5 Spotify For Artists Metrics You Should Be Tracking (and why)

If you’re not making the most of the mountain of data Spotify For Artists gives you, this is your sign to start paying attention!

While we’d wholeheartedly agree that spending hours trawling through data is not the most fun thing in the world to do, it is super important if you want to grow your music career and turn those streaming goals into reality.

So, to ease you in gently, here are 5 metrics in Spotify For Artists you should be paying attention to this year!

Metric #1: Monthly Listeners

One of the best (and clearest) indicators of your streaming growth!

Look out for significant changes month-on-month and an overall upward trend over time. A dip in Monthly Listeners isn’t always cause for concern, but if you’ve been consistently releasing new music and your Monthly Listeners aren’t increasing over time, it’s worth digging deeper into the data to figure out why that might be the case…

To find Monthly Listeners: Audience > Overview > Listeners > Compare to previous period

Metric #2: Playlist Adds

It’s easy to assume the more Playlist Adds, the better – but quality matters too!

Keep an eye out for any spikes in Playlist Adds that could indicate artificial streaming or something else dodgy – and if you spot your music being added to playlists that don’t make sense or that you suspect are using bot streaming to boost numbers, get ahead of things and report that playlist to Spotify.

Playlist Adds are a positive sign that people aren’t just listening to your music, but are engaging with it too. And it means that your Active Audience is growing too – which is definitely a good thing!

To find Playlist Adds: Audience > Overview > Playlist Adds

Metric #3: Saves

A Save is a big sign of fandom!

Saves mean that your overall streaming revenue is less reliant on finding new audiences because streams will come from libraries instead. A listener giving your music a coveted place in their library is a clear sign of engagement, and shows the streaming algorithm that your music is worth reaching new audiences too.

To find Saves: Audience > Overview > Saves

Metric #4: Demographics

Not strictly a metric, but definitely data you should be aware of in Spotify For Artists!

Knowing where your audience is and their basic demographics is valuable for your overall marketing strategy. Use this knowledge to influence the kinds of social media content you post and to determine targeting for social media ads. Target listeners whose demographics match with the demographics of your existing audience for a higher return on your ad spend.

To find Demographics: Audience > Demographics or Location

Metric #5: Programmed Audience

Your Programmed Audience is the segment of your listeners who listen to your music via programmed or algorithmic sources, like ‘Made for you’ playlists, Radio, Autoplay, etc.

If a big proportion of your audience is Programmed, your streaming revenue might be over-reliant on algorithmic discovery. If you’re opted into Spotify Discovery Mode, these algorithmic placements earn you less revenue by default, and relying on discovery for the bulk of your Monthly Listeners isn’t a sustainable, reliable or consistent way to grow.

Aim to boost engagement (measured through Playlist Adds and Saves) to turn Programmed Listeners into Active Listeners for more sustainable streaming growth!

To find Programmed Audience: Audience > Segments > Programmed Audience