The Spotify mobile app includes a number of gestures that speed up and simplify various actions. Instead of digging through menus, you can swipe to add or remove songs from the queue, like tracks, jump to artist and album pages with a single tap, and more.
Swipe right to add a song to the queue
The Swipe to Queue feature is one of my favorites that I use all the time. Instead of having to open the three-dot menu and then tap the “Add to Queue” option, I simply swipe right on a song to add it to my play queue.
You can add songs to the current queue even from the queue page by swiping them right (the first song you add will play next, and so on). Just note that you can’t manipulate the songs you’ve already added to the play queue this way (they’re marked with the green icon on the screenshots below), nor the song that’s currently playing.
This gesture is super handy when you’re on an album page, or inside a playlist, and just want to add certain songs to the queue. Rather than tapping the three-dot menu to add a song to the queue over and over, I can perform a few lightning-fast swipes instead.
Another situation where I find the swipe-to-queue feature very useful is with double albums. When you add a double album to the queue, Spotify automatically adds both discs. If the second disc is made of remixes, live or instrumental versions, or demos, which is usually the case, I only want to listen to the first disc. Instead of adding both discs and then removing the songs from the second disc one by one, I simply swipe the songs from the first disc and go on with my day.
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Swipe left to remove a song from the queue or like it
Swiping a song left, on the other hand, serves two different purposes depending on where you’re at. On the queue screen, swiping left removes the song from the queue. Outside the queue screen, on album and other pages (EP, singles), swiping left on a song adds it to the “Liked Songs” playlist.
For some reason, the gesture doesn’t work on popular songs lists found on artist pages and in playlists.
Swipe down to collapse the Now Playing screen
When you maximize the Now Playing screen, you can quickly minimize it simply by swiping down anywhere on the screen, instead of tapping the downward arrow icon on the upper left part of the Now Playing screen.
On iOS and Android phones with navigation gestures enabled, you can also use the system swipe-back gesture. Just avoid swiping near the song progress bar, because there’s a good chance you’ll inadvertently rewind or fast-forward the song that’s currently playing.
Swipe left or right on the song name in the Now Playing bar to play the next or previous song
When you’re in the Spotify app, the Now Playing bar doesn’t include any media controls other than the play/pause button. So when you want to skip to the next or previous song in the queue, you have to tap the bar before being presented with the skip forward and backward buttons or pull down the Quick Settings panel and use the Spotify widget, right?
Well, actually no. Instead of all that, you can simply swipe left or right on the song’s name on the Now Playing bar to jump to the next and previous song, respectively. It’s that easy, and much faster than the alternatives.
Similarly, on the Now Playing screen, you don’t have to tap the skip backward or forward buttons. Simply swipe left or right on the album art to play the next or previous song.
Tap the song and artist name on the Now Playing screen to go to the album and artist pages
When you’re on the Now Playing screen, the usual flow for opening the album or artist pages is to tap the awkwardly positioned three-dot menu (the larger the screen, the harder it is to reach), then tap the appropriate option. Instead of that, you can immediately visit the album or artist screen right from the Now Playing screen by tapping the song or artist’s name.
The only downside here is that if the song is a collaboration, tapping the artist names takes you to the page of the artist credited first. If you want to visit the second artist, you have to reach for the three-dot menu.
Tap and hold a song to summon the options window
Another handy Spotify gesture is opening the song options window by tapping and holding a song.
If you’re a leftie like me, this is easier than reaching for the three-dot menu with your left thumb, as the button sits on the right side of the screen. Unfortunately, this gesture only works in playlists and popular song lists at the top of artist pages.
Spotify gestures are a game-changer if you constantly edit your queue on the fly or, like me, you have to play more songs from artists you’ve just heard for the first time to see whether that awesome song you’re listening to is a fluke or if they’re actually that good. If you’d like to learn more touch gestures, we’ve got handy guides for Android and iOS users, drivers who use Google Maps for GPS navigation, and iPhone owners who use Safari.
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