If you use Spotify’s desktop app, there’s one thing that it does better than the mobile app: organization. This can save you time and transform the way you use the service. Here is all you need to know.
Spotify’s Desktop App Can Help You Declutter Your Library Better
Spotify’s app for iOS and Android comes with a host of exclusive features, such as Sleep Timer or Eat This Playlist for iOS. But using the Spotify desktop app comes with a few benefits that you won’t be reaping with the mobile or web app. As someone who uses both the mobile and desktop versions of Spotify, there is one thing that I stick to exclusively with the desktop app for. And that is organizing my entire music library.
Spotify’s desktop app just offers better ways to build, organize and view your playlists, folders, and library. Here are a few ways you can customize your library and improve the way you stream music on Spotify.
Create Folders for Organization
Playlists help organize your songs, but with folders, you can organize playlists. I use folders to sort my playlists by genres, artists, and mood, which has enriched my listening experience.
To create a playlist on Spotify, go to your Library. Click the “+” (plus) symbol in the upper-right corner, and click “Create a New Playlist Folder.” Once your blank folder is ready, you can add new playlists or folders to it by clicking the “+” (plus) symbol. Essentially, this can be an infinite glitch if you want to have sub-folders within folders!
To add an existing playlist in your library to a folder, simply drag and drop it in the folder. You can also shift playlists from one folder to another. In a folder, click on the three-dots in the upper right corner, and click “Move to Folder.” Now, select which folder you’d like to transfer your playlists to.
Pin Playlists or Folders
Pinning items in your library can help you access them quicker and prioritize them among other content in your library. You can pin playlists, podcasts, folders, and audiobooks. Pinning your Liked Songs playlist to the top is a good idea if you want to navigate to your frequently played songs.
To pin a playlist or folder on Spotify, right-click or Control-click an item in your library (such as a playlist or folder), and click “Pin.” You can pin up to four items in your library and change your pins by dragging a playlist, folder, podcast, or audiobook and dropping it where a pinned item is. To unpin an item, right-click or Control-click it and click “Unpin.”
Rearrange Playlists in Any Order You Like
Shuffling around playlists as you like and creating a custom order is not only a good way to personalize your Spotify library. It can also help you dig up old playlists that you may have forgotten about and refresh your listening habits.
Using the sorting options in your library can help you filter your playlists, podcasts, and audiobooks by recents, alphabetical order, creator, and recently added. You can also use filters like “Playlists,” “Audiobooks,” and “Podcasts” for a better view. On Spotify’s desktop app, you can also easily rearrange your playlists in any order you like.
Once you apply the “Playlist” filter in your library, click the sorting button in the upper right corner, then click “Custom Order.” Now, rearrange your playlists by dragging and dropping them across your library. This changes the order of how your playlists appear. You can rearrange playlists only on the desktop app, but once you reorder your playlists, the changes will reflect across devices.
Drag and Drop What You Want
Personally, I always find playlist creation on the Spotify mobile app to be a little tiring. While you can use features like the AI Playlist to fast-track the process, nothing compares to the joy of building your custom playlist from scratch.
Recently, I’ve been more inclined to use the desktop app to create playlists for a simple reason: you can drag and drop songs directly into playlists, letting you work with a makeshift split screen view and make the process smoother.
You can keep your Home tab, Liked Songs, searched songs, or even other playlists open and directly drag and drop a song into the playlist in your library. To do this, click on “Expand Your Library” in the left-hand corner and keep the playlist you want to build in view.
Simultaneously, open the Home or Explore tab, Liked Songs playlist, or other playlists to the right of your library. Find the song you like, and drag it to hover over the playlist cover. Once the playlist gets a green border around it, drop the song.
You can drag and drop songs in batches by selecting multiple songs using the “Shift” key on your keyboard.
Use a Custom View
If you want to switch up the way your library’s layout looks, Spotify’s desktop app has you covered with a few options. You can view your library in a grid or list format (which you can also use on the mobile app), or use the compact view for a condensed version of your library.
To change your library layout, click the “View As” button in the upper-right corner of your library. When you use the grid view, you can also use a scroll bar to resize the icon size of items in your library.
Resize Your Library and “Now Playing”
Spotify’s desktop app lets you resize your library and “Now Playing” window. Make sure you have selected the “Collapse Library” button, then go to a playlist and play a song. You will notice that your window splits into two: your playlist on the left and the “Now Playing” tab to the right. Hover over the line between the elements, and drag it how you want to resize the split screen. You can use this feature to create a split screen with “Now Playing” and other tabs like Home, Your Library, Explore, and more.
Beyond these options, using the desktop app also allows you to resize your Spotify window the way you want, using tiling options on your desktop. This helps you multitask and control your music while working on another window.
Search Your Library
Finally, an underrated feature in your library that can help you easily fish out songs, playlists, folders, and other content that could be drowned in the noise of your library is the search function. You can search inside playlists and folders for songs and use the search button in your library to find artists, playlists you created or liked, podcasts, audiobooks, and folders.
Spotify’s mobile and desktop apps come with their own set of feature advantages that can help you make the most out of your listening experience. By using these tricks on your desktop app, organizing your library across your devices (and simply listening to music on the Spotify desktop app) can be a cakewalk.
