How to Fix Spotify Won't Work or Play on Apple Watch

Part 1. How to Fix Spotify Not Working on Apple Watch

Before you move on, make sure the basics are working on your Apple Watch. The cause is not always clear, since the watch and iPhone may look connected and ready. Many common issues happen because the app needs a reset or update to return to normal.

Solution 1: Restart Apple Watch and Spotify App

Start with a simple restart. Turn off your Apple Watch, wait a few seconds, then turn it back on. After that, open Spotify again on your watch. This often clears small glitches that stop the app from working.

Step 1 On your Apple Watch, press and hold the Side Button until the power menu appears.

Step 2 Drag the Power Off slider to shut down the watch completely.

Step 3 Wait about 30 seconds, then press and hold the Side Button again until the Apple logo appears.

Step 4 On your iPhone, open the App Switcher and swipe up on Spotify to fully close it.

Step 5 Reopen Spotify on your iPhone first, then open Spotify on your Apple Watch to allow the apps to resync.

Solution 2: Force Close Spotify on Apple Watch

If Spotify still does not respond, try force closing it. Open Spotify, press and hold the side button, then swipe to close the app. Open it again and check if it starts working. This helps when the app is stuck or frozen.

Step 1 Open the Spotify app directly on your Apple Watch.

Step 2 Press and hold the Side Button until the shutdown screen appears.

Step 3 Without releasing the screen, press and hold the Digital Crown until Spotify closes and returns you to the watch face.

Step 4 Open Spotify again from the app list to check if it launches normally.

Solution 3: Update Spotify App and watchOS

Outdated software can cause Spotify to misbehave. Check for updates in the App Store on your iPhone and update Spotify if needed. Then open the Watch app, go to software update, and install the latest watchOS version. Updates often fix bugs and improve stability.

Step 1 On your iPhone, open the Watch app.

Step 2 Tap My Watch, then go to General > Software Update.

Step 3 If an update is available, tap Download and Install, keeping your Apple Watch on its charger during the process.

Step 4 After updating watchOS, stay in the Watch app and scroll down to App Store.

Step 5 Tap Accounts > Purchased, find Spotify, and tap Install or Update if shown.

Step 6 Once updates finish, restart your Apple Watch to apply all changes properly.

Solution 4: Reinstall Spotify on Apple Watch

If nothing else works, reinstall Spotify. Open the Watch app on your iPhone, find Spotify, and turn off its watch app. Wait a moment, then turn it back on to reinstall. This resets the app and can fix deeper issues.

Step 1 On your Apple Watch, press the Digital Crown to open the app grid or list.

Step 2 Press and hold the Spotify app icon until it begins to jiggle.

Step 3 Tap the X icon next to Spotify, then confirm Delete App.

Step 4 On your iPhone, open the Watch app and go to My Watch.

Step 5 Scroll down to Available Apps, find Spotify, and tap Install.

Step 6 Wait for installation to complete, then open Spotify on Apple Watch to reconnect your account.

Part 2. How to Fix Spotify Not Playing on Apple Watch

If Spotify opens but the music will not play, the issue is usually related to connection or settings. These checks help narrow down the cause, whether it involves Bluetooth, internet, or account syncing. Once corrected, Spotify should play smoothly again.

Solution 1: Confirm Spotify Premium

Spotify works differently depending on your subscription. If you are using the free version, your Apple Watch may only control music playing on your iPhone. Offline downloads and standalone playback usually require Premium. To check, open Spotify on your iPhone and go to your account settings. If your subscription is not active, renew it and try again on your watch.

Step 1 On your iPhone, open the Spotify app.

Step 2 Tap Premium at the bottom of the screen.

Step 3 Follow the on-screen steps to upgrade if your account is not already Premium.

Step 4 Make sure the same Spotify account is signed in on both your iPhone and Apple Watch, as free accounts cannot stream or download directly on Apple Watch.

Solution 2: Check Internet Connection

Spotify needs a stable internet connection to stream music. If your Apple Watch is not connected to Wi-Fi or cellular, Spotify may not play. Check your watch connection by opening the Control Center and looking for the Wi-Fi or cellular icon. If it is not connected, turn Wi-Fi off and on, or switch to cellular if your watch supports it. If you are using your iPhone, make sure it has a good internet signal and that the watch is connected to it.

Step 1 On your Apple Watch, swipe up to open Control Center.

Step 2 Tap the Wi-Fi icon (three curved lines) to confirm Wi-Fi is turned on and not grayed out.

Step 3 On your iPhone, open Settings > Wi-Fi and connect to a stable network.

Step 4 Keep both devices on the same Wi-Fi network to ensure proper syncing and playback.

Solution 3: Check Bluetooth Connection

Bluetooth is often the hidden problem with Apple Watch playback. If Bluetooth is off or not paired correctly, your headphones will not connect and Spotify will not play. Open the Settings app on your watch and go to Bluetooth. Make sure it is on and your headphones are listed. If the device is not paired, remove it and pair again.

Step 1 On your Apple Watch, swipe up to open Control Center.

Step 2 Tap the Bluetooth icon and confirm it's enabled.

Step 3 If Bluetooth is off or unstable, toggle it off and back on to refresh the connection.

Solution 4: Connect Bluetooth Headphones

Even when Bluetooth is on, the watch may not connect to headphones automatically. Sometimes you need to select the device manually. Open Spotify on your Apple Watch, start playing a song, then tap the device icon to choose your headphones. If your headphones are not listed, turn them off and on again, then try pairing from the watch settings.

Step 1 On your iPhone, go to Settings > Bluetooth.

Step 2 Turn Bluetooth on and put your headphones into pairing mode.

Step 3 Confirm the headphones appear under My Devices and are connected.

