Spotify continues to impress and frustrate in equal measure. For every Discover Weekly, there's a much-loved feature stripped out of the streaming music app. Often, it's difficult to get those features back.
One of the feature removals which has garnered most ire was the company's decision to kill third-party apps in 2014. At a stroke, users lost the ability to get curated recommendations from record labels and magazines, find nearby concerts, give guests "party access" to accounts, and a whole lot more.
Spotify has never truly managed to replace the lost apps, even though some third-party web apps can still use the API.
However, Spotify has been working on new app integrations. Many aren't worth bothering with, but here are some that are actually worth setting up.
1. Facebook Messenger
In June 2017, Spotify added Facebook Messenger to its growing list of app integrations. Called Group Playlists for Messenger, the feature relies on the Spotify Chat Extension.
It allows you to use Facebook Messenger groups to build playlists. Anyone in the Facebook group can contribute, and you can share the playlist with friends outside the group using the Facebook app.
Amazingly, the Facebook users you're collaborating with don't even need to subscribe to Spotify. They can make song selections within the Messenger app.
One feels the feature will really shine at parties and other large gatherings. You can add all the partygoers into one Facebook group and they'll be able to have an input into what they're hearing.
To get started, open Messenger, tap +, and select the Spotify extension. To make a playlist, navigate to Group Playlists > Create.
2. Tinder
They (perverts) say music can be a great aphrodisiac, so Spotify and Tinder sound like a match made in heaven.
The Tinder integration gives you another layer of information to help you decide whether the person in question is worthy of a swipe right.
If a potential match has linked their Tinder account to their Spotify account, you can see their top artists directly from their Tinder profile. More impressively, you can see what artists you and your would-be date have in common. You can also assign an "anthem" to your profile. It's meant to be a song that defines you and your life, so choose wisely!
Non-Spotify subscribers can add an anthem, but can only listen to previews of top artist lists.
To connect Spotify to Tinder, tap on Edit Info in your Tinder profile, then go to Show your music interests > Connect Spotify.
3. Shazam
Shazam remains the best app for identifying songs while you're on-the-go. For those who don't know, you can identify a song at the tap of a button using a 20-second audio snippet. Often, the ID process takes no more than five seconds.
If you pair Shazam with your Spotify account, you'll unlock two cool features.
First, if you have a premium Spotify account, you will be able to listen to full-length songs from within the Shazam app.
Second, Shazam will create a new playlist within Spotify called My Shazam Tracks. Any song that's successfully tagged will be automatically added to the playlist.
To connect Shazam and Spotify, open the Shazam app and go to My Shazam > Spotify > Connect.
4. Starbucks
OK, so the coffee isn't to everyone's taste. And the bread isn't always as fresh as it could be. And yes, that unicorn drink was 99.99 percent sugar. But we still flock to Starbucks in our millions.
If you're a true Starbucks addict, there's a good chance you've got the official Starbucks app on your smartphone. It lets you earn points, order drinks in advance, and even pay in-store.
These days, it also connects with your Spotify app. The aim is to let Starbucks customers use their phone's GPS to engage with music played in the particular branch they are in.
If you hook up the integration, you will be able to "Favorite" the tracks you hear and even add them to your own playlist. In turn, Starbucks will use the data to refine its music curation in the future.
To set up the connection, head to your local Starbucks, open the Starbucks app, and tap Sign in to your Spotify account.
5. Nike+
Spotify has been trying to crack the workout sector for a long time. There's already a dedicated genre of exercise playlists in the Browse section of the app, while 2015 saw the company launch Spotify Running. It paired your phone's accelerometer with your musical history to suggest DJ-built instrumental mixes that matched your rhythm.
The latest offering is an integration with the Nike+ activity tracker app. If you pair Spotify with your Nike+ account, you can access other members' playlists and control your music through the Nike app.
Best of all, it lets you connect Spotify with your Nike+ Pace Station. A Pace Station is an automatically-created 100-song playlist that matches a song's beats per minute with your target running pace.
To connect Spotify to Nike+, open the Nike app and go to Run > Spotify Premium > Log in to Spotify.
6. Starz
Are you a TV and movie aficionado? Then you should check out Spotify's integration with U.S. television cable network, Starz.
If you connect Spotify with the Starz app, you will be able to stream playlists, soundtracks, and theme songs from your favorite shows and films, as well as save content from the Starz app straight into your Spotify library.
The most interesting part of the integration, however, is the TV and movies recommendations. It's a fascinating take on an old idea. Movie recommendations are nothing new, but using the music you listen to as the foundation for those recommendations could either be inspired or a complete failure. Test the feature out to see if it works for you.
To begin, open the Starz app, tap on a playlist or track, and use the onscreen prompt to authorize Starz to connect with your Spotify account.
7. WhoSampled
Is any music original any more? Let me rephrase that: is any music in the "Top 40" original anymore? To my (admittedly uncultured) ears, everything sounds like a sample, remix, and re-release of old content.
If you've heard an enjoyable new jingle that you're sure you've heard before but you can't quite place, it's possible the song is using a sample.
To check, why not integrate Spotify with WhoSampled? WhoSampled can scan your Spotify library to find tracks that have been covered, sampled, or remixed, then point you in the direction of the original.
To pair the two apps together, open WhoSampled and head to My Library > Connect to Spotify.
Revoke an App's Access
If you later decide you want to revoke integration between Spotify and a third-party app, you'll need to log into your Spotify account. Here are the step-by-step instructions:
- Navigate to Spotify.com.
- Log in to your account.
- Click on your username.
- Click on Account.
- Select Apps in the left-hand menu.
- Click Revoke Access alongside the app in question.
Your Favorite Spotify Integrations
We've introduced you to seven of the best Spotify app integrations, but there are lots more out there.
Which app integrations do you use every day? Why are they so useful? What special features do they introduce? As always, you can leave all of your input and opinions in the comments below!