Spotify Private Sessions: 5 Common Questions (Answered) | TechPenny (2024)

By James Williams

Spotify Private Sessions: 5 Common Questions (Answered) | TechPenny (1)

Writer, AuthorJames Williams

James Williams is the founder of TechPenny. He has worked with e-commerce for more than a decade. More about James Williams.Expertises: smart TV, ethical hacking, consumer electronicsSpotify Private Sessions: 5 Common Questions (Answered) | TechPenny (2)Spotify Private Sessions: 5 Common Questions (Answered) | TechPenny (3)Spotify Private Sessions: 5 Common Questions (Answered) | TechPenny (4)Spotify Private Sessions: 5 Common Questions (Answered) | TechPenny (5)Spotify Private Sessions: 5 Common Questions (Answered) | TechPenny (6)Spotify Private Sessions: 5 Common Questions (Answered) | TechPenny (7)Spotify Private Sessions: 5 Common Questions (Answered) | TechPenny (8)

/ Streaming / Last Updated: October 5, 2023

With millions of users around the world and the possibility to follow people’s playlists, Spotify has enabled its users to have a fair level of connection.

However, Spotify Private Sessions give you peace of mind so that you can continue to listen to content privately.

This article will discuss this feature and how it protects your privacy as a Spotify user.

Table of Contents

Spotify Private Sessions: 5 Common Questions (Answered) | TechPenny (9)

How Exactly Is a Private Session on Spotify Different?

By default, your followers on Spotify can view the content that you are listening to with Friend Activity.

If you want to have some privacy and you don’t want people to find out what content you are tuning into, then you can opt for a Private Session.

Here’s how to enable a Private Session:

Phone/Tablet:

  1. Go to ‘Home’
  2. Hit ‘Settings’
  3. Scroll down to ‘Social’ under which you will find ‘Private Session’, then toggle ON.

To switch off the Private Session, repeat steps 1-3 but toggle it OFF.

Computer:

  1. Select the downward arrow on the top right.
  2. Hit ‘Private Session’
  3. The padlock on your profile picture shows the private session has been enabled.

To conclude a Private Session, repeat the steps above and now switch the private session OFF.

How Private are the Private Sessions on Spotify Really?

“Private session” is the Spotify form of incognito mode that you have on your browser. It prevents what you’re listening to from being seen by other users and Spotify.

Essentially that means that content listened to in a private session won’t be processed by Spotify and impact its algorithms.

This data won’t be used when Spotify generates playlists formulated from your listening activity.

If you would prefer to hide your listening activity from your followers, you can enable that under Settings.

Here’s how to hide your listening activity on Spotify:

Android and iPhone users:

  1. Open the Spotify App.
  2. Hit ‘Home’
  3. Tap ‘Settings’
  4. Below ‘Privacy & Social (iOS)’ or ‘Social (Android)’, toggle OFF the ‘Listening Activity’

Computer:

  1. Click the downward-facing arrow in the top-right and click on ‘Settings’
  2. Below ‘Social’, turn ‘Show my listening activity on Spotify’ off.

These are the two options available to ensure that your followers don’t know what songs you’re listening to (when the features are enabled).

You can also increase your privacy with a VPN. A VPN (a virtual private network) masks your connection using encryption technology.

Using a VPN together with Spotify helps because it makes it possible for you to change your IP address and disguise it with an IP address that fits your VPN server.

This restricts the location-specific data Spotify can gather from you, and subsequently distribute to third parties.

Please also read our article about Spotify’s Hide/Unhide option not working.

Does a Private Session on Spotify Affect Recommendations?

When Spotify was created in 2006, its goal was to be a music library.

Personalization happened later after the app’s engineers discovered that making it possible for people to find new music based on what they like could amplify their experience.

This was done by harvesting algorithm data about a user’s listening history, music preferences, amount of time a song was played, and feedback on recommendations (whether they like, skip, save or replay that content).

In other words, music streaming apps learn what you like.

Perhaps you are listening to something that you consider to be embarrassing or controversial. You may not necessarily want more of that kind of content to then be recommended to you.

You will be happy to know that what you plug into during a Private Session will not impact your music recommendations, for instance, Discover Weekly.

This is because when you are in a Private Session, Spotify will not collect data on your listening.

How Long Does a Spotify Private Session Last?

Maybe you only want to use Spotify Private Session for certain content, or maybe you always want your listening activity to be private.

It’s important to note that this privacy feature remains private until you change the setting.

That said, the Private Session will be switched off automatically if Spotify is restarted, or if there is a large duration of activity.

It would be wise to double-check that your session is private if you want to listen to content during a private session.

Does Spotify Private Session get Counted in “Spotify Wrapped”?

