Spotify Tricks That Will Make You a Streaming Samurai

Become a Spotify Power User by tapping these secret, baked-in functions.
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Spotify Tricks That Will Make You a Streaming Samurai

When it comes to technology, my 60-something-year-old father maintains a lingering skepticism of newfangled beep-boop digital doodads. With one notable exception: Spotify. And why not? Spotify's a magical, minimalist piece of software that beams all the world's recorded music (well, nearly all the world's recorded music) directly to his computer. For free!

Of course, users have the option of upgrading to Spotify Premium, which ditches the ads and allows for offline and restriction-free smartphone and tablet listening. Or they can just do what upwards of 100 million Web users do (including a certain baby boomer I know) and rent out their earholes to Spotify's advertisers for complimentary access. But regardless of how you listen, you may not be taking full advantage of what Spotify has to offer.

For example, did you know that Spotify supports modifiers that allow you to filter your query of Spotify's vast reservoir of tunage? Think you can readily find Bob Marley's best-of album, Legend? It's is in there, but a mere search for "Bob Marley" will return a nearly impenetrable list of re-packaged content. Even a search for "Bob Marley Legend" still returns various re-releases alongside fake-out versions like Roots of A Legend, The Birth of A Legend, or Pop Legends, to name a few.

In order to make sense of the mess, you might want to consider the following search: artist:"Bob Marley" album:legend year:1984. And you'll be instantaneously transported back to your old dorm days in no time. If that doesn't quite make sense, fear not, we'll walk you through it.

Search modifiers are just a taste of the baked-in functionality Spotify has to offer. Click through our slideshow, and you too can be a streaming music super samurai.

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  • Discover and Save

    1 Discover and Save

    The Browse and Radio functions on the top left can be used similarly to discover new music. Every Monday, for example, Spotify will add a new crop of 30 songs to your "Discover Weekly" playlist. Songs are selected by Spotify robots based on your listening habits. Find it under Browse or Playlists on PC and mobile.

    If you find something, be sure to save it, as Discovery Weekly will be replaced with a new one next week. Right-click and scroll down to "Add to Playlist." On song or artist pages, you can also click on the "…" button to add to a playlist.
  • Create Collaborative Playlists

    2 Create Collaborative Playlists

    Your friends have awful taste in music. But since we live in a "modern liberal democracy," everyone thinks his or her horrible music has as much right to exist alongside your awesome music. So, alas, you may find yourself in an open workspace or preparing for a long car ride where everyone will want to include their songs (as horrible as they may be) on the soundtrack. No worries, Spotify gives everyone's music a spot through the magic of collaboration.

    Right-click on any playlist on the left side of your screen and a pop-up window will offer a "Collaborative Playlist" option. Once you choose that, a small halo icon appears above the folder's icon. Once a playlist is dubbed collaborative, any of your friends with access to that playlist can add or delete tracks. If you find your friends are getting out of hand with their terrible music, shut off this option at any time.
  • Stream Via Browser

    3 Stream Via Browser

    If you're using a computer that isn't yours, but you have the desperate need to jam out, you can access your Spotify account via your browser. Just log into your account via play.spotify.com and you'll find your complete Spotify library with all your carefully curated playlists.
  • Find the Dirty Version

    4 Find the Dirty Version

    Spotify is quick to point out that it never censors music and will "make music available in whatever form it's given to us." So, if you ever come across a rap album that isn't quite as real as it should be, scroll down and look for a pull-down menu on the bottom right-hand side, which will say "1 More Release" or something similar. It's usually not clearly spelled out, but this is typically where you will find the "clean" and "explicit" versions of any particular album.

    Unfortunately, this function isn't as all-encompassing as it should be. It would be great if it provided quick access to all the re-releases and special editions of a classic album available on Spotify. But regrettably, that's usually not the case.
  • Listen on the Down-Low

    5 Listen on the Down-Low

    Confession: I love me some Britney Spears. "Piece of Me," "Toxic," "Till The World Ends," "If You Seek Amy"—Love it! But that doesn't mean all my friends need to know about my secret musical leanings. Good thing Spotify allows Private Sessions, which keep all my shameful aural leanings in the shadows. You can create a Private Session by clicking File > Private Session or your user name on the top right > Private Session (pictured above).
  • Recover Deleted Playlists

    6 Recover Deleted Playlists

    Did you ever accidentally hit "delete" on one of your playlists, as well as the pop-up window that asked if you really wanted to do that? You did? Well, fortunately for you, my indecisive friend, Spotify has your back and allows you to restore your deleted playlists.

