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Link Spotify in the Google Home App
- Open the Google Home app on your phone.
- Tap your profile icon in the top-right corner.
- Tap “Assistant settings” (or Settings, then “Google Assistant settings”).
- Tap “Music” under the Services section.
- Find Spotify in the list and tap “Link.”
- Sign in with your Spotify username and password.
- Tap “Agree” to let Google access your Spotify account.
Once linked, you can play Spotify music by saying “Hey Google, play [song/artist/playlist].” Google Home works with both Spotify Free and Spotify Premium accounts, though free accounts have limitations like shuffle-only playback on some content.
Set Spotify as Your Default Music Service
If you have multiple music services linked (YouTube Music, Apple Music, Pandora), Google Home plays from YouTube Music by default. To switch to Spotify:
- Open the Google Home app.
- Tap your profile icon, then “Assistant settings.”
- Tap “Music.”
- Under “Your music services,” tap Spotify to select it as the default.
With Spotify set as default, you don’t need to say “on Spotify” every time. Just say “Hey Google, play my Discover Weekly” and it plays from Spotify automatically. Without setting the default, you’d need to add “on Spotify” to every voice command.
Voice Commands for Spotify
| What You Want | Say This |
|---|---|
| Play a song | “Hey Google, play [song name] by [artist]” |
| Play an artist | “Hey Google, play [artist name]” |
| Play a playlist | “Hey Google, play my playlist” |
| Play a genre | “Hey Google, play jazz” or “play workout music” |
| Play Discover Weekly | “Hey Google, play my Discover Weekly” |
| Play a podcast | “Hey Google, play [podcast name] podcast on Spotify” |
| Skip a track | “Hey Google, skip” or “next” |
| Go back | “Hey Google, previous” |
| Pause / Resume | “Hey Google, pause” / “Hey Google, resume” |
| Set volume | “Hey Google, volume 5” (scale of 1 to 10) |
| Ask what’s playing | “Hey Google, what song is this?” |
| Like a song | “Hey Google, like this song” |
| Shuffle | “Hey Google, shuffle” |
| Repeat | “Hey Google, repeat this song” |
Play Spotify on Multiple Speakers
If you have multiple Google Home or Nest speakers, you can play Spotify across all of them at once.
- In the Google Home app, create a speaker group: tap “+” then “Create speaker group.”
- Select the speakers you want in the group and give it a name (like “Whole House” or “Downstairs”).
- Say “Hey Google, play music on [group name].”
You can also move music from one speaker to another. Say “Hey Google, move music to [speaker name]” or “Hey Google, play music on [room name].”
Spotify Free vs. Premium on Google Home
| Feature | Spotify Free | Spotify Premium |
|---|---|---|
| Play specific songs by name | Sometimes shuffle-only | Yes |
| Play playlists | Shuffle mode only | On-demand |
| Skip tracks | Limited skips per hour | Unlimited |
| Ad-free playback | No | Yes |
| Play on speaker groups | Yes | Yes |
| Spotify Connect control | Limited | Yes |
With Spotify Free, asking Google Home to play a specific song may result in a shuffled playlist that includes that song rather than playing the exact track. Premium gives you full on-demand control over what plays.
Our Philips hue Google Home walkthrough covers this from a different angle.
Use Spotify Connect
Spotify Connect lets you control playback directly from the Spotify app on your phone, giving you more control than voice commands.
- Open the Spotify app on your phone.
- Start playing any song.
- Tap the “Devices Available” icon at the bottom of the Now Playing screen (it looks like a speaker with sound waves).
- Select your Google Home or Nest speaker from the list.
With Spotify Connect, you can browse and queue songs, create playlists, and control everything from the app instead of using voice commands. The speaker shows up as a castable device as long as your phone and the speaker are on the same WiFi network.
Troubleshooting
Spotify not showing in music services. Make sure your Google Home app is updated to the latest version. Force close the app and reopen it. If Spotify still doesn’t appear, uninstall and reinstall the Google Home app. Spotify should be available in the music services list in all regions where both Google Home and Spotify operate.
“I can’t play Spotify right now” error. Check that your Spotify account is still linked by going to Google Home app, then profile, then “Assistant settings,” then “Music.” If Spotify shows as linked, try unlinking and relinking it. Also check that Spotify isn’t playing on another device – Spotify Free allows playback on only one device at a time.
Wrong songs playing. Be specific with your requests. Instead of “play Love,” say “play Love by John Legend.” For playlists, use the exact playlist name. Google sometimes plays a similar-sounding song or an auto-generated playlist if the voice command is ambiguous.
Looking for more? We have a dedicated guide on Google assistant speakers.
Can’t find my playlists. Google Home can play playlists you’ve created or saved in Spotify. Make sure the playlist is saved to “Your Library” in the Spotify app. Recently created playlists may take a few minutes to sync. Try saying the playlist name exactly as it appears in Spotify.
Audio quality sounds low. Spotify defaults to lower quality streaming on some devices. In the Spotify app, go to Settings, then “Audio Quality,” and set streaming quality to “High” or “Very High” (Premium only). Google Home Mini and Nest Mini have small speakers, so audio quality is limited by the hardware regardless of streaming quality settings.
Can I use Spotify on Google Home without Premium?
Yes. Spotify Free works with Google Home for basic playback, but you get ads between songs, limited skips, and shuffle-only playback for playlists and artists. You can still play specific songs by name in many cases, though Google Home may sometimes start a related playlist instead of the exact track.
Can multiple family members link their Spotify accounts?
Yes. Each person in the household can link their own Spotify account through their own Google account. If Voice Match is set up, Google Home recognizes who’s speaking and plays from that person’s Spotify account. Without Voice Match, it plays from the default account linked to the primary Google Home user.
Does Spotify work with Google Home routines?
Yes. You can add Spotify playback to Google Home routines. For example, set up a “Good Morning” routine that plays your Spotify Daily Mix when you say “Hey Google, good morning.” In the Google Home app, go to Automations (or Routines), create or edit a routine, and add “Play music” as an action with Spotify selected.
Sources
Google – Listen to Music on Google Home | Spotify – Spotify on Google Home
