How to get free and cheap Spotify

We're always looking for ways to stream music for less and Spotify is no exception. If you're looking for a cheaper Spotify monthly cost, you've come to the right place...

Credit: Diego Thomazini, Photoongraphy, john4ever02 – Shutterstock

Whether you're an avid Taylor Swift fan or a podcast fanatic, Spotify has it all but comes at a hefty (ish) monthly cost. All of the streaming services and subscriptions you pay for add up to a much higher monthly cost, so it's important to get a great deal where you can.

After all, you don't want to be missing out on your Spotify Wrapped stats every year.

We've put together a list of tips and tricks you can use to get Spotify cheaper, or even for free!

How much is Spotify Premium?

Here are the associated costs with Spotify Premium:

• Spotify Premium Individual: £10.99 per month for one person
• Spotify Premium Student: £5.99 per month for one person
• Spotify Premium Duo: £14.99 per month for two people
• Spotify Premium Family Sharing: £17.99 per month for up to six people.

How to get free and cheap Spotify

Here's how you can get Spotify for less:

1. Make the most of Spotify's free trials

   Before purchasing a Spotify subscription, we recommend using up all of the Spotify free trials you can.

   You can get three months of Spotify Premium for free when you sign up as a new user via Spotify directly.

   We've also seen Microsoft Rewards offering three months of free Spotify. It's worth checking our deals section regularly, which we'll update when we find similar deals.

2. Listen to the ads and you'll get Spotify for free

   

   Credit: Dean Drobot – Shutterstock

   If you're not too fussed about adverts, this is the best way to enjoy Spotify for free (long-term). However, you can generally only listen to albums and playlists on shuffle and you'll just be able to skip six songs per hour.

   This may not be the best plan for you if you tend to travel a lot without internet access as you won't be able to download music.

   The good news for podcast listeners is that you'll be able to download podcasts to listen to offline. So if you listen to more podcasts than music and don't mind a shuffled album, you may not have to purchase Spotify Premium at all!

   Keen to start your own podcast? We know some great ways to make money from podcasting.

3. Use your Spotify student discount

   Using your Spotify student discount will knock a good chunk off your monthly bill.

   A regular Spotify account will cost one user £10.99 a month. But, if you verify yourself as a student, you can get the exact same service for just £5.99. This is a £60 saving over the course of a year.

   By signing up for a student subscription as a new user, you'll also get your first month of Spotify for free.

4. Utilise Spotify Family Sharing

   If two or more of you (up to six people) are family members who live at the same address, you'll be eligible for Spotify's Family Sharing account.

   It's £17.99 a month and gives you all of the same access as a standard Spotify Premium account. Spotify may ask each of you to verify the address you live at, so keep that in mind when you're signing up.

   Split between six people, the monthly cost is around £3 per person. Compared to having Spotify Premium Individual subscriptions, each person would save £95.90 a year.

5. Share Spotify Premium between two people

   

   Credit: Alberto Menendez Cervero – Shutterstock

   You can use the Duo Spotify plan if you only need to share between two people. It gives access to all of the Spotify Premium features for a monthly cost of £14.99, working out to around £7.50 per person each month.

   To be on a Duo account, you must both live under the same roof.

   See Spotify's terms and conditions for more info.

6. Buy 12 months of Spotify in advance via gift cards

   Previously, we've seen great deals on Spotify Premium gift cards. These could really cut the cost for you if you're not eligible for the Family Sharing accounts and have used the free trials.

   We've previously seen a discounted 12-month Spotify Premium gift card on Amazon available for £99. Before the monthly price of a Spotify Premium Individual subscription increased from £9.99 to £10.99, this saved around £20 per year. Look out for top deals like these.

   You might be able to find similar deals from other retailers such as Currys and Tesco.

   However, as you need to pay upfront for the year when buying a 12-month gift card, this might not be ideal if you're looking for a lower monthly payment.

7. Get Spotify for free with a phone contract

   Looking for a new phone contract or SIM only plan? Some offers include free access to Spotify, so do some research to see if you could save money by choosing one of these plans.

   Phone contracts that offer free Spotify may be more expensive than if you bought a SIM deal and Spotify account separately. But, if you do some sums and decide you will save money with a plan that includes Spotify, it's worth thinking about.

   Compare the cost of the SIM on its own and add the cost of Spotify (and any other benefits) to see if it's cost-effective for you.

Take a look at the best streaming services available to find the best one for you.