Spotify now automatically creates an offline playlist when you lose internet

Forget to create an offline playlist before a flight, Spotify can now autogenerate one for you based on tracks it has cached. | Image: Spotify

Spotify has introduced a new feature that will keep your music playing even when your device unexpectedly goes offline. The app will automatically generate an Offline Backup playlist filled with recently streamed and queued songs that have already been downloaded and cached, and it will “evolve” over time and customize the playlist based on your listening habits.

The streaming app already allows you to download tracks and playlists that can be played offline, but that needs to be done manually while a data connection is available. Spotify’s Offline Backup is an alternative for those times when an internet connection disappears unexpectedly or when you intentionally turn it off, like when activating airplane mode during a flight.

Screenshot: Spotify When a mobile device goes offline, the Spotify app will now automatically present the Offline Backup playlist.

The Offline Backup playlist will appear automatically in the Spotify app’s home feed anytime a device goes offline, but it requires the app to already have offline listening enabled in its settings, and you need to have recently listened to more than five songs. The feature is also only available to premium subscribers as part of its global rollout.

The auto-generated playlist can be filtered and sorted by artist, mood, and genre, and Spotify says it will change and adapt to each listener’s preferences as they use it, so it won’t always offer the same tracks. The Offline Backup can also be permanently added to your library if you particularly like the mix.

The feature was first teased by Spotify CEO Daniel Ek last year when it was instead called “Your Offline Mix.” It’s similar to features already offered by other streaming apps and services like YouTube Music’s Offline Mixtape or Netflix, which can be set to automatically download shows and movies based on what you’ve previously watched.