Spotify Downloader Options in 2026: 9 Legal Ways to Save Spotify Music Offline

Spotify Premium lets you save songs offline, but those downloads are encrypted and only play inside the Spotify app. You can’t copy them to an MP3 player or a USB drive, and they stop working if your subscription ends. That’s why people search for a Spotify downloader that turns tracks into MP3 files.

This guide sticks to options that work within Spotify’s rules and the law. Spotify’s User Guidelines ban “copying, reproducing, redistributing, ‘ripping,’ recording, transferring” its content and “circumventing any technology used by Spotify” (Spotify User Guidelines). Tools that convert Spotify streams into MP3 or FLAC files do one of those things, so we don’t recommend them here. Earlier versions of this page listed Spotify-to-MP3 converters such as Sidify, NoteBurner, TuneFab, AllToMP3 and SpotiFlyer, plus Telegram bots and browser extensions. We removed them for that reason.

Spotify says it has “777 million users, including 300 million subscribers, in 184 markets” (Spotify company info). Most of them never need an MP3 at all: the official offline features cover listening without a connection. If you do need files you can keep and move between devices, buy them from a store that sells DRM-free downloads.

Vendor information last verified: 18 September 2026.

Last checked: September 2026

Every product claim below was checked against the vendor’s own help, pricing or product page on 18 September 2026, and the source is linked next to the claim. We did not run hands-on tests for this article.

Main findings:

• Spotify Premium offline downloads cover up to 10,000 tracks on each of up to 5 devices, and you have to go online at least once every 30 days to keep them (Spotify listen offline).
• On the free version you can only download podcasts, not music (Spotify listen offline).
• Premium streams at up to “Very high: Equivalent to approximately 320kbit/s” and “Lossless: Equivalent up to 24-bit/44.1kHz FLAC” on desktop and mobile (Spotify audio quality).
• Converting Spotify streams to MP3 breaks Spotify’s User Guidelines, which ban ripping, recording and circumventing its technology (Spotify User Guidelines).

Legal and Safety Notes

Premium vs MP3 Downloads

Many people confuse Spotify Premium’s offline feature with owning MP3 files. Here’s the difference:

Spotify’s offline downloads only play inside the app, and you need to go online at least once every 30 days to keep them (Spotify listen offline). Spotify’s rules also ban “transferring copies of cached Content from an authorized Device to any other Device” (Spotify User Guidelines).

If you want files you can play anywhere, buy the tracks from a store that sells downloads. Bandcamp and Qobuz both do.

All 9 Options Compared

Prices are the vendor’s listed prices on 18 September 2026 and vary by country.

Official Spotify Options (1-4)

These four are built into Spotify. They don’t give you MP3 files, but they cover offline listening without breaking any rules.

1. Spotify Premium Offline Downloads

Price: Premium Individual is $12.99 a month in the US after any intro offer. Student is $6.99, Duo $18.99 and Family $21.99 a month (Spotify Premium plans).

What it does well:

• “On Premium, you can download albums, playlists, and podcasts” (Spotify listen offline)
• Up to 10,000 tracks on each of up to 5 devices (Spotify listen offline)
• Premium quality goes up to “Very high” (about 320kbit/s) and “Lossless” (up to 24-bit/44.1kHz FLAC) on desktop and mobile (Spotify audio quality)

Drawbacks:

• Downloads only play inside the Spotify app
• You must go online at least once every 30 days to keep them (Spotify listen offline)
• Downloads stop working if your Premium subscription ends

Best for: anyone who wants to listen offline on a phone, tablet or computer and already pays for Premium. This is our top pick because it is the official route and covers what most people want a downloader for.

2. Spotify Offline Backup

Price: included with Premium.

What it does well:

• “Offline Backup is filled with music you can play offline. No downloads required” (Spotify Offline Backup)
• Available for “Premium on mobile phones, Android Auto, and CarPlay” (Spotify Offline Backup)

Drawbacks:

• Spotify picks the music, so it doesn’t replace downloading a specific playlist
• Same app-only playback as regular Premium downloads

Best for: people who forget to download before a flight or drive and want something ready to play.

3. Spotify Podcast Downloads on the Free Plan

Price: free.

What it does well:

• “On the free version, you can only download podcasts” (Spotify listen offline), so podcasts work offline without Premium

Drawbacks:

• No music downloads on the free plan (Spotify listen offline)

Best for: free-plan listeners who mostly want podcasts on a commute.

4. Spotify Local Files

Local files work the other way round. Instead of getting music out of Spotify, you bring your own files into it. Spotify says you can “use the app to play any of the audio files legally stored on your device” (Spotify local files).

Price: free.