    If you log in to your profile page on Spotify's website, you'll find a "Recover Playlists" tab at the top of the page, which will resurrect your deleted playlists with the click of a button.
  • Stream to Another Device

    7 Stream to Another Device

    Those with the Spotify app can use it to beam music to supported devices on the same Wi-Fi network. That includes speakers and devices like Chromecast and Chromecast Audio, PlayStation (3 or 4), or any Airplay- or Bluetooth-enabled devices. Some setups require a Spotify Premium account; find a full run-down of what is needed here. To use it, open the Spotify app, select a song, and look for "Devices Available" on the bottom of the track you're currently playing. In the window that pops up, select the device to which you want to connect.
  • Use Your Phone to Control Your Computer's Stream

    8 Use Your Phone to Control Your Computer's Stream

    Want to control the soundtrack to your next party while keeping mobile on the schmooze rounds? Spotify gives you that power via the "Connect for Computers" feature. This little trick allows you to control Spotify on your stereo-linked laptop or desktop directly from your mobile device. (It's also good for you music-enamored couch potatoratti out there).

    Important note: This handy little trick is only available for Premium members. To use it, you will need the latest version of the Spotify app loaded on both your computer and your mobile device. Then just follow these four simple steps: 1) Play any song on your phone or tablet; 2) Make the song full screen; 3) Select the speaker icon at the bottom of the screen (pictured) 4) select your PC; 5) rock out.
  • Integrate With Waze (Android Only)

    9 Integrate With Waze (Android Only)

    Music and GPS directions are the two audio mobile apps people use the most in the car, so it should be a natural fit that they play nice together (especially when the driver's attention should be on the road). Enter the curious integration between Waze and Spotify. I say curious because Waze is owned by Google, which is trying to push its own Google Play-branded a la carte music service.

    Regardless of what strange backroom deals are afoot, this integration will be a welcome addition for users of both services (if you're on Android, at least). To set it up, make sure Spotify and Waze apps are on your phone. In Waze, click search > settings gear > tap on Spotify icon > toggle on.

    Once you set up the integration, users in Waze will see a green Spotify logo floating in the top-right corner. Tap that to open Spotify controls in the same screen (when your car is at a complete stop, please). No more clumsy switching between apps.
  • Spotify Running

    10 Spotify Running

    Lots of people use music for exercise inspiration. With this knowledge, Spotify wisely created Spotify Running. The feature not only creates a soundtrack for your run, it uses your device's accelerometer to detect your pace and choose songs accordingly. To access it, tap Browse > Running (or search Running) and select what you want to hear.
  • Remove the Nonsense Years

    11 Remove the Nonsense Years

    Over the course of a career, a band or performer goes through various phases, and some are inevitably better than others. The good news is that Spotify search modifiers let you skip over all the meh years.

    For example, Black Sabbath is one of the most important bands in the history of rock, however their first few albums are the only ones that really matter (tweet your misguided metalhead hate here). So if you want to avoid all the Dio years, the nonsense from 1980s, or the check-cashing reunion years, you can use the "year" search modifier.

    So if you search: '"Black Sabbath"' (it's a good search habit in general to use quotations around multi-word phrases), also include the search modifier "year:1970-1975" (be sure to not include any spaces). This will only return the good Sabbath albums, which were all released between 1970 and 1975. We're talkin' the self-titled LP, Paranoid, Sabotage, Sabbath Bloody Sabbath—the albums that rocked! No meddling record contract-fulfilling gabbida-gook included.
  • Use 'NOT' Modifier to Remove Rappers You Don't Like

    12 Use 'NOT' Modifier to Remove Rappers You Don't Like

    Hip-hop is a uniquely collaborative art form. But sometimes, a simple guest spot can sully what was a perfectly good album. For example, if you want to listen to 50 Cent's Get Rich or Die Tryin' album without that dumb Nate Dogg ballad collab, you can search: "Get Rich or Die Tryin'" NOT "Nate Dogg" and you'll get 50's explosive major label debut without having to suffer through "21 Questions" (tweet your mistaken hip-hop fan nonsense here).

    Here's a good place to note that Spotify searches are far less forgiving than Google searches, so the search must include the official spelling on the album: Tryin' and not Trying, and there must be a second "g" in Nate Dogg.
  • Spotify Plays Nice With Echo (Premium Only)

    13 Spotify Plays Nice With Echo and Home (Premium Only)

    Echo, Amazon's magical little tube of AI goodness, can do all sorts of cool things with little more than a voice control. Last year, the company added integration with Spotify for Premium users. To set it up, just connect your Spotify account in the Alexa app. Then, all you have to do is use natural language to tell your Echo to play anything in Spotify.

