Long flights can feel endless without good music. Many travelers want to know if they can use Spotify to pass the time in the air.
You can listen to Spotify on a plane by downloading your playlists to the spotify app before takeoff and using airplane mode during the flight.
This lets spotify users to enjoy their favorite songs even without an internet connection.
Using Spotify on a plane needs a bit of planning.
Make sure you have a Premium subscription and download the songs you want to your device before your flight.
Premium is needed because the free version doesn’t allow offline listening.
Setting up Spotify for Airplane Listening
Spotify lets you listen to music on planes through offline mode and downloaded songs.
A Premium membership subscription gives you full access to save music from Spotify tracks or your Spotify history list for your flight.
Understanding Spotify Offline Mode
Spotify Offline mode keeps your Spotify music playing when you lose internet connection. You need Spotify Premium to use this feature.
To turn on offline mode, go to Settings and toggle “Offline Mode” to on. This stops Spotify from trying to connect to the internet during your flight.
Your downloaded playlists and albums will still work in offline mode. Remember to enable offline mode before takeoff to avoid connectivity issues.
Downloading Music from Spotify
To download songs, look for the download icon (downward arrow) next to playlists and albums. Tap it to save the music to your device.
You can check download progress in the Settings menu under “Storage.” Make sure to download over WiFi for offline use before your flight to save mobile data.
Downloaded content stays available for 30 days with an active spotify premium subscribers.
You can store up to 10,000 of your favorite music across 5 devices in your spotify playlists.
Check your device storage space before downloading. Each hour of music takes about 40-50 MB of space at normal quality.
Maximizing Spotify Listening Experience In-Flight
Getting great sound quality while preserving battery life takes a few simple adjustments to your Spotify settings and phone setup.
These tweaks will keep your music playing smoothly throughout your flight.
Enhancing Battery Life for Extended Play
Turn on flight mode before takeoff to reduce battery drain. Mobile phones uses extra power searching for signals at high altitudes.
Download your playlists before the flight to avoid streaming issues and save power. Select “Download” on your favorite playlists while connected to WiFi.
Reduce screen brightness and close background apps to extend battery life. These small changes can add hours of listening time.
Consider bringing a portable battery pack rated at 10,000+ mAh for longer flights. This can provide 2-3 full phone charges.
Selecting Quality Music Formats
Choose “High quality” downloads in Spotify settings for the best sound without excessive storage use. This setting provides 320kbps audio quality.
Downloaded songs take up roughly 2.4MB per minute at high quality. A 4-hour playlist needs about 576MB of storage space.
Switching to “Normal” quality (96kbps) can triple your storage capacity while still maintaining acceptable sound. This works well with in-flight background noise.
Supported formats:
- MP3 players: Standard compression, good quality
- WAV: Uncompressed, highest quality but large file size
- ALAC/FLAC: Lossless compression, excellent quality
Leveraging In-Flight Wi-Fi for Streaming Spotify
Modern planes offer multiple ways to enjoy your Spotify music while flying.
In-flight Wi-Fi and entertainment systems make it possible to stream your favorite songs above the clouds.
Streaming with In-Flight Entertainment Systems
Many airlines for example American Airlines now integrate Spotify into their in-flight entertainment systems. You’ll need to connect your device to the plane’s Wi-Fi network first.
The speed and reliability of in-flight Wi-Fi varies between airlines. Some flights offer free basic Wi-Fi, while others charge fees ranging from $5 to $30 for streaming access.
Connection Tips:
- Select the airline’s Wi-Fi network in your settings
- Open your browser to the airline’s portal
- Choose a streaming-capable Wi-Fi package
- Log in to your Spotify account
Using Spotify Web Player on a Flight
The Spotify web player works well as a backup when the mobile app has connection issues. Simply open your browser and visit open.spotify.com.
Web Player Benefits:
- Uses less data than the mobile app
- Works on most airline Wi-Fi networks
- Doesn’t require downloading
Remember to download your playlists before the flight as a backup. This ensures you can listen even if the Wi-Fi connection becomes unstable.
You can switch between downloaded and streaming modes based on the Wi-Fi quality during your flight.
Alternative Music Streaming Options During Flights
Many music streaming apps let you enjoy your favorite songs during flights even as a free subscriber.
Several options offer offline playback features to keep the music playing even at 30,000 feet so go ahead and create a free account to enjoy offline music.
Comparing Spotify with Other Music Apps
Apple Music offers offline downloads with a subscription starting at $10.99 monthly.
You can save entire playlists and albums in your favorite spotify playlist to your device before takeoff.
Amazon Music provides similar offline features through their Prime Music or Music Unlimited services.
Prime members get basic access included with their membership.You can sign up here for Amazon prime free trial.
YouTube Music lets you download songs and playlists with a Premium subscription. The app works well for both music and music videos.
Deezer stands out with its Flow feature that creates personalized playlists you can download for offline listening.
You don`t have to be a spotify premium user to enjoy music, anyone with internet access can listen to music at different platforms
You may like
Tips for Consistent Music Playback
Go to the music library and download your music before reaching the airport. Airport Wi-Fi can be slow and unreliable for large music files.
Essential pre-flight checklist:
- Enable offline mode in your music app
- Test downloaded songs while still connected to Wi-Fi
- Check your mobile device storage space
- Bring a portable battery pack for longer flights
Use airplane mode to listen to your downloaded spotify songs but keep Bluetooth on to connect wireless headphones. This saves battery life while still allowing audio playback.
Consider a portable Bluetooth speaker for your hotel room, but use headphones during the actual flight to avoid disturbing others.
Thinking on how to pack your bluetooth, then this post may help answer the questions on if you can pack blue tooth speaker in your checked luggage.
The blue portable charger above works with different devices so a purchase is a win-win. You can listen to your downloaded music without worrying of your portable devices running out of power during a long flight.
Spotify premium account offers you more of your favorite tunes compared to what free users get.
Leave a Reply