Spotify has officially announced the launch of its highly anticipated high-quality lossless music streaming feature, a move that many premium account holders have been eagerly awaiting for years. The streaming giant initially introduced the concept of a hi-fi tier back in 2021, promising CD-quality audio for its users. However, the rollout faced several delays, primarily due to licensing complications. Last year, Spotify's CEO, Daniel Ek, indicated that the company was still in the “early days” of developing its lossless streaming capabilities.
After extensive speculation and numerous hints within the app's code, Spotify is now set to provide 24-bit/44.1 kHz FLAC quality streaming. This format is designed to maintain the original audio quality without any compression, offering music lovers a truly immersive experience. The feature will gradually roll out to users in over 50 countries throughout October, marking a significant milestone for Spotify's premium service.
Premium subscribers in select countries—including Australia, Austrian, Czechia, Denmark, Germany, Japan, New Zealand, the Netherlands, Portugal, Sweden, the US, and the UK—are already gaining access to this new feature. Users will receive a notification within the app to inform them when lossless streaming becomes available for their account.
To take advantage of the lossless streaming feature, users can navigate to Settings and Privacy, then select Media Quality to choose the “Lossless” quality option for streaming over Wi-Fi, cellular data, and downloads. It's important to note that this feature must be enabled for each device individually, as the settings will not automatically apply across all devices connected to a single Spotify account.
Since files streamed in lossless quality are significantly larger, users will also have the ability to monitor their data usage while streaming high-fidelity music. While lossless tracks can be streamed over Wi-Fi, Spotify has noted that this feature is not compatible with Bluetooth-connected devices due to inherent bandwidth limitations. However, users can utilize Spotify Connect to link to devices from brands such as Bose, Yamaha, and Bluesound to enjoy high-quality music streaming over Wi-Fi.
With this long-awaited enhancement, Spotify is reinforcing its commitment to providing high-quality audio experiences for its premium users. As lossless music streaming becomes more accessible, it sets the stage for a new era in music consumption, appealing to audiophiles and casual listeners alike.
