Why can't I find my local files even after it is enabled?

[malieno]

I tried to use local files for the first time and so I enabled it and added the sources I wanted, but I couldn't find the Local Files folder. I disabled 'Show Local Files' and enabled it again, but I still didn't see the folder. The files that I wanted to use were also mp3.

[Dian]

Hey @malieno,

Thanks for posting in the Community.

What are the brand, model and operating system of the device you want to play the local files on?

There is a difference in the flow to play local files between devices.

Keep us posted,

Cheers!

[malieno]

Hi @dian,

The brand of my device is Gateway, i'm not sure about the model, and the operating system is Windows 11.

[OscarDC]

Hey @malieno,

Thank you for keeping in contact and sharing the info.

On a Windows device, you can find the Local files folder added to your playlists section. To find it, you can highlight the "playlists tag" on the left panel to filter your playlists, and scroll down to see it, or you can use the Playlist tag and then filter by name as seen on the screenshot. We'd recommend pinning the playlist to the top to make it easier to access.

If you still cannot see it, it could be an issue caused by some damaged cache stored on your device. In this case, we'd recommend performing a clean reinstall of the app by following the steps in this article. 

Hope this helps; we'll be on the lookout.

[malieno]

Hi @OscarDC,

I tried to filter it by name and I couldn't find it, and then I uninstalled and then reinstalled Spotify to try again, but after enabling local files again, it still didn't work.

[Lyubka]

Hey @malieno,

Thanks for getting back to us.

We'd recommend that you test this with a different connection to see if it makes any difference. In case you don't have another one available, you can use a mobile data hotspot to check if you'll be able to see Local files folder. 

We'd also suggest that you take a look at this FAQ under "Local File not playing?" to double check if those files meet the requirements listed there.

If you're still experiencing this - let us know. We'll be happy to help further 🙂

Cheers! 

[malieno]

Hi @Lyubka,

I tried it again after changing my connection, but it still didn't work. I also checked the FAQ and my files were supported.

[Yordan]

Hey @malieno,

Thanks for the update.

Interesting. Are you using the Windows Music folder (the Spotify app calls it Music Library) as a source for your local files? If so, try entering the folder's original path instead, this being "C:\Users\%username%\Music" to see if that does the trick.

It's also worth moving your local files to another folder and using it as a source, so feel free to try it out, if you haven't already.

Let us know how it goes. Cheers!

[malieno]

Hey @Yordan, 

I tried using the original path as well, but it still didn't work. I also tried copying it to a new folder and adding it to the sources but it didn't work either.

[Vasil]

Hey @malieno,

Let's try the following steps:

1. Disable Local Files 
2. Place your audio files in a new folder
3. Enable Local Files and restart the app
4. Under Local Files in Settings, add the path to the new folder
5. See if it works!

Keep us posted on how things go 🙂

[malieno]

Hi @Vasil,

I tried disabling local files and putting the files in a new folder and then enabling and restarting the app and adding the new path, but I still couldn't see the playlist.

[Yordan]

Hi @malieno,

Thanks for your assistance so far!

I noticed that you've added OneDrive as one of the source folders. Are all of your local files stored in OneDrive? If so, note that cloud files or external drives are not supported, so you'll have to move them locally on your PC (to the aforementioned music folder, for example) and add the new folder as a source in the app's settings.

There's this idea about being able to use local files from a cloud service with Spotify, which you may find interesting, so feel free to check it out and show your support by giving it a thumbs up so it has a better chance of being considered.

Take care.

[malieno]

Hey @Yordan,

I tried storing my files locally on my computer and in OneDrive to see if it would make a difference, but neither of them worked.

[MihailY · Accepted solution]

Hey @malieno,

Thanks for getting back to us.

Would it be possible to try adding a few free-to-use mp3 files downloaded from the internet to any of the 2 folders so we can narrow down the possible cause of the issue?

Keep us posted.

[malieno]

Hey @MihailY,

I downloaded a free to use file from the internet and added it to one of the folders and then added that path to Spotify and it did finally work! 

Thank you to everyone who replied to this thread and bothered to help me with this issue!

[GraekTarmikos]

Plan

Premium

Country

Brazil

Device

PC

Operating System

Windows 11

My Local Files playlist is gone. I still have all my local music in my computer folders, but even when I go on Spotify's options and turn on "Show Local Files" as well as add the directories, the playlist is nowhere to be seen and all my local files already in playlists are greyed out. Reinstalled Spotify multiple times, tried downloading it both from the website as well as the microsoft store, still no luck.

I really hope this is just a bug and not an incoming change to the platform, alongside features such as forcing smart shuffle down our throats, this would be the last straw to make me change platforms. I can't even find a proper support channel, just this forum where it seems spotify never actually replies to anyone? This is genuinely infuriating.

[Todanarchy]

I did everything right as it was mentionned in the topic above (how to add a song into your local files) but it still doesn’t want to appear. I uninstalled and reinstalled the app but i still cant manage to listen to my song on spotify. Any help ?

[#18]

There is no local files folder on my spotify

I changed my source location to a non cloud source however it still isnt showing. I think my (windows 11) computer has not given access to downloads/music/local files. How do i change this?

[znicuuu]

When i try to add a local files song to the playlist shown in the video below it doesn't show up on PC. THOUGH on iOS the songs are synced and DO show up in the playlists. Weirdly it's only happening to this one playlist. On all my other playlist, wether they are in a folder or not, the local files just show up normally.
Proof: https://streamable.com/cqrtzn

[MAYMAY21]

ANOTHER SOLUTION WOULD BE THAT U HAVE NOTHING IN FILES AND YOU WOULD HAVE TO GO TO UR PHONE FILES IN FILES, CLICK SPOTIFY AND GO TO THE DOWN,OAD YOU WOULD LIKE TO SHOW UP IN LOCAL FILES AND MOVE IT TO THE SPOTIFY ALBUM U MADE IN UR PHONE FILES. THEN GET BACK TO SPOTIFY AND TRY IT AGAIN AND YOU SHOULD SEE UR LOCAL FILES AND READY TO PLAY