Let's be real for a second. You probably clicked on this because you were deep in a 2:00 AM music hole, found a playlist that perfectly matches your oddly specific mood—maybe something like "POV: You’re a Victorian ghost in a jazz club"—and you desperately wanted to tell the creator they have immaculate taste. Or maybe you're trying to send a song to your crush without the awkwardness of a text message.
But then you looked. You poked around the interface. You tapped every three-dot menu icon on the screen. And nothing.
The honest truth about how to message in spotify is that you basically can’t. At least, not in the way you think. It's frustrating. It feels like a massive oversight for the world’s biggest streaming platform. But there’s a whole history of why that feature disappeared and several clever workarounds that most people completely overlook.
The "Inbox" We All Lost
If you feel like you're losing your mind because you swear you used to be able to send messages, you aren't crazy. You actually could.
Back in the day, Spotify had a built-in inbox. It was a native, peer-to-peer messaging system where you could drop a song link and a "hey, listen to this" directly to a friend's account. It was simple. It worked. But in 2017, Spotify nuked the feature. Their reasoning was pretty corporate: they claimed very few people were actually using it. They wanted to streamline the app and focus on "core" experiences like discovery and personalization.
Honestly? It was probably also about moderation. Managing a social network is a nightmare. Dealing with spam, harassment, and bots costs a lot of money and requires massive teams. By removing the inbox, Spotify shifted that burden onto platforms like WhatsApp, iMessage, and Instagram.
So, How Do You "Message" Someone Now?
Since the direct "Send Message" button is a ghost of the past, we have to get creative. If you want to know how to message in spotify today, you’re looking at these specific maneuvers.
The Collaborative Playlist Strategy
This is the closest thing to a "chat room" Spotify has left. If you want to communicate with someone through the app, create a playlist and invite them to collaborate.
Once they join, you can both add, remove, and reorder songs. I’ve seen people use this as a sort of "musical conversation." You send a track with a title that asks a question, and they respond with a track title that answers it. It’s slow. It’s "indie." It’s also kinda charming in a nostalgic, 1990s-mixtape sort of way.
To do this, just hit the "plus" icon on a playlist you created and toggle the "Collaborative" switch. Then, share the link. Simple.
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Jam Sessions: The Real-Time Hack
In 2023, Spotify launched "Jam." This is basically a live, synchronized listening party. While it still doesn't have a text box where you can type "OMG this bridge is insane," it allows you to see what everyone is adding to the queue in real-time.
If you're in the same room or even halfway across the world, you can all control the music together. It creates a shared social space that feels like messaging without the typing. You can see the profile pictures of who added what, which is a subtle form of social signaling.
Using the "Share" Menu Properly
When people ask about messaging, they usually just want to get a song in front of someone's eyes. The "Share" button is your primary tool here, but most people use it wrong.
Instead of just copying the link, look at the integration options. If you share to Instagram Stories, the recipient can tap the song and it opens instantly in their Spotify. If you use Snapchat, it does something similar. The "message" happens on the social app, but the "action" happens on Spotify.
The Creepy (But Effective) Profile Method
Suppose you found a stranger's playlist and you want to contact them. Since there's no "message" button on their profile, you have to play digital detective.
Check their profile name. Many users link their Facebook or Instagram accounts. If you see a small social icon or if their profile name looks like a real name, a quick search on other platforms usually does the trick.
Also, look at the playlist descriptions. Savvy creators who want to be contacted for "submissions" or "collabs" will often drop their email or IG handle right in the metadata of the playlist. It’s hiding in plain sight.
Why Spotify is Resisting a Chat Feature
You might wonder why, in 2026, we still don't have a DM folder. Every other app has one. Even Uber has a chat function!
But Spotify isn't a social network; it's a utility. They are obsessed with retention. They know that if you start a conversation in Spotify, you might get annoyed by notifications or spam, which might lead you to close the app. They want you focused on the "Daily Mix" and "Discover Weekly" algorithms.
There's also the legal side. Hosting a messaging platform requires compliance with different laws regarding data privacy and child safety. For a company that is constantly fighting over royalty rates with artists, adding the legal headache of a messaging platform probably isn't high on their "to-do" list.
Looking Ahead: The Future of Social Listening
We are seeing some shifts. The "Friend Activity" sidebar on the desktop app—the one that shows what your friends are listening to—is a relic that Spotify keeps around despite never bringing it to mobile. It proves there is a hunger for social connection.
Recently, Spotify has been experimenting with "Broadcast Channels" for creators, similar to how Telegram or Instagram works. This allows artists to "message" their fans, even if fans can't message back. It’s a one-way street, but it signals that the devs are at least thinking about communication again.
Actionable Steps to Connect on Spotify
Since you can't just hit "Send," here is how you actually handle your social needs on the platform right now:
- For Close Friends: Use the Collaborative Playlist feature. It's the only way to build something together within the app environment.
- For Real-Time Hangouts: Start a Jam. It’s the most interactive the app gets. Tap the speaker icon in your "Now Playing" view to find it.
- For Reaching Creators: Don't look for a chat button. Look for their social links in the playlist description or their profile bio.
- For Sharing Songs: Use the Instagram Stories integration rather than a direct link. It has a much higher "click-through" rate because it looks better and provides a preview.
- For Privacy: If you don't want people trying to find ways to message you or see what you're doing, toggle on Private Session in your settings. This hides your activity from the Friend Sidebar.
The reality of how to message in spotify is that you have to step outside the app to truly talk. Use the music as the hook, but use your existing messaging apps to do the heavy lifting. It keeps the music app focused on the music, and your inbox focused on the conversation.