Spotify Hi-Fi is dead on arrival, if this price prediction is true
Spotify may charge users an extra $6 a month to access lossless audio, which is outrageous compared to the competition
🎧 Spotify’s long-awaited Hi-Fi audio quality could release this year
💵 However, it could cost Premium subscribers an extra $6 per month
📈 That’s significantly more expensive than Spotify’s rivals like Apple Music
👎 It will make Spotify’s Hi-Fi audio are tough sell for many
Spotify has been teasing Hi-Fi quality audio since 2021, despite its competitors already offering the desirable feature for years.
However, a new report from Bloomberg suggests a new “Music Pro” tier could release this year – though brace yourself for yet another false dawn. If it does indeed arrive, the new Music Pro tier could cost an extra $5 to $6 per month. And that’s unthinkable.
If the rumored price turns out to be true, I consider Spotify Hi-Fi to be dead on arrival. Spotify already costs $1 a month more than Apple Music, which has offered lossless audio since June 2021. You can also get Apple Music for $2.99 for 6 months right now and there are plenty of deals on Amazon Music HD.
The idea of paying $16.99 a month or more for Spotify doesn’t add up, then. Most Spotify users don’t even know they’re listening to audio that’s lower in quality than a CD, so they’re unlikely to bite at that price.
It’s clear that Spotify is hoping to eke out extra money from audiophiles already invested in Spotify’s ecosystem, but even then it’s a stretch. Most music listeners who care about sound quality will have already jumped ship to other platforms – like I did.
Spotify Music Pro will include some additional features that might make it more appealing, such as discounts on concert tickets, DJ tools to mix songs together, and further AI integration. But because subscribers have had to wait so long for parity with other music streaming platforms, paying $5 to $6 extra a month feels like a kick in the teeth.
Adam Vjestica is The Shortcut’s Senior Editor. Formerly TechRadar’s Gaming Hardware Editor, Adam has also worked at Nintendo of Europe as a Content Marketing Editor, where he helped launch the Nintendo Switch. Follow him on X @ItsMrProducts.