Spotify Connect is the reason I won't switch to another music platform

Ten years after it was first introduced, Spotify Connect is just as magical as it was on day one. A simple feature on paper, Connect transforms the Spotify app on any device into a universal remote for your entire Spotify experience. And it works seamlessly no matter what I’m using, so much so that even if I wanted to switch music services now, I couldn’t. Once I got hooked on the simplicity of Connect, I just couldn’t imagine going without it.

See, for the past three years, I’ve had a YouTube Premium subscription, which gives me access to YouTube Music too, but I’ve been paying for a separate Spotify Premium plan on top of that. Why? Because each time I think of moving services, I start listing all the reasons I shouldn’t: my personal library, the playlists I follow, all the Eurovision fans who create National Finals playlists for other fans, Spotify’s ubiquity across multiple platforms, and on top of it all, Spotify Connect.

While I could use a third-party service to move my library and playlists over, find a new community of Eurovision fans to follow, and make more conscious choices about which devices I buy, there would still be a big, Spotify Connect-sized hole that YouTube Music can’t possibly fill.

Let me walk you through a few situations that are daily occurrences for me. In the morning, I ask my Nest Hub to play music while I do some random chores around the house. Although I start playback with a voice command, I can grab my phone, open Spotify, and because of Connect, see what’s playing, control it, check the queue, and move things around.

Then I get to my desk, power on my iMac, wear my wireless earbuds, and open the Spotify app. Again, because of Connect, I can see what’s playing and switch output to my iMac with a single click. But because I don’t want to keep Spotify open in the foreground and taking precious screen estate on my iMac, I use my iPad with Universal Control (i.e. with my iMac’s keyboard and trackpad). This allows me to have a secondary Spotify display next to my work machine where I can see and control what’s playing, read lyrics, and edit my queue. Absolutely fantastic.

Even if I step away from my desk with my earbuds, I can open Spotify on my Pixel Watch and control playback. And I haven’t even mentioned the Pixel Tablet, my Chromecast and Android TV box, or any other device I might use like a game console or car where Spotify provides the same, unified, and well-integrated experience.

There’s no other service that works as seamlessly and beautifully between all my devices. Spotify Connect bridges the gap between my computers, phones, tablets, watches, smart speakers, and any other surface I might use. It is platform-agnostic and keeps my music rolling, regardless if I’m listening on a device made by Apple, Google, Xiaomi, Samsung, OnePlus, Lenovo, or hundreds of other brands. Better yet, it requires zero setup or fiddling.

In a world divided by brand- or platform-exclusive services, Spotify Connect is one of a few examples of things done right. And that — beyond the recommendations, social features, Spotify Wrapped, or anything else — is what keeps me hooked to Spotify.