What it does well:

• Your purchased or self-made files play alongside the Spotify catalogue
• On desktop you switch on Show Local Files under Settings, then Library (Spotify local files)

Drawbacks:

• You need the files first, from a store or your own recordings
• Setup steps differ across desktop, iOS and Android (Spotify local files)

Best for: people who buy downloads from Bandcamp or Qobuz and still want one app for everything.

Buy Music You Keep (5-6)

If you want actual audio files for an MP3 player, a DJ library or a car USB stick, buy them. These stores sell downloads you keep.

5. Bandcamp

Price: set by each artist or label.

What it does well:

• A purchase includes “an optional download in a variety of high-quality formats including lossless” (Bandcamp help)
• Money goes to the artist or label selling the release

Drawbacks:

• The catalogue is mostly independent artists and labels, so major-label releases are often missing
• You pay per release rather than a monthly fee

Best for: building a file library you own, especially for independent music.

6. Qobuz Download Store

Price: per album or track, shown on each release.

What it does well:

• Qobuz runs a download store alongside its streaming service, with 24-bit Hi-Res releases (Qobuz download store)

Drawbacks:

• Hi-Res files are large
• Prices and catalogue vary by country

Best for: listeners who want lossless or Hi-Res files of mainstream releases.

Leaving Spotify: Playlist Transfer (7-8)

These tools don’t download audio. They copy your playlists to another service, which is what many people actually want when they search for a Spotify downloader.

7. Soundiiz

Price: free plan, with paid Premium and Creator plans (Soundiiz pricing). Prices on the page are shown in local currency.

What it does well:

• Transfers playlists between Spotify, Apple Music, YouTube Music, Tidal and other services
• Exports playlists “as CSV, TXT, XSPF, JSON, XML, and URL files” (Soundiiz pricing)

Drawbacks:

• The free plan lets you “select up to 200 tracks from a playlist of any size” and transfer playlists “one at a time” (Soundiiz pricing)
• Exports are song lists, not audio files

Best for: moving from Spotify to Apple Music or another service without rebuilding playlists by hand.

8. Tune My Music

Price: free trial of 500 tracks, then paid plans (Tune My Music).

What it does well:

• Transfers playlists and libraries between streaming services and keeps song order (Tune My Music)

Drawbacks:

• No audio downloads, only playlist transfer
• Larger libraries need a paid plan

Best for: a one-off move of a big library to a new streaming service.

Record Your Own Audio (9)

9. Audacity

Audacity is a free audio editor for Windows, macOS and Linux (Audacity download page). It is useful for audio you own: recording your own playing or voice, trimming it, and converting purchased files between formats such as FLAC and MP3.

Don’t use it to record Spotify playback. Spotify’s rules ban “recording” its content (Spotify User Guidelines).

Price: free.

What it does well:

• Runs on Windows, macOS and Linux (Audacity download page)
• Source code is published for anyone to build (Audacity download page)
• Records, edits and exports audio you have the rights to

Drawbacks:

• Real-time recording only, so a 4-minute take takes 4 minutes
• You tag and organise files yourself

Best for: musicians, podcasters and anyone converting files they already own. If you also want a transcript of your own recordings, podcast recording tools cover that side.

Step-by-Step Download Guide

Here’s how to download a playlist for offline listening with Spotify Premium:

Step 1: Open the playlist or album in the Spotify app on your phone, tablet or computer.

Step 2: Tap or click the download button. On mobile it downloads to Your Library.

Step 3: Check the download finished. Spotify shows a “download successful” icon next to downloaded content. If you still see the download or sync icon, the tracks aren’t downloaded yet (Spotify listen offline).

Step 4: Stay within the limits. Up to 10,000 tracks on each of up to 5 devices, and go online at least once every 30 days (Spotify listen offline).

If you need files you keep instead, buy the album on Bandcamp or Qobuz, download it, then add the folder to Spotify with local files (Spotify local files) if you want to play it in the same app.

Picking the Right Spotify Downloader

The right choice depends on what you actually need. These are editorial picks based on the vendor pages linked above:

Offline listening: Spotify Premium downloads, $12.99 a month in the US (Spotify Premium plans). It’s the official route and covers most use cases.

Files you keep: buy the music on Bandcamp or Qobuz, then add the files to Spotify with local files if you want everything in one app.

Switching services: Soundiiz or Tune My Music move your playlists without touching the audio.

Your own recordings: Audacity, for audio you made or have the rights to.

One final note: 320kbit/s and lossless streaming need Premium. On the free version you get up to about 160kbit/s on desktop and mobile (Spotify audio quality), and no converter changes that.

For audio you record yourself, audio-to-text conversion tools can transcribe and organise podcast notes and personal recordings. Music recording apps cover recording your own music on a phone.

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About the Author

Kelum Wannigamage is an audio engineer and content creator who writes about music production workflows, legal audio capture, recording software and device compatibility.