Spotify reportedly plans to raise prices in the UK and other countries later in April — less than a year after its previous subscription hike.
The Sweden-based company will increase prices by around $1 to $2 (£0.79 to £1.58) by the end of this month, according to Bloomberg. Customers could face an extra £19 added to their annual Spotify bill.
As well as the UK, the higher prices will impact subscribers in Australia and Pakistan, with a similar move planned for the US later this year.
Spotify is targeting a profit amid a history of losses dating back to its 2008 launch. It previously noted that subscriptions could go up to generate more revenue.
The hike comes as Spotify pours money into additional categories beyond music, including podcasts and, more recently, audiobooks. The company offers premium subscribers 15 hours of free audiobook monthly listening time. Beyond that, customers must pay for extra hours or individual audiobooks, which can be purchased from Spotify’s website.
This week, the company also introduced video learning courses that cost between £11 and £240.
As more content comes to the app, Spotify is preparing a new back-to-basics subscription plan for music and podcast lovers who can do without audiobooks. The new tier will reportedly cost £11 per month, the same price as the current Premium Individual plan.
Spotify has long been rumoured to be working on a super premium option with access to high-quality audio and other perks.
Spotify had 602 million users at the end of 2023, including 236 million paying customers. Its biggest rivals, Apple and Amazon, have also raised prices for their music services.
The company’s stock price is up 56 per cent this year as it inches towards the all-time peak achieved in February 2021. Earlier today (April 3), Spotify CEO Daniel Ek celebrated its six years as a public company with a post on X (formerly Twitter).
“It’s pretty wild to think that by most metrics, Spotify is now 3x or more on where we were that day,” Ek said.