Step 4 Make sure the headphones are paired with your Apple Watch, as Spotify cannot play audio through the watch speaker.

Solution 5: Re-login to Spotify

Account syncing issues can also cause playback problems. If Spotify is not recognizing your account properly, the app may fail to play music. Log out of Spotify on your iPhone and Apple Watch, then log back in. This refreshes the connection between your devices and your Spotify account. After logging back in, try playing a song again.

Step 1 On your iPhone, open Spotify.

Step 2 Tap Settings, scroll down, and select Log Out.

Step 3 Restart both your iPhone and Apple Watch.

Step 4 Log back into Spotify on your iPhone first.

Step 5 Open Spotify on Apple Watch and wait for the account to sync automatically.

Solution 6: Toggle Offline Mode

Offline mode can sometimes cause playback issues if the app gets stuck. If your watch is in Offline mode, it may not play music even if you have a connection. Open Spotify on your watch and turn Offline mode off, then turn it back on. This refreshes the app and can fix playback errors.

Step 1 Open Spotify on your Apple Watch.

Step 2 Go to Settings within the app.

Step 3 Turn Offline Mode off if it's enabled.

Step 4 Wait a few seconds, then try playing music again to restore streaming.

Solution 7: Re-download Offline Music

If downloaded songs are not playing, the files may be corrupted or incomplete. This can happen if the download was interrupted or if the app did not finish syncing. Go to your offline playlist on Spotify, remove the downloaded music, and then download it again. Make sure your watch has enough storage space before you start the download.

Step 1 On your iPhone, open Spotify and go to Your Library.

Step 2 Select the playlist or album you previously downloaded.

Step 3 Toggle Download off to remove existing files.

Step 4 Restart the Spotify app.

Step 5 Turn Download back on and allow the music to fully sync to your Apple Watch before playback.

Solution 8: Use Apple Music as Backup

If Spotify still does not play on your Apple Watch, using Apple Music can be a simple backup option. Apple Music works smoothly with Apple Watch and supports offline downloads. You can download playlists directly to the watch and play them without your iPhone nearby. This is a good alternative if you need a reliable music experience during workouts or travel.

Step 1 Open the Apple Music app on your Apple Watch.

Step 2 Play any song using the same Wi-Fi or Bluetooth setup.

Step 3 If Apple Music plays normally, the issue is likely limited to Spotify rather than your Apple Watch, headphones, or network.

Part 3. Workarounds to Play Spotify Offline Without App or Subscription

If you want a more flexible way to listen offline on Apple Watch, converting Spotify content into regular audio files can help. ViWizard Spotify Music Converter allows you to turn Spotify music, podcasts, and audiobooks into formats such as MP3 or WAV. Once converted, the files no longer rely on the Spotify app or a subscription.

After saving the files, you can sync them to your iPhone and find them in your downloaded music library. From there, transfer the audio to your Apple Watch and listen offline just like local music. This works well when Spotify downloads fail or the app does not work properly on watchOS. Since the music is stored locally, you do not need an internet connection to play it. This makes it a reliable option for workouts, travel, or everyday listening on your Apple Watch.

Key Features of ViWizard Spotify Music Converter

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• Download Spotify songs, playlists, podcasts, and audiobooks extremely fast at up to 15x speed
• Convert Spotify into MP3, FLAC, WAV, AIFF, M4A, and M4B losslessly
• Lets you play Spotify tracks offline on any device without restrictions
• Works seamlessly on Windows and macOS, supporting the built-in Spotify Web Player

Step 1: Convert Spotify Music to MP3 or WAV Using ViWizard

Step 1 On your PC or Mac, download and install ViWizard Spotify Music Converter, then launch the program.

Step 2 Inside ViWizard, click Open Spotify, which launches the Spotify desktop player within the interface.

Step 3 Sign in to your Spotify account and wait for your library, playlists, podcasts, and audiobooks to fully load.

Step 4 Browse your Spotify library directly inside ViWizard and open the playlist, album, or podcast you want to keep for offline listening.

Step 5 Click the Add button, and ViWizard will load all selected tracks into the conversion list automatically.

Step 6 Open Preferences, select MP3 or WAV as the output format, and adjust bitrate or sample rate if you want better audio quality or smaller file sizes.

Step 7 Choose an output folder so you can easily locate the converted files later.

Step 8 Click Convert and wait while ViWizard removes restrictions and saves the Spotify content as local audio files on your computer.

Step 2: Import Converted Spotify Files to iPhone Music App

Step 1 After conversion finishes, open iTunes on Windows or the Music app on Mac.

Step 2 Go to File > Add to Library, then select the converted MP3 or WAV files from your output folder.

Step 3 Connect your iPhone to the computer using a USB cable.

Step 4 In iTunes or the Music app, select your iPhone and enable Sync Music.

Step 5 Choose the imported tracks or playlists and click Apply to transfer them to your iPhone.

Step 6 Once syncing completes, open the Music app on your iPhone and confirm the songs appear under Downloaded, ensuring they're available offline.

Step 3: Sync Local Music from iPhone to Apple Watch

Step 1 On your iPhone, go to Settings > Bluetooth and make sure Bluetooth is turned on.

Step 2 Keep your Apple Watch nearby and ensure it's connected to your iPhone.

Step 3 Open the Apple Watch app on your iPhone.

Step 4 Tap My Watch, scroll down, and select Music.

Step 5 Tap Add Music, then choose the downloaded songs or albums you synced from your computer.

Step 6 Place your Apple Watch on its charger and keep your iPhone nearby while the music transfers.

Step 7 Once syncing finishes, open the Music app on your Apple Watch and play the tracks fully offline, without the Spotify app or an active subscription.