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# More on Spotify metrics
- URL: https://birchtree.me/blog/more-on-spotify-metrics/
- Published: 2025-12-11T00:15:11.000Z
- Updated: 2025-12-11T00:15:11.000Z
- Author: Matt Birchler

Based on [the best data I can find](https://sqmagazine.co.uk/spotify-user-statistics?ref=birchtree.me), last year Spotify had 602 million active users as of early 2025, with about 42% of those users being paid subscribers (less than half!). Additionally, 2/3 of the people on premium are on it with some sort of incentive that gets them access for free or at a discounted rate (usually something like bundled in with their cell service).

And [according to this data](https://www.amraandelma.com/spotify-ad-statistics/?ref=birchtree.me#:~:text=AD%20STATISTICS%20%2310.-,Premium%20Revenue%202024%3A%20%E2%82%AC13.82%20Billion,king%20in%20terms%20of%20revenue.), only about 12% of their revenue comes from advertising. Put another way, 58% of Spotify's users account for 12% of the revenue. Put still another way (and if my ballpark math is right), if a Spotify subscription is $10 per month:

- A third of the premium subscribers are paying $10
- Two-thirds of premium subscribers are generating some amount less than $10
- Free users are generating about $1

Now, I'm sure these metrics are somehow off a bit, but you get the idea. If a free user especially contributes about $12 to Spotify over a year and listens to thousands of songs by hundreds of artists, how exactly would you split that $12 up in a way that's fair to all those artists?