Spotify Not Working Offline on Apple Watch

[jskiing360]

Plan

Premium

Country

USA

Device

Apple Watch SE

Operating System

watchOS 9.0

My Question or Issue

I have an apple watch SE and downloaded a spotify playlist to play offline.  If I turn on my apple watch and my phone is not nearby, then when I open the spotify app it won't play my downloaded playlist.  It will only work if my phone is nearby for a few minutes to "sync".  Then I can leave my phone to workout and the spotify app will work fine.  It shouldn't need to pair with my phone to play a downloaded playlist.

[MihailY]

Hey @jskiing360,

Thanks for reaching out.

As a first step, we'd recommend trying a clean reinstall of the app as described here. After that, re-download the playlist to your watch and let us know if this makes a difference.

Keep us posted.

[strean]

Hey @MihailY!

I hame the same issue that @jskiing360 described, and I have the same routine as him.

I just own a Apple Watch SE to workout without my phone, but it's impossible to open the Spotify app on Apple Watch because there's no type of connection turned on (wifi or bluetooth), and after a few seconds the app crashes.

Again, what's the point of downloading songs offline if I can't open the app without internet to listen to them.

This is definitely a bug but I have read this issue been described by users in 2021 and no fix since them.

This must be fixed and the Spotify team have to pay attention for this situation.

[OscarDC]

Hey @strean,

Welcome to the Community and thank you for joining the conversation.

To continue investigating your case, would you mind confirming the troubleshooting you've done so far and if you've already tried the process mentioned by @MihailY?

Also, as this could be version-related, include in your next response the OS version of your Apple Watch and your iPhone, along with the Spotify version you're currently running. This will give us a better look at the issue.

We'll be on the lookout. 

[strean]

Hello @OscarDC, thank you!

Yes, I tried what @MihailY mentioned, clean install on both devices, restarts etc.

Apple Watch version:

9.4 (20T253)

Iphone model and version:

Iphone 13 - iOS 16.4.1 (20E252)

Spotify version:

8.8.24.312

[jskiing360]

I tried a clean reinstall of the app, but it didn't make a difference.  It defenitely seems like a bug with the app as it just crashes if there is no wifi or bluetooth to phone connection.  I've been listening to podcasts and apple music offline with no problem, so it's not my apple watch.

[AlejaR]

Hey @jskiing360,

Thanks for your reply and for the info shared.

In this case, we'd like to gather some additional info. Would you mind sharing with us the make/model and OS of the affected devices (both your phone and watch) along with the Spotify version you're running?

On another note, are you downloading playlists/podcasts to your Apple Watch from the Watch app, or are you downloading content to your Apple Watch from your iPhone? Have you tried both methods? It happens the same no matter which one you use? It'd be awesome if you could check. You can see how to do both in this article.

Keep us in the loop!

[jskiing360]

iPhone 14 iOS Version 16.3.1

Apple Watch SE Version 9.3.1

Spotify Version 8.8.26.446

Yes, I've tried downloading playlists both through the watch and the phone, but get the same issue either way.

[MihailY]

Hey folks,

Thanks for sending over this info.

We've forwarded it to the relevant team here at Spotify, however, we can't confirm when it will be addressed. In the meantime, please make sure to keep the app on all devices up to date.

Cheers,

[andylytle]

Similar issue here. When I try to play downloaded playlist when I'm offline, I get the error message "Something went wrong Check your connection and try again."

I've already tried uninstalling the watch Spotify app and reinstalling and redownloading all the songs on the playlist, but it didn't help. 

Apple Watch version:

9.4 (20T253)

Iphone model and version:

Iphone SE- iOS 16.4.1 (20E252)

Spotify version:

8.8.28.416

[Tribute2U]

Same issue here
Apple Watch 8 with WatchOS version 9.4 (20T253)
Iphone model and version: Iphone 11 - iOS 16.4.1(a) (20E772520a)
Spotify version: 8.8.32

[escordes]

Same issue here
Apple Watch 8 with WatchOS version 9.4 (20T253)
Iphone model and version: Iphone 13 - iOS 16.4.1(a) (20E772520a)
Spotify version: 8.8.32

[jracecar]

Same issues here. I would love to download music to my watch

[kspaziani]

Same issue and it’s really annoying. I’ve used Spotify for over a decade, but if I can’t listen offline when I run- where unfortunately I don’t have cell service- then I honestly may switch to Apple Music, which my husband has now done. 

Have deleted and reinstalled the app, restarted my watch, restarted my phone, etc etc. 

iPhone 14 iOS 16.4.1

Apple Watch SE OS 9.5

[Lakelittlejohn]

Same issue here, literally the only reason I bought the watch was so I didn’t have to carry my phone to listen to music on a run. The ability to download music and listen offline is a feature of Spotify premium and at present I’m not getting what I pay for. 

[Vasil]

Hey folks,

Thank you for your replies and reports!
If you've already reinstalled the app and it doesn't fix your issue, we'd suggest that you go over the steps in this FAQ as you'll find further troubleshooting which could solve your issue.

[thomas_vdlaan]

Yup. For me the same problem. I already tried the different steps mentioned here but it still doesn’t work. 
iPhone 13 Pro Max iOS 16.5

Apple Watch ultra watchOS 9.5

Newest Spotify version.

[Rebeccaxj]

Same for me too. Nothing works. Almost thinking of ditching Spotify and using Apple Music as I have no issue with Apple tunes playing on my watch

[helix2]

Same issue on:

Spotify 8.8.40.462

iOS iOS 16.5 (20F66)

Watch series 5. 

None of the resolutions described above work. 

[zipuni]

Same issue. I did all the troubleshooting steps and still get "Something went wrong Check your connection and try again”. So very annoying as I can’t use my watch to listen to musing during my runs. Time to switch to Apple music?!