Bring Your Own Beats: How to Add Your Own Music to Spotify

While Spotify’s massive library boasts tens of millions of tracks, there are times when your favorite tunes aren’t on the platform. Whether it is an unreleased indie track, a rare live recording, an old mixtape from your computer, or a custom remix you produced yourself, you don’t have to leave those songs out of your daily rotation.

Through Spotify’s Local Files feature, you can seamlessly blend your personal audio collection with your streaming playlists. Here is how to set it up across your devices and take your custom library everywhere you go.

Step 1: Set Up Local Files on Your Desktop

Spotify handles local file importing primarily through its desktop application. Once you sync them here, you can easily access them on your phone.

1. Open the Spotify desktop app on your Mac or PC.
2. Click on your profile picture in the top right corner and select Settings.
3. Scroll down until you see the Local Files section.
4. Toggle Show audio files from this computer to on.
5. Spotify will automatically select common folders like Downloads and My Music. If your files are stored elsewhere, click Add a source and select the specific folder containing your music (supported formats typically include MP3, M4P, and FLAC).

Once enabled, a new playlist called Local Files will automatically appear in your sidebar under your library.

Step 2: Build Your Custom Playlists

Now that Spotify recognizes your tracks, you can treat them just like any other song on the platform.

1. Click on the Local Files folder in your sidebar to view all the imported audio.
2. Find the track you want to add, click the three dots (...) next to it, and select Add to playlist.
3. Choose an existing playlist or create a brand-new one dedicated to your personal collection.

Step 3: Take Your Local Tracks Mobile

Listening to your custom tracks on your phone or tablet requires just a few extra steps to sync them over your local network.

1. Ensure your computer and your mobile device are connected to the same Wi-Fi network.
2. Open the Spotify app on your phone and navigate to the playlist where you added your local files.
3. Toggle the Download switch (the downward-facing arrow icon) for that playlist.

Spotify will pull the audio files directly from your computer over your Wi-Fi network and download them straight to your phone.

Pro-Tips for a Smooth Setup

• Check Your Metadata: If your local tracks are missing album art, artist names, or track titles, edit the ID3 tags on your computer files before importing them to Spotify so your playlists stay clean and organized.
• Keep Your Desktop Online: For mobile syncing to work, your desktop Spotify app needs to be open and running in the background while your phone downloads the playlist.