Spotify Reaches 188M Premium and 433M Active Users

Name a random music streaming service. Chances are you’ll recall Spotify first of all (sorry, Deezer, Apple Music, or YouTube Music). The numbers confirm that Spotify is the undisputable leader in the industry. In Q2 2022, the number of its Premium subscribers has grown to 188 million, while the monthly audience, including those with free accounts, reached 433 million.

For the Swedish streaming giant, the quarter was very successful. The growth was helped by a 14% increase in the number of Premium subscribers, which resulted in revenue reaching €2.9 billion. The previous estimations only promised Spotify €2.8 billion.

The subscribers also exceeded analysts’ expectations by coming in greater numbers. The quarter showed the number of 188 million paid subscribers – a million more than it seemed before the report. This number is greater than that of YouTube Music and Apple Music subscribers combined, especially given that many subscribers of those services are actually in for ad-free YouTube or Apple Arcade.

As for free users that select an ad-supported plan, their number has also grown, so the overall number of Spotify listeners has reached 433 million (against the expected 428 million). That’s about 1/18 of the entire mankind, which is even more impressive given that Spotify does not work in China.

Finally, a relatively new segment Spotify masters, its podcasts, have also attracted a rather large audience. Now the service offers about 4.4 million podcasts to choose from, including some famous ones like Joe Rogan Experience. Still, this growth, impressive as it is, does not meet the earlier expectations of the service. Once ready to hire more and more, in the third quarter, the company reduced its hiring plans by 25%.

Are you among those who joined Spotify these months? Are you on the Premium subscription or with its free services? How does it compare with Apple Music, YouTube Music, Tidal, or Deezer? Tell us what you think in the comments!