Spotify desktop app starts at login even though disabled

[kentonvannatten]

US

Device

iMac, Mojave

When I start up my computer and log in, Spotify automatically launches.

I have "Open Spotify automatically after you log into the computer" set to "No", yet it is still doing it. I read a solution on the Windows forum that I should disable the web player as well, but I don't see that option (see image). 

[rouward]

Disable Spotify on Startup Tab on Task Manager, if you're on Windows 7, search "msconfig" instead.

Edit: Oh you're on Mac, I thought it's for Windows sorry for that. Just search something related to Startup on your Mac and disable there. I have literally no idea how to operate Mac.

[aefasdfasdflol]

Please go to system preferences -> Users and groups-> Account- > login items and remove the app from the list. 

Please accept it as answer if it works! 

🙂  @kentonvannatten

[kentonvannatten]

Thanks, but it's not in my login items list. 

I think what causes it to happen is that if I've been listening to Spotify and then I shutdown/reboot the computer, it re-launches apps that were open during the last session. The last few times I've booted the computer Spotify hasn't launched, but then that is likely because I didn't have Spotify open before the previous shutdown. 

[Peter · Accepted solution]

Hey @kentonvannatten.

Hope you don't mind me jumping in here 🙂

Have you tried the steps in this Apple Support article already? It should have the answer you're looking for.

Keep us posted and let us know how it goes! We'll be here in case you need further help with this.

[CriticalMass]

Same here. Nothing in Startup Items, No scripts in ~/Library/Launchagents or ~/Library/Launchdaemons.

Equally none in the systems Library folders either. So all points where you can enable or disable automatic start of apps are empty.

The front-end is started and in my system I also see helper daemon threads running.

The suggestion by @Peter was very clever and to the point (check at shutdown whether you have "open windows at restart" checked). But that too is not applicable in my system. I don't have any user apps set to autostart in any way.

I want to know where spotify stores its autostart scripts, and how I can stop this from happening permanently.

I hate it when apps screw around with customer's system integrity.

[CriticalMass]

Here's the answer that works for me:

Locate the Application folder

Select the spotify app, and right-click on the icon

In the popup menu, select "Show package contents"

The contents is presented in a finder window. Now navigate to the Library folder

What hey, you will see a "Loginitems" folder. Open that folder.

There you will find a file named "StartupHelper"

The following is changing the file name. Don't delete that file. Renaming it is fine. Or better said, it works for me.

I renamed it to "OrigNameIs_Startuphelper"

Disclaimer: If my advise breaks things, Then you'll probably have to reinstall. The choice to change the filename on your machine is yours, not mine.

Other than that, it works quite nicely on my machine.

[adambeck]

This was driving me crazy, too. I did *not* have it set in OSX to launch at startup, however I dug into the Spotify preferences and found "Startup and window behavior" which had a setting "Open Spotify after you log into the computer" I set that to "No".

[AndresM]

Hey @adambeck,

Thanks for reaching out about this in the Community and welcome.

If the app is still starting up, we recommend that you go to System Preferences > Users & Groups > Login Items for a list of apps set to launch on startup. To remove any app, highlight it and click the minus button under the list.

Afterwards, restart in order to confirm if the changes worked. 

Keep us in the loop.

[theboyleruk]

None of these are working for me (Spotify for macOS (Apple Silicon)

1.2.3.1115.gd61a8f5c, OS 13.1) - have Spotify setting 'Open automatically after startup' set to 'No'. Nothing in Login Items in system prefs. No daemons in any of the LaunchAgents/LaunchDaemon folders, nor in privileged helper items, nor in startup items folders. Renamed file in Spotify>Contents>Library/LoginItems. Deleted unix file in Spotify.app/Contents/Library/LoginItems/StartupHelper.app/Contents/MacOS...

No dice with any of it. Spotify continues to open, like some great undead vampire which will not die

[Vasil]

Hey @theboyleruk,

Thank you for the detailed info!

Could you let us know if the app is open when you're shutting down the Mac?
If it is, it will always come back at Start up.

Try completely closing the app (not minimized), restart & let us know how it goes!

This behaviour should have some kind of a logical explanation 😤🏄🏼‍