In May, Spotify quietly started charging for song lyrics, limiting free users to seeing lyrics for just three songs per month, a move that was seen as an attempt to get more users to pay for the service.
After receiving numerous complaints, the company has decided to expand the monthly limit. Starting today, Spotify will increase the limit on the number of lyrics that free users can view. Users around the world will see this change.
A company spokesperson told TechCrunch: “At Spotify, we're always testing and improving, which means feature availability may vary across tiers, markets, and devices. In the coming weeks, we'll be expanding the availability of lyrics for Spotify Free users, making more lyrics available to more people around the world.”
Spotify didn't reveal the exact number of lyrics that free users will be able to listen to each month, but it's likely a significant increase from the previous limit of three songs. Many users on X/Twitter have welcomed the change.
Spotify lyrics are… back?
— Nova!! || bbokari enthusiast! || ATE 
(@yongbokkies_) July 30, 2024
Spotify began testing paid lyrics in September 2023. It is unclear whether paying for lyrics contributed to an increase in paid subscriber numbers, but the impact was likely minimal as the company decided to lift the restriction.
The company reported that in the second quarter of 2024, monthly active users reached 626 million, including 246 million premium subscribers.