    Conversely, Spotify now plays nicely with Google's slightly more stylish voice-activated assistant, Google Home (but also just for premium subscribers).
  • Use Plus Symbol or AND to Find Collaborations You Do Want

    14 Use Plus Symbol or AND to Find Collaborations You Do Want

    Search modifiers aren't just about negativity. You can also use them to find all the collaborations you do want. So a search for "Eminem AND Rihanna" will return all their recent duets from various albums. You can also use the plus symbol "+" in place of AND (e.g. "Eminem+Rihanna"), or use the minus symbol, "-", in place of NOT.

    In summation, here are all the search modifiers you'll want to know:

    • Artist:
    • Track:
    • Album:
    • Refine, AND, OR, and NOT (also use + or -)
    • Genre:
    • Label:
  • Use Folders to Organize Your Playlists

    15 Use Folders to Organize Your Playlists

    Not only can you organize tracks into playlists, but you can organize the playlists into playlist folders. To create a new playlist folder, go to the File menu and click on "New Playlist Folder" (duh). A new folder will instantly appear in the left-hand column (you'll notice the icon resembles a literal folder). You can drag other playlists in and out of these collapsible folders. Notice that clicking on the folder will show all the sub-playlists' tracks. And if you want to get real anal, you can even add folders in folders.
  • Create Crossfades Between Songs

    16 Create Crossfades Between Songs

    Want to add a nice crossfade transition between songs? You can do that by making your way to the Preferences window (which you'll find under the "Spotify" menu on Mac; "Edit" menu on PC). Click "Show Advanced Settings" and scroll down to the "Playback" section. Check the "Crossfade tracks" button. The slide button to the right will allow you to create fading transitions between 1 and 12 seconds.
  • Filter to Find Music Super Quick

    17 Filter to Find Music Super Quick

    While Search will help you peruse Spotify's vast library, you can quickly rifle through any playlist using the Filter function. Just hit Command-F on a Mac or Control-F on a PC, and a search window will open in the top right of your current playlist. Simply start typing what you're looking for—artist, song title, or album—and Filter will find it in your current playlist lickety-split.
  • Embed Songs On Your Blog

    18 Embed Songs On Your Blog

    For any bloggy folks out there, you can embed Spotify tracks directly onto your webpage. You can pick up the embed code by right-clicking on any track, album, artist, or playlist. Select Share and click the embed icon, which will add the code directly to your clipboard. That menu also provides options for sharing tracks on social media and messaging services like Facebook Messenger and Skype.
  • See What Everyone Is Listening to

    19 See What Everyone Is Listening to

    Like data? Click Browse (in the top left corner) > Charts to find out what people are listening to around the world. For example, the "Top 50 by Country" option tells me that "Shape of You" from Ed Sheerhan is very popular around the globe (Belgium, Bolivia, and Costa Rica, to name a few), while those in Iceland are rocking out to Drake.
  • Tune In to Spotify Radio

    20 Tune In to Spotify Radio

    Don't know what you want to listen to exactly? Spotify also has a very Pandora-like Radio function, which you can find in the left-hand column. Like Pandora, Spotify radio allows you to thumbs-up or thumbs-down particular tracks. Conveniently, any thumbs-up tracks are automatically added to a "Liked from Radio" playlist.

    You may have noticed, meanwhile, that at the end of album or playlist, Spotify keeps playing songs it believes are similar. It's a great way to discover new music, but you can shut it off via Settings > Autoplay.
  • Keyboard Shortcuts

    21 Keyboard Shortcuts

    True power users always know their keyboard shortcuts. Here's a short list for PC- and Mac-users:

    • Play/Pause: Space
    • Next Track: Control-Right (Mac: Command-Right)
    • Previous Track: Control-Left (Mac: Command-Left)
    • Volume Up/Down: Control-Up / -Down (Mac: Command-Up / -Down
    • Create new playlist: Control-N

  • 22 Control the Soundtrack in Your Uber

    In 2014, Spotify announced a partnership with Uber that allows users to control the soundtrack in their ride with a mobile device.

    The Uber Connect feature is similar to the previously mentioned "Connect for Computers" feature in that it transforms your mobile device into an audio remote control (also, it is only available for Premium Spotify users). To try it out:

    1) Connect your Spotify account in the Uber app via the Uber Profile Screen.

    2) Request a ride in the Uber app. If you get matched with a music-enabled Uber (not all cars have this feature), the music bar will appear at the bottom of the Uber app.

    3) Tap the music bar and then you can program the soundtrack for the duration of the ride. #Boom.

    (While you do indeed have the power to control your soundtrack, please keep your driver's ears and sensibilities in mind).
  • Zooma Zoom Zoom

    23 Zooma Zoom Zoom

    If your eyes suck, you can make all the content in the Spotify desktop app bigger. Under the View menu, you can choose zoom in or out (Ctrl-plus or Ctrl-minus on a PC).