Spotify Wrapped looks back at the year and sums up your listening activity, including music as well as podcasts. It’s personalized according to your profile and typically includes fun interactive features such as polls, quizzes, and filters.

Last year, Wrapped included stats, your favorite artists, songs, the most-streamed content, genres, podcasts, and listening minutes.

With all of that in mind, you might be anxious about whether the content you listened to in a private session will also be included in Spotify Wrapped.

If you have been making use of Private Sessions, all music listened to under that feature is not recorded. No one will be able to sneak a peek at your listening activity while Private Session is enabled.

Therefore, all music and other content that you lent an ear to during a Private Session will not be shown in your Spotify Wrapped.

Final Thoughts

Let’s face it, most of us do not read the fine print so we don’t know what we have actually agreed to. Your data is processed when you visit most internet sites and apps.

The Private Session mode allows you to listen to songs without your listening activity data being processed.

Sources

Private listening
Friend Activity

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FAQs

Does a private session on Spotify actually work? ›

A private session on Spotify makes it so your followers can't see what you are currently listening to. Anything you play while in a private session will not appear in "Friend Activity" on the right-hand side of the desktop app.

Does Spotify private session affect the algorithm? ›

When Private Session is on, any songs that are listened to won't be used to personalize playlists Made For You. In general, if you find that the recommendations that you're getting don't match your taste, it's best to try and avoid using Private Sessions so that our recommendation algorithms can get to know you better.

Does Spotify count your private sessions? ›

Private sessions—or Spotify's “incognito mode”—don't count toward any list but the data from them falls under the “total minutes listened,” according to Billboard.

What does a private session on Spotify look like to others? ›

During your private session, you'll see a small, blue lock to the left of your profile icon. That icon will remain until you either manually end the private session or six hours pass. During your private session, none of your followers can see your Spotify activity.

Does private session affect recently played artists? ›

The simple answer is no. While the number of minutes listened during a Private Session will be reflected in Spotify Wrapped, songs, artists, and genres will not.

What is Spotify snooping? ›

'Spotify snooping' has become the new technique to spy on others. A feature makes people's accounts public, allowing anyone to see their selection. However, you need first to find the person's username to spy on them It.

Does Spotify private session affect blend? ›

To avoid receiving suggestions based on a blend, you can use the Private session feature. Anything you listen to in a Private Session may not influence your music recommendations, e.g. Discover Weekly.

How to listen on Spotify without messing up the algorithm? ›

This can be quite frustrating, but there are a few strategies you can use to avoid this problem.
  1. Create a Separate Playlist: ...
  2. Use a Different Account: ...
  3. Utilize Spotify Kids: ...
  4. Set Up Multiple User Profiles (Premium Family):
Oct 19, 2023

Does liking songs on Spotify help the algorithm? ›

Some of the many things it takes note of include the songs you skip, listen to in full, favorite and the artists you follow. So next time you get a song recommended that you really like, favorite it and you might get more choice picks that fans of that song also liked!

Does private session hide from Spotify Wrapped? ›

But does Private Session affect your Wrapped like your total song counts and minutes? The simple answer is no. The number of minutes listened during a Private Session will be honestly reflected in Spotify Wrapped for your top songs, artists, and genres.

What does Spotify show friends when you listen to a private playlist? ›

When you listen to a playlist that is not public, the data that shows in your Friend Activity is: song title, artist, album the song is on. If you want to find more details on Friend Activity, make sure to take a look at this Support Article. You can also turn on Private listening to hide your activity temporarily.

What does make private do on Spotify? ›

Make playlists public or private

When you make a playlist private, nobody can access it, even if they have a link to it or search for it by name.

Does a private session hide friend activity? ›

You can turn on a private session in settings when you want to keep particular music choices private. There's no Friend Activity view on mobile devices, though the music you play on mobile is shared.

Can someone see I viewed their Spotify profile? ›

Spotify does not provide a direct feature to see who views your profile, but there are alternative methods you can try. Followers and likes on Spotify have different meanings. While you can see the number of followers a playlist has, you cannot see the specific users who liked or followed it.

Can someone see what you're listening to on Spotify? ›

By default, on Spotify, your followers can see what you're listening to in their activity feed.

Does private session affect Spotify blend? ›

Spotify Blend syncs all of your data, which means even the music you listen to while in a private session, or the music you listen to only when you study (i.e: anime epic battle themes) will be exposed to your friends and are no longer a secret to be kept to yourself.

How do you start a private session to listen anonymously on Spotify? ›

How to start a private session on Spotify (Android and iOS)
  1. Open the Spotify mobile app.
  2. Select the gear-shaped icon in the upper-right corner of the app to go to Settings.
  3. Scroll down until you see the Privacy and Social section.
  4. Toggle on Private session.
Aug 22, 2023

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