Music · PC & mobile
Spotify Playing Random Songs? Check Autoplay, Smart Shuffle, and Your Queue
Source-checked About 10 minutes
Answer
Open the Now Playing queue, turn off Autoplay, disable Smart Shuffle where available, and test a playlist you control. Plan, device, playlist, and feature availability affect what Spotify can play next.
Identify where the song came from
Open Now Playing and view the queue. Check whether the unexpected track is queued, recommended by Autoplay, added through Smart Shuffle, or part of the playlist itself.
Clear only unwanted queued tracks
Remove tracks you intentionally or accidentally added to the current queue, then return to the playlist without clearing saved music.
Turn off Autoplay
Open Settings and privacy > Playback and turn off Autoplay similar content when your music ends, including the separate other-device option when it appears.
Turn off Smart Shuffle
Tap the Shuffle control until Smart Shuffle recommendations are no longer active. The available control and free-account behavior can vary by device and plan.
Test a playlist you own
Create a short playlist containing only known tracks, begin from its first item, and watch the queue as each track finishes.
Check Repeat and playback source
Confirm Repeat is not forcing a short context and that playback began from the intended album or playlist rather than Search, Radio, or a recommendation card. Record the source label shown in Now Playing.
Sign out unknown devices
Open the Spotify account device and app access pages, sign out sessions you do not recognize, remove suspicious app access, and change the password if account use is unexplained.
Video walkthrough
If it does not work
- On Spotify Free mobile, playback controls can differ by playlist and market; do not promise Premium behavior on every account.
- If the queue changes from another speaker or group session, disconnect that device or session before reinstalling Spotify.
Sources and verification
Checked against official documentation on . Scope: PC & mobile.
Follow the linked first-party guidance if labels differ after a platform or app update.