1. Enable Notification Permissions for Spotify

A common reason why Spotify may not show up on your lock screen is if you’ve disabled notification permissions for the app. Hence, it’s the first thing you should check.

Android

  1. Long press on the Spotify app icon and tap the info icon from the menu that appears. 
  2. Tap on Notifications and enable the toggle next to Allow notifications. Make sure the Lock screen option is also enabled. 

iPhone

  1. Open the Settings app on your iPhone and navigate to Spotify > Notifications. 
  2. Enable the toggle next to Allow Notifications. Under Alerts, enable the Lock Screen option, if isn’t already.

2. Check Notification Categories for Spotify (Android)

On Android, you can configure notification channels for an app to enable or disable specific types of notifications. If you have previously tinkered with notification categories for the Spotify app, you might have accidentally disabled its lock screen music player. Here’s how you can re-enable it.

  1. Long press on the Spotify app icon and tap the info icon from the resulting menu.
  2. Tap on Notifications. 
  3. Tap on Notification categories and enable the toggle next to Spotify Music. 

3. Enable Lock Screen Music Widget (Android) 

Another thing you need to do is ensure that apps are allowed to display the music widget on your phone’s lock screen. Here’s how you can go about it.

  1. Open the Settings app and navigate to Lock screen > Widgets. 
  2. Enable the toggle next to Music. 
  3. If you wish to view Spotify’s music information on the Always On Display, return to the Lock screen settings page and tap on Always On Display. Then, enable the toggle next to Show music information. 

4. Enable Lock Screen Widgets (iPhone)

Spotify music player may not show up on your iPhone’s lock screen if you have disabled lock screen widgets. If you’re unsure, here’s how to check if lock screen widgets are enabled on your iPhone.

  1. Open the Settings app, tap on Face ID & Passcode and enter your lock screen passcode.
  2. Scroll to the bottom and turn on the toggle next to Lock Screen Widgets. If it’s already on, try turning it off and then back on. 

On iPhones running iOS 16, you have the option to link Focus modes with the lock screen. While this feature is useful, it can sometimes cause Spotify’s lock screen widget to stop working on your iPhone. You can try unlinking your Focus profile from the lock screen to see if that helps.  Long press on your lock screen and tap on your Focus profile at the bottom. Tap on your linked profile to unlink it from the lock screen. Note: In case your iPhone is not showing lock screen controls for Spotify, tap on the lock screen album cover to reveal them.

6. Disable ‘Skip Lock Screen’ Feature (Pixel Phones)

Are you using face unlock on your Pixel phone to bypass the lock screen after authentication? That could prevent you from accessing Spotify’s music player, along with other lock screen widgets and notifications. To avoid this, you must disable the ‘Skip lock screen’ feature on your Pixel phone.

  1. Open the Settings app and head to Apps & notifications > Notifications. 
  2. Disable the toggle next to Skip lock screen. 

7. Sign Out and Sign Back In

At times, temporary issues with your Spotify account can also cause such problems. Singing out of your account and signing back in is an effective way to troubleshoot such issues.  In the Spotify app, tap the gear icon in the top right corner to visit the settings menu. Then, scroll down to tap on Log out.  Sign back into your account and then check if the issue is still there.

8. Update or Reinstall the Spotify App

Updates are crucial for any app, and Spotify is no exception. If Spotify is not appearing on your lock screen due to a bug, updating the app should help. Open Play Store or App Store on your phone to update the Spotify app. If the issue remains even after that, you can try uninstalling and reinstalling the Spotify app on your phone.  Long press on the Spotify app icon on your Android and select Uninstall. Tap OK to confirm.  If you’re using an iPhone, tap and hold the Spotify app icon and select Remove App. Then, tap on Delete app to confirm.  Reinstall the Spotify app on your phone and then check if the issue is still there. 

Unlock the Music 

It can be confusing if the Spotify music player stops showing on the lock screen all of a sudden. Before you switch to an alternative and settle for a subpar experience, consider applying the above-mentioned fixes to resolve the issue.