In 2024, Spotify stepped into YouTube Music’s shoes by releasing music videos on the app in limited regions, leaving the US and Canada out of the equation, but that has now changed.
Starting today, Music Videos will finally be available in beta for Premium subscribers in the US and Canada after almost two years, giving users the option to switch between audio and visual streaming. The update comes shortly after the huge success of Spotify Wrapped 2025.
In Spotify’s blog announcement, the company shared its excitement about launching music videos in North America, detailing the impact of visual accompaniments when listening to music:
“For decades, music videos have done more than accompany a song; they have shaped style, started conversations, and helped build fandom. This expansion gives millions more listeners access to a catalog of official music videos and also introduces new video formats like live performances and covers.”
However, it’s not just the regions mentioned above that will have access to music videos within the app. Along with the US and Canada, the music videos will also expand to Antigua and Barbuda, Bahamas, Barbados, Dominica, Ghana, Grenada, Guyana, Haiti, Jamaica, Uganda and Venezuela starting December 9. Even better, these videos are easy to enable on all devices.
Once you start playing a song on Spotify on your mobile device, desktop, or TV, you’ll have the option to tap the “Switch to Video” button and the music video will start where the song ended.
It cannot be ignored that the expansion of access to music videos is another of Spotify’s measures to expand its services, but music videos on Spotify have actually divided subscribers in half.
Spotify wants to be YouTube
Spotify is one of the best music streaming services for a whole host of reasons, but music videos aren’t something that many subscribers are excited about, and these concerns have been there since day one.
When Spotify first introduced music videos into the user experience, it generated a lot of commentary about the risks of not living up to certain expectations, with subscribers pleading, “don’t ruin it like Instagram” on Spotify’s official community forum. The other main concern, and the one that resonates the most with me, is other services that offer a better music video ecosystem.
For many music lovers, including myself, Spotify isn’t the first thing I think of when I hear ‘music videos’ because, let’s face it, YouTube has been dominating the music video field for the last 20 years, offering a smoother viewing experience. Most of the time, Spotify music videos look more messy than useful.
Despite these concerns, there are many users who have welcomed the integration of music videos simply because they like having the option to switch between audio and visual streaming. But whether you like it or not, Spotify is doubling down on its commitment to bringing video to its subscribers, and I feel like this isn’t the end yet.
What do you think about music videos on Spotify?
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