App not working with VPN

[xiahsshi]

Hello all,

I am unable to use the Spotify app when my VPN is enabled (I’m using NordVPN). It says “Couldn't Load Page” and no matter if I hit try again, it will not work until my VPN is disabled. I’m not sure why this is an issue, as I’m from the US, and even through the VPN I’m still connected to a US server.

Here are the steps I’ve taken so far:

Logging out of app & back in (with and without VPN enabled)

Uninstalling/reinstalling app (with and without VPN enabled)

Rebooting device

Connecting to different servers 

Unfortunately these have all had no effect. Any help would be appreciated.

Plan: Premium 

Country: USA

Device: iPhone XS Max

Operating System: iOS 13.3

[xiahsshi]

Hey folks,

Just writing to confirm that VPN should be turned off to ensure a good performance of the app.

Hope this is helpful but don't hesitate to let us know if you have any further questions!

[Maxim]

Hey @xiahsshi ,

Thanks for coming to the Community.

Spotify doesn't officially support VPN's, which means that I'm unfortunately unable to help you resolve this issue.

Thanks for understanding.

[xiahsshi]

Is there any plan for Spotify to start supporting them? Or a way we can bring it to their attention that this is in demand? I find it extremely annoying to have to turn my VPN on/off each time I want to use this service that I pay for, yet I don’t want to cancel my Spotify 😕 

[sythierius]

Agreed. VPNs provide security & privacy to the people that use them. Spotify is asking their customers to open themselves up to vulnerability & privacy invasion to use a service they paid for. This is very annoying. VPNs were working fine a few weeks ago.

[Weasty]

Same here. Until one of the the most recent updates I had no issues using Spotify with a VPN on my iPhone X. Now I get the annoying "Couldn't load the page" message whenever the VPN is switched on.

When I use the same VPN on my laptop with the desktop client I have no issues.

[richiewrotethis]

Another annoyed customer here.  It worked fine until a couple of days ago when it installed an update without telling me.  

I've been a premium subscriber for years now.

Can someone from Spotify tell us why this has happened now and if it's permanent? I've no problem cancelling my subscription if not.

[tigos]

Hi guys. Disabling "cybersec" feature in your nordvpn app will resolve the issue

[Migthebadboy]

I also use Nord VPN on my iPhone, and so far I've never had a problem. For a few days, I've been experiencing the same problems as xiahsshi, with the same configuration as her. I think a company like Spotify should care about the security of its users and therefore manage VPNs. Thanks Maxim for passing on the message. Best regards.

[Migthebadboy]

Thanks Tigos for this good advice ; problem is solved for me with Cybersec disabled. Best regards.

[richiewrotethis]

Not sure it's a good idea to disable the cyber security part of Nord. The question is why can't we continue to use Spotify without doing that and putting our systems at risk?

[Migthebadboy]

I agree 100%. This can only be a temporary measure. Spotify MUST consider the security of its users and manage VPNs.

[noahwalton]

Compared to Android mobile devices, iPhones are much safer and have better security overall. Partly this is because Apple makes its own hardware as well as software. Additionally, all the third-party software developed for iPhones is tested and checked rigorously by Apple. Still, this doesn’t mean your online activity is 100% safe. This is where virtual private networks come into play. The latest Apple OSs offer great VPN support, and this shows that the company itself wants to give its users the option to protect themselves with these tools if they want to.
Check the best VPN for iPhone here:https://vpn-lab.com/best-vpn-for-iphone/

[tccoffey]

yes please! Its ridiculous that you suddenly stop allowing vpn to work! I've Nord vpn and have been using Spotify for years without any problem and now you decide not to allow them? are you trying to force us to Apple Music cause no deserves that! and turning of cyber sec shouldn't be seen as a solution 

[AndewScott]

I use a work VPN to connect to my office network, during lockdown, spotify does not work while i am connected to the vpn.

stupid thing is i am the IT specialist and only work traffic is routed down the vpn all other traffic is sent out my local internet connection in UK.

its like Spotify have put something in to detect if a vpn is present and shut itself down. i am not sure if this is stop people using the service in countries they dont want to be operating in. but its annoying and i am now considering moving to amazon music.

[AndewScott]

that's a poor answer from spotify about not supporting vpn's, which i don't accept , guess Amazon will get my money from now on.

[nezell]

this worked for me 🙂 thanks!

[XMK]

Guys,

Try going to your NordVPN Settings > Auto-connect > VPN Protocol and ensure that UDP is selected as VPN protocol. 

I was using TCP and this was causing Spotify not to connect.

Regards

[AfrazChy]

Hi there! Usually in some countries, Spotify isn’t available and VPN needs to be used. If the VPN isn’t working, I would say you should try a different region on the VPN.

[Mihail]

Hey everyone,

Thanks for sharing your thoughts with the Community!

At the moment Spotify doesn't officially support VPN. This means that its possible that when you're using it the app doesn't function properly. You can submit an idea on our board though, that requests this feature. You can learn how to do this here. The Idea Exchange is a great way for us to see how popular a certain idea is with our users and helps us constantly improve the app. You can learn more about it here.

Hope this is helpful but don't hesitate to let us know if you have any further questions!

[arburty]

To add to the thread here, I find the answer that "Spotify doesn't support VPN" as basically saying "Spotify doesn't support basic internet usage and our users privacy or security". Something I would only find acceptable from a young and smaller application, not a tenured and multi-million dollar giant like Spotify.

Like other users have reported this was not an issue for me in the past and only recently became a seriously AGGRAVATING thorn in my side. I did not find success turning off CyberSec in nordvpn like some did. I'm a US user using servers nearby so location is definitely not the problem. VPN's work and interact with the internet with no problem, and with no special attention by applications, so Spotify must have added 'functionality' that made its application a brick if used with a VPN. I'm always playing music so always having my VPN turned off completely defeats the purpose.

I can't believe this is even an issue at all and if this persists I will change my business to something else. I have spent way more time on this than is warranted and I am floored that despite a community thread (actually more than one) on this issue, that the official response given is "You're voice is not heard on this page, go to a different one and if enough people care about listening to music AND their security/privacy than perhaps we can be bothered to fix something that shouldn't be broken".

Hopefully the developers at Spotify can see this is ridiculous problem NO OTHER APPLICATION I USE HAS. That and it's causing otherwise loyal customers like myself to get frustrated and lose patience. I'll get off my rant now, and hopefully this is fixed SOON.