With over 406 million users worldwide, Spotify has become one of the top platforms for streaming music and podcasts. An interesting question for Spotify users is – can someone tell when you view their profile?
Knowing whether your browsing on Spotify is private or if it sends notifications can be helpful in avoiding embarrassing situations if viewing someone’s playlist anonymously.
In this detailed guide, we’ll cover how Spotify profile viewing works, when notifications are sent or not, and tips to browse other profiles privately.
Spotify Profile Privacy Settings
By default, Spotify allows users to control notification and sharing options under Profile Privacy in Settings:
- Private listening – Hide activity like listening to your profile
- Read receipts – Disable read receipts for messages
- Only show Spotify-suggested content – Remove social content
These prevent sharing visits publicly or privately by default. Users explicitly choose to notify contacts when viewing their Spotify profiles.
When Profile Visits Are Not Shared
Given the private settings, in these cases someone visiting your Spotify profile will NOT trigger a notification:
- You have disabled profile activity sharing in settings
- The viewer does not follow you or have a mutual connection
- It is a casual one-time view of your public profile
- You have not enabled read receipt sharing in chat
- Incognito mode blocks sharing from viewer side
One-off profile views or browsing remain private without explicit opt-in sharing.
Cases When Notification is Sent
Here’s when viewing a Spotify profile sends an alert:
- You have specifically enabled sharing profile visitors under privacy settings
- The viewer follows you or has added your profile
- Repeated or return views within a short span
- Accessing private content like playlists marked only for followers
- Direct messaging and read receipt sharing enabled
So targeted, repeat views of restricted content or by followers with sharing activated can notify.
Receiving Notification of Who Viewed You
If someone does trigger a profile visit notification, as the profile owner you will:
- See a notification banner that your profile was viewed
- Be shown the username/profile photo who viewed you
- Receive notification in the desktop app and mobile app
So you have clear visibility on which specific users accessed your profile if notifications are enabled.
Disabling Read Receipts on Your Account
To browse Spotify privately without triggering read receipts:
- Go to Settings > Social and toggle off Read Receipts
This universally disables read receipts for chat messages and profile views for your account.
Incognito Mode on Mobile
Spotify’s mobile app has an incognito mode that hides your browsing activity from other users:
- Tap the user icon in the top right corner
- Switch on Incognito Mode from menu
- Your activity remains private while enabled
Using Other Accounts to Browse
Having secondary burner accounts on Spotify allows more private browsing:
- Create a new Spotify account for profile snooping
- Use incognito browsing while signed into burner account
- The profile owner will not know it’s you viewing
Just log out when done browsing to erase viewing history.
Privacy Settings for Playlists
Remember playlists also have separate privacy controls. To privately browse:
- Avoid viewing Restricted playlists marked “Only you”
- Profiles with “Only followers” playlists will detect your access
So be cautious accessing restricted content.
Spotify Profile Viewing FAQs
Here are some common questions on private profile browsing:
Does Spotify notify when you view public profiles?
No, viewing open public profiles and information does not trigger notifications.
Can you see who views your Spotify without following?
No, only followers/connections trigger notifications if you enable profile visitor sharing.
Is Spotify profile stalking illegal?
Repeatedly viewing someone’s profile who has not given consent may be considered stalking based on region.
Can Spotify tell if you screenshot their profile?
No, there are no notifications sent for screenshots. You can screenshot profiles privately.
Can you see who someone recently listened to?
No, due to Spotify’s private listening settings, you cannot see other users’ listening activity.
Conclusion
I hope this guide clarified how Spotify profile viewing and notifications work. While casual browsing is private, repeated stalking of followers and restricted content with sharing enabled does trigger alerts.
Using privacy settings and burner accounts allows discreet Spotify profile viewing without the account owner knowing. But always respect a user’s preferences and local laws.
