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Spotify Raises Premium Prices in Canada, Marking Its First Major Hike in Nearly Two Years
Spotify is raising Canadian Premium prices in July, its first major hike in nearly two years, as streaming policy fights continue.
Spotify is lifting its Canadian premium prices again, with most subscription tiers set to rise by between $1 and $3 a month beginning in July.
The only plan staying put is the student account, which remains priced at $6.39 plus tax, according to an email sent to Spotify Premium users in Canada. In the notice, the company framed the increase as part of its ongoing push to strengthen the service. “This change means we can invest more in Premium. We are always working to improve Premium and deliver the best possible experience for you,” the email says, directing users to Canada’s premium offerings.
A Spotify spokesperson told Billboard Canada that “occasional updates to pricing across our markets reflect the value that Spotify delivers, enabling us to continue offering the best possible experience and benefit artists,” though the company did not specify what prompted the latest adjustment.
For Canadian listeners, the increase lands in a broader moment of pressure and recalibration around the streaming economy. Spotify has spent the past few years revisiting both pricing and royalty structures, including changes to revenue-share payouts for de-monetized songs that receive fewer than 1,000 plays per year. In 2026, Billboard Canada reported that Canadian artists earned $544 million in royalties on Spotify, a number that underscores just how central the platform has become to the domestic market.
The timing also arrives as Spotify leans on its own anniversary branding. Earlier this year, the DSP celebrated its 20th anniversary by letting users look back at the first song they ever streamed, alongside their most-played tracks and top-streamed artist. It was a nostalgia play, but one that sat uneasily beside the more practical reality of higher monthly bills.
This is the first major price hike for Spotify’s Canadian operation in nearly two years. The last increase, in 2024, appeared to be partly shaped by the “streaming tax” introduced through the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission’s decision tied to the Online Streaming Act.
That ruling required foreign-owned media companies operating in Canada and generating more than $25 million in revenue to pay 5 per cent of those revenues into Canadian content funds. Streamers including Spotify, Apple and Amazon pushed back against the now-paused legislation, which has become one of the defining disputes in Canada’s music business and broader media policy fight.
Back in 2024, Spotify said price updates were part of its regular market adjustments. “As we continue to innovate and invest in providing our listeners with greater value than ever before, we occasionally update our prices,” the company said then. “We may also adjust our prices to reflect local macroeconomic factors and meet market demands while offering an unparalleled service,” while declining to comment further on the legal challenge to the CRTC streaming tax in Canada.
