How to Submit Music to Spotify Playlists
Published · updated · by Loopin
Spotify playlist placement is one of the few real organic growth levers left for independent artists. Most of them pitch too late, pitch the wrong playlists, or send a demo that undersells the song. Here's how to do it right.
Understand the two types of playlist
Editorial playlists — Today's Top Hits, New Music Friday, genre mood playlists — are curated by Spotify's in-house team. You pitch these through Spotify for Artists before release and have no direct contact with the curators. User-curated playlists are run by independent accounts — bloggers, fans, other artists — and you can reach them directly.
Editorial placements are rare for new artists. User-curated playlists are where early streams actually come from, and the pitch process is reachable.
Pitch to editorial at least 7 days before release
Spotify for Artists lets you submit one unreleased song per release for editorial consideration. Log in, go to your upcoming release, and fill out the pitch form completely — genre, mood, instrumentation, the story behind the song. The earlier you submit before your release date, the better: Spotify recommends at least seven days, and pitching earlier gives curators more time to consider it.
Set up your release properly first. See how to release a song on Spotify for the distributor setup.
Find user-curated playlists in your lane
Search Spotify for your genre and mood keywords. Filter by playlists. Look for ones with a few hundred to a few thousand followers — large enough to matter, small enough that the curator is still doing it personally. Check the playlist description for a contact email or Instagram handle. Many curators actively want new music; they just need you to make it easy to find.
Write a short, direct pitch
Three sentences is enough: who you are (one sentence), what the song sounds like and who it's for (one sentence), and a streaming link (one line). No press kit, no life story. Curators listen to dozens of pitches — make yours the easiest to act on. Subject line: 'Playlist submission — [Song Title] — [Genre]'.
Mention the playlist by name so they know it's not a mass email. Compliment a specific song on the playlist if you can — it signals you actually listened.
Master the track before you pitch it
A playlist curator listens to your song next to everything else on their playlist. If the level is low or the mix is muddy, it gets skipped regardless of the songwriting. Run your song through Loopin's free mastering tool before you send a single pitch. A mastered track that holds its own in a playlist context is the minimum standard for being taken seriously.
This applies to the editorial pitch too — Spotify's curators hear everything at the same loudness normalization level, but a well-mastered track still sits better in that context.
Follow up once and move on
Send one follow-up after a week if you haven't heard back. After that, don't chase it. Curators who want the song will respond; the ones who don't aren't going to be persuaded by persistence. Use the time to pitch ten more playlists instead. The numbers game is real — a 10% response rate on twenty pitches is two placements, which is two more than zero.
Frequently asked questions
How do I pitch my music to Spotify editorial playlists?
Through Spotify for Artists — go to your upcoming release, click 'Pitch a Song', and fill out the full form including genre, mood, and a description of the song. Submit at least seven days before release. You can only pitch one song per release and there's no guarantee of placement, but the submission is free and builds your history with curators.
Do user-curated playlists actually help you grow on Spotify?
Yes — especially at the start. A mid-sized user playlist (500–5,000 followers) can generate real streams and, more importantly, real save rates that tell Spotify's algorithm the song is resonating. Multiple small playlist placements compound into meaningful algorithmic traction over time.
How many playlists should I pitch to?
As many relevant ones as you can find — aiming for 20–30 per release is a reasonable target. The more specific the playlist fit, the higher your response rate. A song that fits a 'rainy day indie' playlist sent to a rainy day indie curator converts far better than a generic pitch sent to 100 curators who don't match.