption.
I believe the issue is related to WhatsApp because the music stops when using other music streaming apps other than Spotify. WhatsApp definitely needs to sort the bug out.
Spotify stops when opening Twitter
Often, Spotify stops whenever Twitter is auto-playing a GIF or video. All you need to do is to tweak some of the Twitter settings for autoplay. Here’s how:
- Inside the Twitter app, go to Settings and privacy.
- Under General, select Data usage.
- Under Video, navigate to Video autoplay.
- Make sure it is switched to “Never”.
You can also disable “Sound Effects” inside the Twitter app’s settings. Go to Display and sound then toggle the “Sound Effects” settings to OFF. Lastly, restart the Twitter app.
Spotify stops when opening Reddit
Reddit often becomes the dominant music app when you open it together with Spotify. The programming of the Reddit app tells the operating system that it is now the media player.
To stop Spotify from pausing when you open Reddit, mute the video by the speaker icon on the bottom right of the video, open the control center, then press play.
Spotify stops when opening Instagram
Turn off Microphone access for Instagram in the settings. Close every app in the background before opening Spotify. Play a song then open Instagram. The music won’t stop now.
If you’re using an iPhone, go to Settings > General, then scroll down to Privacy. Go to Microphone, then toggle the OFF switch next to Microphone.
If you’re using Android, go to Settings > Apps. Select Instagram, then go to Permissions. Disable access to the microphone. And that’s all there is to it.
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