Streaming has changed how we listen to music. Where once you had to store your music library as files on your computer, phone or MP3 player after buying songs online or ripping your CD collection, nowadays online streaming services give you instant access to millions of songs, so you can listen to new music or enjoy some old favourites - wherever your mood takes you.

With more than 75 million subscribers around the world, Spotify is the undisputed king of music streaming services. It’s compatible with Amazon’s Alexa personal assistant, so if you have a compatible device, you can stream a song just by asking for it, and play songs, compile playlists, search for artists or find a public playlist - all using just your voice.

It only takes these simple steps to open up a whole world of hands-free music streaming.

Spotify Free and Alexa is now available in numerous countries around the world including the US, Canada, the UK, Ireland, Brazil, Canada, Germany, Austria, India, France, Italy, Spain, Japan, and Mexico. How to set Spotify as the default music service for Alexa. Spotify has announced that free users will now be able to play their favorite Spotify playlists with Alexa-enabled devices. Spotify Free users in Canada can now say “Alexa, play Discover Weekly on Spotify”, for example, to get their favorite playlists to start playing. The music streaming service has had integration with Alexa for over two years and users can now set Spotify as their default music player through an Amazon Echo smart speaker. Use Spotify Free. Spotify on Alexa used to be limited to the paid-for platform, but now users of Spotify Free can also use their voice to summon music. There are limitations, however. You can only choose music from playlists, so you can't just pick and choose the music you want to hear on a whim.

Note: You’ll need a Spotify Premium account to control Spotify with Alexa: if you only have the free Spotify account, voice control is not available. We’ll explain the difference between the types of account in step 2.

Step 1: Set up your Amazon Echo speaker

For this you’ll need the Alexa app, which you can download for both iOS devices and Android devices. Setting it up is pretty straightforward – for your complete step-by-step guide, from getting it out of the box to mastering all its tips and tricks, check out our guide to setting up Amazon Echo.

Step 2: Download Spotify

The Spotify app is free to download for iOS and Android devices – you can find it on the Apple App Store or in Google Play. The basic version is free to use, but it’s a limited service – you can only skip so many songs at a time, for example, and you can’t pick which song plays when on a playlist. You’ll also have to listen to adverts between songs – these can’t be skipped.

If you pay £9.99 a month, you’ll get no adverts, unlimited skips, the ability to listen offline and to pick which song plays when. You’ll also get higher quality audio. This is known as Spotify Premium.

Premium is cheaper for students. There’s also Premium for Family, which gives access to up to six people living at the same address. This costs £14.99 a month.

Whichever option you choose, the Spotify app is free to download, so you don’t have to worry about being charged anything. But as we said earlier, you'll need Spotify Premium in order to control it using Alexa.

Step 3: Log into Spotify

Now it’s time to log into Spotify. Just enter your email address/username and password when prompted.

Not used Spotify before? No problem. You can sign up in just a few seconds.

Step 4: Link your Spotify account

Within the Alexa app, go to Settings (the cog icon in the bottom right corner of the screen) > Music & Media> Spotify. Tap the link to Link account on Spotify.com and you’ll be prompted to log into Spotify.

It will then alert you that Alexa will be able to receive this Spotify account data – this includes the proviso that your information may be transferred outside the EEA. If you’re OK with that, tap Okay.

Can't Connect Alexa To Spotify

Your Spotify account is now linked with your Amazon Echo speaker.

Step 5: Make Spotify your default music service

It’s all well and good having Spotify linked to your Echo speaker, but it’s a pain having to request Alexa to open the programme each time you want to play a song.

Thankfully there is a way around that – make it your default music service. That way, you can just say “Alexa, play pop” and it’ll start blasting out the hits of the day directly from Spotify.

To make Spotify your default music service, go to Settings> Music & Media within the Alexa app, then tap Choose Default Music Services. By default, your default music service is Amazon Music. Just tap the Spotify box to change it to Spotify, then tap Done.

Step 6: Start controlling

Now it’s time to start using Spotify hands-free on your Echo speaker. You have a ton of voice commands at your disposal: most of them are pretty obvious but some are a little more niche.

The basics include “Play”, “Pause”, “Shuffle” (and “Stop shuffle”) and “Resume”, all of which are self-explanatory.

You can also be more general with your requests, for example “Play some music”, “Play what’s hot in Brazil” and “Play songs similar to the sixties.”

You can be more specific, too. These controls include “Play [song/album/artist]”, “Play [name emotion] music”, “Play [radio station name]”, “Play [playlist name]”. You can create playlists, add songs/albums/artists to an already existing playlist, and block songs with explicit lyrics, all by asking. You can also request information by asking questions like “Who’s the lead singer for [band name]?”

Which devices support Alexa control for Spotify?

A range of Alexa-compatible devices support hands-free Spotify control. These are: the Amazon Echo, Echo Show, Echo Dot, Echo Spot, Amazon Tap (which isn’t currently available in the UK), Fire TV Cube (again, not yet available in the UK) and Sonos One smart speaker.

All of these have Alexa built-in, so you can control your Spotify just by speaking. To get set up on any of these devices, just follow the steps above.

Can I Use Free Spotify On Alexa Uk

What if I don’t want to control Spotify by speaking?

No problem. You can connect to your Echo speaker over Bluetooth and use the Spotify app on your phone to control it remotely.

So you just unwrapped an AmazonAlexa, Echo, or EchoDot—maybe someone who really gets you gifted one, or perhaps the holidays inspired you to treat yo’ self. Don’t start the new year with the smart speaker still sitting in its box. Setting it up to play classic, pop, and everything else is a done deal in three steps.

What you’ll need: your new device, the Amazon Alexa app on your smartphone or tablet, and your Spotify login info. Here’s how to connect Amazon Alexa to Spotify:

First, download the Amazon Alexa app from the Google Play or App store, and follow the prompts to set up your new Amazon Echo or Echo Dot.
Once connected, go to “Settings,” select “Music,” click “Link New Service,” and then tap “Spotify” to input your Spotify username and password.
Select “Default Services” to set Spotify as your default music service—et voilà.

Bonus hack: Once Alexa is up and running, you can even listen to another user’s Spotify account. Just ask Alexa to “Spotify Connect,” and the device will search for another one on the same Wi-Fi network. Stealing your holiday houseguests’ excellent playlists is encouraged.

Ready? Try asking Alexa to play the very best of your library, or help you discover something new, by saying:

“Alexa…”

Can You Use Free Spotify With Alexa

“Play Spotify.”
“Play my Discover Weekly.”

Can You Use Free Spotify With Aleca