Music is part of daily life for most of us. We play it on the way to work, at the gym, while we cook, and before we sleep. Spotify is one of the most popular apps for this, and many people stream from it for hours every day. If you use a prepaid phone plan with a monthly data limit, you may wonder how much of your data goes to music.
The good news is that music is light on data compared to video. The answer still depends on the audio quality you pick. A few simple settings can change your usage by more than ten times. In this guide, we explain how much data Spotify uses per minute, per song, per hour, and per month. We also show you how to cut your usage and how to pick a plan that fits your listening habits.
The Short Answer
Spotify uses about 11 MB to 144 MB of data per hour. The exact number depends on your streaming quality setting. On the Low setting, one hour of music uses about 11 MB. On Normal, it uses about 43 MB. On High, it uses about 72 MB. On Very High, it uses about 144 MB.
Most people leave the app on the default setting, which is close to Normal for mobile data. At that level, an hour of music uses about as much data as loading a few photos. That is small, but it adds up if you listen all day on cellular data.
Spotify Audio Quality Settings Explained
Spotify lets you choose how good your music sounds. Higher quality means a larger file stream, so it uses more data. The quality is measured in kilobits per second, or kbps. A higher kbps number means more detail in the sound and more data used every second.
Here is how the four main settings compare. The numbers are close estimates, and real use can vary a little.
| Quality setting | Bitrate | Data per minute | Data per 4-minute song | Data per hour |
| Low | 24 kbps | 0.18 MB | 0.7 MB | 10.8 MB |
| Normal | 96 kbps | 0.72 MB | 2.9 MB | 43.2 MB |
| High | 160 kbps | 1.2 MB | 4.8 MB | 72 MB |
| Very High | 320 kbps | 2.4 MB | 9.6 MB | 144 MB |
As you can see, Very High quality uses about 13 times more data than Low quality. If you are not using good headphones or speakers, you may not even notice the difference in sound. Phone speakers and basic earbuds cannot show all the detail in a high-quality stream.
What each setting is best for
- Low: Best when you have very little data left or a weak signal. The sound is basic, but it saves a lot of data.
- Normal: A good balance for most people on mobile data. The sound is clear for everyday listening.
- High: Better for people who like richer sound and use decent earbuds, but still want to watch their data.
- Very High: Best for home use on Wi-Fi with good speakers or headphones. It is the heaviest of the four on mobile data.
What About Spotify Lossless?
Spotify Premium also offers a Lossless option. Lossless audio keeps all the detail of the original recording. It sounds the best, but the files are much bigger. CD-quality lossless audio uses roughly 600 MB to 650 MB per hour. Higher resolution lossless files can use even more.
That is four to five times more than Very High, and about fifteen times more than Normal. If you stream lossless music on cellular data every day, it can use up a small plan very fast. For most people, the best idea is to use lossless only on Wi-Fi.
How Much Data Does Spotify Use Per Month?
Now let us look at the real question. How much data will you use in a full month? It depends on how long you listen each day and which quality you use. The table below shows monthly use for three common listening habits. It assumes 30 days in the month.
| Daily listening | Low | Normal | High | Very High |
| 1 hour a day | 0.3 GB | 1.3 GB | 2.2 GB | 4.3 GB |
| 2 hours a day | 0.6 GB | 2.6 GB | 4.3 GB | 8.6 GB |
| 3 hours a day | 1.0 GB | 3.9 GB | 6.5 GB | 13 GB |
A person who listens for one hour a day on Normal quality uses about 1.3 GB a month. That is a small part of most plans. A person who listens for three hours a day on Very High quality uses about 13 GB a month. That is more than many people expect from a music app.
If you listen on Wi-Fi at home or at work, none of this counts against your mobile plan. Only the music you stream over cellular data counts. So your real number is probably lower than the table suggests.
How Long Can You Stream Music on 1 GB of Data?
Another way to think about it is to ask how many hours 1 GB can give you. Here is a simple guide.
- Low quality: about 90 hours
- Normal quality: about 23 hours
- High quality: about 14 hours
- Very High quality: about 7 hours
This is a handy rule. If you know how many gigabytes your plan has, you can multiply to see how many hours of music you can stream each month.
Other Things That Change Spotify Data Use
Audio quality is the biggest factor, but it is not the only one. Here are some other things to know.
Podcasts
Audio podcasts use about the same data as music at your chosen quality. Video podcasts are different. They show moving pictures, so they can use far more data than a regular song. If you watch video podcasts on cellular data, check your usage often.
Downloads
When you download a song, playlist, or podcast, it uses data once during the download. After that, you can play it offline with no extra data. If you download over Wi-Fi, it costs your mobile plan nothing. This is one of the best ways to save data.
Wi-Fi versus cellular
Spotify lets you set one quality for Wi-Fi and a different one for cellular. This is very useful. You can pick Very High for Wi-Fi at home and Normal for cellular data on the go.
How to Check and Reduce Your Spotify Data Use
You can control how much data Spotify uses with a few quick steps. These will help you protect your monthly data allowance.
1. Lower the streaming quality on cellular
Open Spotify and go to Settings. Find the media quality or audio quality section. Under cellular streaming, choose Low or Normal. Keep Very High for Wi-Fi only. The menu name can be slightly different in some app versions, but the option is easy to find.
2. Turn on Data Saver
Spotify has a Data Saver option in its settings. It lowers the quality of the stream and cuts down on extra data use. It is a simple way to save data without changing many options.
