Spotify is the global music streaming platform of millions of songs, whimsical podcasts, and playlists. But eventually, you may want to delete Spotify history — whether to keep your listening habits to yourself, to hopefully reset your recommendations, or to start over. While Spotify doesn’t have a way to delete your listening history like some other sites, you can do your best to manage your account in a few ways.
Why Delete Your Spotify History?
Here are some good reasons to delete your Spotify history:
Privacy: If your account or device is shared, you might not want others to see what you’re listening to.
Fine-tuning recommendations: The music app knows what you listen to and suggests new music you would enjoy.
Staring Fresh: If your listening habits have shifted, deleting your history can start you off fresh.
How to clear or delete Spotify History?
1. View your Recently Played History:
On the desktop and mobile apps, Spotify sees you’ve recently listened to. But there’s not a straightforward way to purge those entirely. Here’s how to see your history:
On Mobile App:
- Open the Spotify app on your device.
- Tap the “Your Library” tab at the bottom.
- Go to your “Recently Played.”
On Desktop App:
- Open Spotify on your desktop.
- Click on the recently played tab on the left-hand menu.
2. Clear the Queue:
If you’ve added songs to the line-up to play next, clearing your queue will also help you manage your playback history:
On Mobile App:
- Hit the song title at the bottom of the screen.
- In the bottom-right corner, click the queue icon (three lines with a play button).
- Tap “Clear Queue” to get rid of all upcoming songs.
On Desktop App:
- Tap the box near the bottom that reads “Now Playing”
- Go to the bottom right and click on the queue icon.
- Click “Clear Queue.”
3. Use a Private Session:
That is why Spotify has introduced a “Private Session” option to stop the songs from being captured in your listening history. Here’s how you can enable it:
On Mobile App:
- Tap the settings icon at the upper right corner.
- Scroll down to “Private Session”, and tap on it.
4. Delete Songs from ”Liked Songs” or Playlist:
If you’ve liked certain songs or added them to playlists, you can remove them manually:
To Unlike a Song:
- Head to your “Liked Songs” playlist.
- Find the song you want to unlike and tap the heart icon.
To remove from playlists:
- The playlist the song lives in.
- Click the three dots to the song’s right, then select “Remove from this Playlist.”
5. Delete your account and start over:
If you want a whole fresh start, you can delete your Spotify account and start fresh. Be advised that this erases all playlists saved songs, and followers. To delete your account.
- Go to the Spotify support page.
- You should enter “Close Account” and follow the instructions to delete your account.
Reset Your Recommendations:
- Your listening patterns determine Spotify’s recommendations. Although you can’t delete everything, you can shape the algorithm by:
- Discovering more genres and musicians.
- Shuffle new playlists based on your updated preferences.
Additional Tips:
Utilize third-party Tools:
Third-party tools may help you manage your Spotify history, but be careful when using them, as they may compromise your account security.
Keep Playlists Manageable:
Get the songs you no longer like, so your playlists are manageable.
Conclusion:
Spotify doesn’t offer a simple option for deleting your listening history, but combining the above will help you manage your account as best as possible. Regardless, you want to keep your things personal, improve your muddy recommendations, or even treat yourself to a clean slate. In that case, these steps lead to a better example of Spotify to experience you. Happy Listening!