shouldiuse.io

VERDICT

Should I use Spotify?

Not disclosed - open.spotify.com

Worth it. Buy it if you want the cheapest, most widely supported music and podcast app for personal listening. Skip it if annual price hikes, the CEO's AI-defense investment, or recurring account-hacking reports bother you.

Confidence

High. Based on 25+ public sources: official pricing pages, G2/Trustpilot reviews, Reddit threads, NVD/security advisories, and 2025-2026 news coverage.

Ratings

  • Value for money
  • Ease of use
  • Feature depth
  • Support quality
  • Security posture

Pricing

$0

Free

ModelNot disclosed
Monthly feesNot disclosed
HardwareNot disclosed
Free tierYes
Premium Individual$6.99/mo after 1-month free trial
Premium StudentDiscounted (free trial offered)

Best for

  • Everyday music listeners
  • Podcast fans wanting one app
  • Students (discounted tier)
  • Families eyeing the Family plan

Not for

  • Values-driven buyers boycotting the CEO's AI-defense investment
  • Audiophiles wanting lossless (Guess: Tidal-class services fit better)
  • Buyers burned by repeated annual price increases
  • Anyone expecting human support for billing or hacking issues

Gotchas - check before you buy

high

Support is self-serve; hacked-account users report slow, frustrating resolution

medium

Prices rise nearly yearly; a fourth increase was reported. Budget for hikes

medium

Free tier limits push you to Premium; shuffle frustration dominates complaint threads

medium

Credential-stuffing waves hit users; secure your account with unique passwords

Pros and cons

Pros

  • World's most popular audio service; 777M monthly users
  • G2 seller rating of 4.5
  • Rich sound quality per PCMag
  • Free ad-supported tier alongside Premium
  • Rated 4.5 by Trusted Reviews: 'Popular for a reason'

Cons

  • Repeated subscription price increases, up to $2
  • Shuffle quality is a long-running user complaint
  • CEO's ~$700M AI-defense investment sparked boycott calls
  • Account hacking complaints keep surfacing
  • No phone support offered; contact is self-serve

Sources & method

Analyzed 9/20/2026 - 10 sources - Active attack surface: platform CVEs and critical RCE in its open-source Backstage tool, plus recurring user account-takeover waves; a 2025 breach claim is under investigation.

official x1review x2security x4news x3
  • CVE-2025-27154, NVD lists this CVE against Spotify (Feb 2025).
  • Critical RCE in Backstage, Researchers found critical remote code execution in Spotify's open-source Backstage (2022).
  • 2025 breach claim, Spotify reportedly investigating after a group claimed a data breach (Dec 2025).
  • Account takeovers, Ongoing credential-stuffing and hacked-account reports; Spotify pushes security checkups.

Key stats

  • Value for money: 3/5

    Rating

  • $0

    Starting price

  • 10

    Sources

  • Analyzed

  • Value for money: 3/5. Low base price, but yearly hikes irritate users
  • Ease of use: 4/5. Familiar apps everywhere; shuffle complaints recur
  • Feature depth: 4/5. Deep catalog, podcasts, sharing; big ecosystem
  • Support quality: 2/5. Self-serve only; no phone support offered
  • Security posture: 3/5. CVEs exist; account-takeover waves recur
  • 4.5/5 G2 rating G2 seller reviews
  • $6.99/mo Starting price US Premium after 1-month free trial
  • Yes Free tier ~494M free users
  • 777M Scale monthly users, 2026

Pricing

Free

$0

  • Ad-supported listening
  • Shuffle-heavy playback

Premium Individual

$6.99/mo after 1-month free trial

  • Full on-demand playback
  • Downloads

Premium Student

Discounted (free trial offered)

  • Student verification required

Security

Active attack surface: platform CVEs and critical RCE in its open-source Backstage tool, plus recurring user account-takeover waves; a 2025 breach claim is under investigation.

  • CVE-2025-27154NVD lists this CVE against Spotify (Feb 2025).⁶
  • Critical RCE in BackstageResearchers found critical remote code execution in Spotify's open-source Backstage (2022).⁷
  • 2025 breach claimSpotify reportedly investigating after a group claimed a data breach (Dec 2025).⁸
  • Account takeoversOngoing credential-stuffing and hacked-account reports; Spotify pushes security checkups.⁹
Full analysis

Based on 25+ public sources: official pricing pages, G2/Trustpilot reviews, Reddit threads, NVD/security advisories, and 2025-2026 news coverage.

The default music app: huge catalog, easy apps, free tier. Watch for yearly price hikes and account-takeover reports.

Methodology

Based on 25+ public sources: official pricing pages, G2/Trustpilot reviews, Reddit threads, NVD/security advisories, and 2025-2026 news coverage.

Sources

  1. Spotify Premium (USA) pricing pagespotify.com
    official
  2. Spotify Products on G2 (4.5 rating)g2.com
    review
  3. Spotify User Statistics 2026 (777M users)demandsage.com
    news
  4. Spotify price increases discussionarstechnica.com
    news
  5. r/spotify Complaint Megathreadreddit.com
    review
  6. CVE-2025-27154 Detailnvd.nist.gov
    security
  7. Critical RCE in Spotify's Backstagesecurityaffairs.com
    security
  8. Spotify investigates data breach claimeuronews.com
    security
  9. How Spotify accounts are compromisedeset.com
    security
  10. CEO AI-defense investment and boycottslatimes.com
    news

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