3. Download your favorite playlists on Wi-Fi
Before you leave home, download the playlists you play most. Then switch to offline mode if you want to be sure that Spotify uses no mobile data at all.
4. Check your phone data usage screen
Your phone shows how much data each app uses. On most phones, you can find this in the data usage or mobile data section of your settings. Look at Spotify once a month to see if your habits need a change.
5. Avoid video podcasts on cellular data
If you like podcasts, choose the audio version when you are away from Wi-Fi. This keeps your usage low.
How Much Mobile Data Do You Need for Spotify?
Let us put this into real plan numbers. Infimobile offers prepaid plans with different monthly data amounts. All of them run on 5G and 4G LTE. The table below shows how many hours of Spotify each plan can give you in a month if you used all of its data on music alone. In real life, you also use data for maps, social media, and messages, so treat these numbers as a ceiling.
| Infimobile plan | Monthly data | Hours on Normal quality | Hours on Very High quality |
| 5GB plan | 5GB | About 115 hours | About 35 hours |
| 10GB plan | 10GB | About 230 hours | About 69 hours |
| 15GB plan | 15GB | About 345 hours | About 104 hours |
| 20GB plan | 20GB | About 460 hours | About 139 hours |
These numbers show that even the smallest plan can support a lot of music. A 5GB plan gives you about 115 hours of Normal quality music each month. That is almost four hours every day. For most people, music alone will not use up the plan.
Which Infimobile Plan Fits Your Music Habits?
Let us match some common listening styles to the right Infimobile plan. All plans include WiFi calling and texting, a 3-in-1 SIM card kit, and 5G and 4G LTE data. Hotspot is available as an add-on on the data plans. Every plan is non-refundable, so it helps to pick the right size from the start.
Light listener: the Infimobile 5GB plan
If you listen for an hour or two a day on Normal quality and use your phone for light tasks, the 5GB plan can be enough. It costs $75 for 12 months. It includes 5GB of 5G and 4G data per month, nationwide 2500 minutes and 2500 SMS, and 500 MMS messages. Music at Normal quality would use only about 1.3 GB to 2.6 GB of your data in a month, which leaves room for maps, messages, and browsing.
Everyday listener: the Infimobile 10GB plan
If you stream music most of the day, use Very High quality sometimes, and also use apps like maps and social media, the 10GB plan gives you more space. It costs $75 for 12 months. It includes 10GB of 5G and 4G data per month, plus unlimited nationwide talk and text, and 500 MMS messages. Speeds are reduced after you use the 10GB of high-speed data.
Heavy listener: the Infimobile 15GB or 20GB plan
If you listen for three hours or more every day, use higher quality settings, or share your data through hotspot, a larger plan makes sense. The 15GB plan costs $108 for 12 months. The 20GB plan costs $120 for 12 months. Both include unlimited nationwide talk and text, WiFi calling and texting, and 500 MMS messages. Speeds are reduced after you use the monthly data in your plan.
Music, video, and everything else: the Freedom Unlimited Plan
If you do not want to think about data at all, the Infimobile Freedom Unlimited Plan is built for you. It costs $150 for 12 months. It includes unlimited 5G and 4G data per month, plus unlimited voice and unlimited SMS. It also includes free digital delivery, WiFi calling, and text. You can port in your number and get 1 month free by using the code FREEMONTH during activation. This plan is a good match for people who stream music, watch video, and use their phone all day.
Tips to Get the Most From Your Plan
- Set one quality for Wi-Fi and a lower one for cellular. This single change saves the most data.
- Download music and podcasts when you are on Wi-Fi so you can play them anywhere.
- Remember that maps, social apps, and video use much more data than music. Music is rarely the main reason a plan runs out.
Frequently Asked Questions
It depends on your audio quality setting. Low uses about 11 MB per hour. Normal uses about 43 MB. High uses about 72 MB. Very High uses about 144 MB. Lossless audio uses much more, often over 600 MB per hour.
A four-minute song uses about 2.9 MB on Normal quality, so 1 GB gives you roughly 340 songs. On Very High quality, a song uses about 9.6 MB, so 1 GB gives you about 100 songs. On Low quality, you can stream well over 1,000 songs.
A paused app uses very little data. Spotify may still use a small amount to load song art and refresh your home page. If you want to be sure it uses no data, use offline mode with downloaded music.
No. Video apps use far more data than music apps. For example, a video at 720p can use around 1.5 GB per hour, while Spotify on Very High quality uses about 144 MB per hour. Music is one of the lightest things you can stream.
For most people, the 5GB or 10GB plan is enough for daily music at Normal or High quality. If you stream for many hours, use Very High quality often, or also use hotspot and video, the 15GB, 20GB, or Freedom Unlimited plan may fit you better.
Final Thoughts
Spotify is a light app when you use it with the right settings. At Normal quality, an hour of music uses only about 43 MB. Even at Very High quality, it uses about 144 MB per hour, which is small compared to video. The only heavy options are lossless audio and video podcasts, and those are best saved for Wi-Fi.
Now you know how to estimate your own use. Multiply your daily listening hours by the data per hour for your quality setting, then multiply by 30. Compare the result with your plan. If you want a simple, low-cost way to cover your music and everything else on your phone, Infimobile has prepaid plans from 5GB to unlimited data, so you can pick the size that fits you.
