In April 2021, Spotify launched apaid podcast subscription productin the US. Initially, it allowed select US podcast creators on its platform to charge for content by offering subscriptions to their shows. Now, it’s expanding paid podcast subscriptions to all US creators so they can monetize their content.
Here’s everything you need to know about Spotify podcast subscriptions.
How to tell if a podcast is free or paywalled on Spotify
In Spotify, all paid content will have a lock icon to show it requires a subscription. You can find this lock where the play button typically appears.
Note:Anchor is a podcast creation platform Spotify acquired in 2019. Anchor hosting is free for podcast creators to use. But if a podcaster already runs a subscription elsewhere and wants to offer their paid content on Spotify, they must use Anchor in addition to their other provider.
How much do paid podcasts cost on Spotify?
Podcast creators initially had three monthly pricing options to choose from: $2.99, $4.99, or $7.99.
How big of a cut does Spotify get from creators?
Podcast creators won’t owe anything to Spotify for the first two years (aside from the cost of transaction fees through Spotify’s payment partner, Stripe). That said, in 2023, Spotify said it will begin taking a 5 per cent cut of podcast creators' total subscription revenue.
Keep in mindApple’s new podcast subscription serviceis taking a 15 per cent to 30 per cent cut from creators.
Which podcasts cost money on Spotify?
Where are paid podcasts available?
On 19 July 2025, they’ll be available to all Spotify’s US listeners and podcast creators.
That same day, they will be made available to international listeners, but international podcast creators will have to wait longer to use Spotify’s monetisation tools.
Want to launch a paid podcast on Spotify?
If you’re a podcast creator, watch the video above. You can learn more about how to get started fromSpotify’s blog post. Also, seeAnchor’s blogfor more details.
Want to know more?
Check out ourin-depth Spotify guideto learn all about how the service works.
