Spotify Rolls Out Paid Podcast Memberships in 34 Markets
Spotify began rolling out paid podcast Memberships in 34 markets, letting creators charge for bonus content and keep 90 percent of revenue.
The program, first announced in May at Spotify’s Investor Day, appears on a podcast’s Spotify page. Listeners can subscribe, pay and access the benefits there, and purchases are handled on the web rather than through in-app purchases, TechCrunch reported. Spotify said users can subscribe and access benefits “in just a few taps,” The Verge reported.
Creators can set prices and bundle benefits across multiple subscription tiers, and Spotify is providing analytics, targeted promotions and free trial offers. The Verge reported that community features include member badges and welcome clips; TechCrunch reported that the badges and welcome clips will be available soon.
To qualify, shows must be hosted on Spotify for Creators or Megaphone and have at least 100 consumption hours, 100 listeners or viewers, and three published episodes. Spotify also said podcasters who manage subscriptions on other services can bring paywalled content to Spotify through its Open Access feature, The Verge reported.
At launch, memberships are available on a handful of shows, including The Adam Friedland Show, Making Sense with Sam Harris, Shawn Ryan Show, The Sculpt Society and Two Hot Takes, according to TechCrunch. YMH Studios is bringing memberships to 12 shows across its network.
The launch adds to Spotify’s existing creator monetization tools, including advertising and the Spotify Partner Program, which Engadget reported launched in 2024. It is distinct from the podcast subscription feature Spotify introduced in 2021, The Verge reported, and resembles Patreon-style memberships and YouTube’s channel memberships, Engadget reported. Spotify has been expanding into video to compete with YouTube, TechCrunch reported, and the memberships are intended to give podcasters more ways to earn from their most engaged fans.