How to Add Your Own Music to Spotify: A Complete Guide

Whether you are an independent artist looking to share your latest tracks with the world or a music lover trying to listen to rare MP3s, mixtapes, or unreleased tracks stored on your hard drive, getting your own music onto Spotify is entirely possible.

Depending on your goal, there are two distinct paths you can take: uploading your tracks for personal listening via Local Files, or releasing your music globally so anyone can stream it.

Method 1: For Personal Listening (The “Local Files” Feature)

If you just want to listen to your own audio files, personal recordings, or rare tracks through the Spotify app alongside your regular playlists, you can do this using the Local Files feature.

Step 1: Enable Local Files on Desktop

Spotify requires you to set up local files through a desktop computer first:

1. Open the Spotify desktop app on your Windows or Mac computer.
2. Click on your profile icon in the top-right corner and select Settings (or press Ctrl + , on Windows / Cmd + , on Mac).
3. Scroll down to the Local Files section and toggle on Show Local Files.
4. Click Add a Source and select the folder on your computer that houses your music files (