Right on Cue, Spotify Price Increases Roll Out in the U.S.

Photo Credit: Alexander Shatov

Right on cue, Spotify has upped its prices in the U.S., where Individual now costs $12.99 per month (up from $11.99) and Family will set subscribers back $21.99 per month (previously $19.99).

Spotify implemented the long-anticipated stateside increases (on top of pricing boosts in Estonia and Latvia) this morning, against the backdrop of slowing subscriber growth in established markets. Slated to go into effect in February for existing customers, the bumps, besides those noted above, include a $1 uptick for Student (to $6.99 per month) as well as a $2 spike for Duo (to $18.99 per month).

Additionally, Spotify has taken the opportunity to emphasize Family’s bolstered parental controls. Family, new text spells out on the subscription-options page, comes with the “[a]bility to create accounts for listeners under 13.” (Interestingly, the same section has parted with its mention of Spotify Kids.)

Time will, of course, reveal the consumer response to the latest round of upward pricing adjustments. As explored by DMN Pro, data suggests that affordability is a serious concern.

Consequently, the widening subscription-price gap between Spotify and competitors such as Apple Music is worth keeping in mind. Apple Music is holding steady at $10.99 per month for Individual and $16.99 for Family, compared to $11.99 ($10.99 for Prime members) for Amazon Music Unlimited Individual and $19.99 for Family.

(Amazon Music also offers discounts for purchasing full-year subs as opposed to paying on a monthly basis.)

On one hand, these differences are more apparent than ever – and that’s without factoring for Spotify’s forthcoming superfan tier, which will bring a bigger price tag yet. Plus, though the AI avalanche isn’t exclusive to Spotify, some of its users have been particularly vocal about the growing on-platform prevalence of machine-made slop.

On the other hand, higher prices and fan complaints aside, Spotify has pointed to minimal churn stemming from its international increases last year.

Turning the clock back even further than that, many will recall that Spotify was decidedly late to the lossless party; but the availability of HD audio on Amazon Music and Apple Music at no added cost didn’t compel Spotify subscribers to jump ship en masse or halt the DSP’s overall userbase expansion.

Significant as well is Spotify’s September 2025 decision to loosen restrictions on its ad-supported tier, which now enables users to “pick and play any song.” The improvements could compel ticked-off subscribers to cancel their plans while remaining in the Spotify ecosystem via the free option.

This possibility hasn’t been lost on execs, who disclosed disappointing ad-supported results last year and are currently taking steps to right the advert-revenue ship. And Wall Street certainly intends to scrutinize Spotify’s Q1 financials from the perspective of churn, ads performance, and profitability.

Closer to the present, however, the market isn’t rallying behind Spotify stock (NYSE: SPOT), which was just recently hit with multiple target-price drops. At the time of writing, SPOT, hovering around $517, was down 2.2% on the day and 10% from 2026’s beginning.