Spotify: Premium music subscription price increase, how much is it, will Family, Student plans change - news
Spotify says the rise will help it to keep improving, but users may be rethinking their subscriptions 🎧
- Spotify is raising the cost of its UK Premium plan from £11.99 to £12.99 a month – an 8.3% increase
- It’s the second £1 price rise in just over a year, following another hike in spring 2024
- Subscribers will get a one-month grace period before the higher rate takes effect
- Student plans stay at £5.99, though Family and Duo packages are expected to rise too
- Spotify says the change will help it ‘continue to innovate’ amid tougher market conditions
Spotify users are facing another price rise, with the cost of a Premium subscription increasing for the second time in just over a year.
Emails have begun landing in subscribers’ inboxes confirming the news, which marks an 8.3% hike for individual plans.
Spotify says it’s giving users a one-month grace period before the higher rate kicks in, meaning anyone unwilling to pay more can cancel ahead of their next billing date without penalty.
How much will Spotify Premium cost?
The cost of a Spotify Premium account will jump from £11.99 to £12.99 a month. It marks the second £1 increase in just over a year.
While the music-streaming giant insists the change is needed to “continue to innovate in changing market conditions,” subscribers will feel frustrated at another increase so soon after the last one, which arrived in spring 2024.
The increase means the average subscriber will now pay over £155 a year, compared with just £120 two years ago.
Students are spared from the price rise for now, with the £5.99 discounted plan staying put. But Family and Duo plans are also expected to increase, though Spotify hasn’t yet confirmed new figures.
The company says the higher fees will help it keep offering “a highly personalised experience and powerful discovery tools.”
The move comes amid growing competition in the streaming market, with Apple Music, Amazon Music, and YouTube Music all having raised their own prices in recent months.
Spotify remains the dominant player in the UK, boasting around 15.3 million subscribers, nearly half of the country’s entire music streaming market.
But regular price jumps are becoming the new normal for it and other subscription services, as streaming platforms battle higher licensing costs and pressure to turn a profit.
For those reconsidering their monthly outgoings, alternatives like free ad-supported tiers, Apple Music’s trial offers, or even downloading playlists for offline listening before cancelling could soften the blow.
But for many music lovers, Spotify’s personalised playlists and user-friendly features may make it hard to walk away, even at a higher price.
With regular price increases and other controversies, music fans are re-evaluating their relationship with Spotify, including our Culture and Tickets writer Benjamin Jackson, who asks whether subscription costs could be put to better use.