How to Fix Spotify Playing Songs Not on Playlist [10 Ways]

By Charles Davis Updated on 2024-08-06 / Update for Spotify Tips

Have you ever met such problems as described: "Spotify keeps playing songs that are not on my playlist. Every time my playlist is on shuffle, other songs from the same band will be inserted and played on my playlist - which I don't want. Why does Spotify play songs not on my playlist?"

In the Spotify Community, you will find that there is a great number of Spotify users have encountered Spotify playing songs not on playlist issue. But they have no idea how to fix it. If you have been puzzled by this problem, please never miss this post. We will help you figure out the potential factors behind it. We also provide 9 common solutions and 1 forever solution to fix it in this post. Please read on.

fix spotify playing songs not on playlist

Part 1. Why Is Spotify Playing Songs Not on My Playlist

First, let's kick about possible reasons why is Spotify not playing my playlist songs. We have listed several most typical factors as follows.

📌 1. Autoplay Feature on Spotify Is On

Spotify's Autoplay feature is for both Spotify Free and Premium users. If you turn on Autoplay on Spotify, then Spotify will proceed to play similar music if you reach the end of an album or playlist.

However, some Spotify music listeners gave feedback on Reddit that the Autoplay feature will stream songs that are not evenly related to the currently playing playlist. So, if you get stuck in Spotify playing random songs not on playlist issue, the Spotify Autoplay feature may be the major cause.

📌 2. Enhance/Smart Shuffle Feature on Spotify Is Active

Spotify provides an ENHANCE/Smart Shuffle button for its Premium users on every Spotify playlist. It can recommend and insert similar types of songs into your playlist and your track queue automatically. It will provide "one recommendation after every two tracks, for a max of 30 recommendations" that match the vibe of your current Spotify playlist. So, if you forget to switch the ENHANCE/Smart Shuffle button off, you will experience Spotify not playing songs in playlist issue.

View also: How to Enhance Spotify Playlist

📌 3. Spotify Shuffle Is Enabled

According to the complaints of many Spotify users, Spotify's Shuffle feature should also be responsible for the problem that Spotify keeps playing songs not on your playlist. In the Shuffle mode, Spotify will play songs not in the playlist, even the songs they've never heard of. What's worse, they are always provided with single songs from the same artists in the playlist, which is annoying.

📌 4. Previous Track Queue Is Working

If you add songs or albums to your playing queue and forget to clear them, those tracks will resume playing when you are streaming other playlists.

📌 5. Less than 15 Tracks on Your Playlist

Under the circumstance that you create a playlist with less than 15 tracks, Spotify will add songs automatically to your playlist while reaching the end of the playlist. So, you will face the situation that Spotify plays random songs that you didn't add to your playlist.

📌 6. Spotify App Problem

If you use the old version of the Spotify app, or there are bugs in the Spotify app, you will also get the Spotify playing songs not in playlist issue.

📌 7. Caches in Spotify App

If the cache files in the Spotify app are corrupted, then you may face the issue that Spotify plays songs not on my playlist problem.

Part 2. How to Fix Spotify Playing Songs Not on Playlist

After checking out factors resulting in Spotify not playing playlist songs, let's proceed to look up relevant troubleshooting to fix the issue by following step-by-step instructions.

✅ Fix 1. Turn Off Autoplay on Spotify

If it is related to the Spotify Autoplay feature, you can operate as described below:

For PC/Mac:

Step 1. Tap the top-right profile image to open the draw-down menu and choose 'Settings' from it.

Step 2. Scroll through to 'Autoplay' on the Settings page and toggle the right button off until it turns gray.

turn off spotify autoplay on computer

For Android/iPhone:

Step 1. Open the 'Settings' option from the Spotify homepage.

Step 2. Click 'Playback' > 'Autoplay'. Then switch the right button off. When the button turns gray color, it means the Autoplay feature is disabled.

turn off spotify autoplay on mobile

✅ Fix 2. Inactivate Enhance/Smart Shuffle Feature on Spotify

If the Enhance/Smart Shuffle feature is working on your Spotify leaving you to undergo Spotify playing songs not on your playlist, please try this way:

Step 1. Navigate to one playlist you want to stream on the Spotify app.

Step 2. Put your cursor on the 'ENHANCE' or 'Smart Shuffle' button near the green download tab and turn it off.

disable spotify enhance feature

Remember: The Enhance feature is only available to the Spotify Premium plan.

✅ Fix 3. Disable Spotify Shuffle Feature

The process is quite easy. But the premise is that you have subscribed to Spotify Premium if you want to turn off Spotify Shuffle on your phone. The Shuffle feature is only available to desktops for free. Please read on. The steps are similar on both mobiles and desktops.

Step 1. Look at the bottom 'Now Playing' bar on Spotify. Then find the 'Shuffle' icon that looks like two overlapped arrows alongside the 'Previous' option. The Shuffle button will be green with a green dot under the arrows.

Step 2. Tap the 'Shuffle' button until it turns gray without the green dot.

turn off shuffle on spotify

✅ Fix 4. Empty Your Play Queue

If you want to clear the songs that were previously added to the play queue to stop Spotify not playing next song in playlist, here is a user guide for you.

For PC/Mac:

Step 1. On the bottom-right corner, find the 'Queue' button like a 3 horizontal lines, and hit it to open the queue page.

spotify play queue on computer

Step 2. On the 'Next In Queue' section, click the 'Clear' button on the right side.

Step 3. Alternatively, you can right-click on single songs to remove single songs one by one.

clear spotify play queue on desktop

View also: How to Clear Spotify Play Queue

For Android/iPhone:

Step 1. Open the current playing song into full screen. Then click on the queue button in the bottom-right corner to open a new screen.

spotify play queue on mobile

Step 2. Below the 'Now Playing' section, select the songs you want to delete from the play queue. Finally, press the bottom-right 'Remove' button.

Step 3. Or hit the 'Clear queue' button on the top of the songs.

clear spotify play queue on mobile

✅ Fix 5. Add Songs to Playlist

To avoid Spotify adding songs to the playlist and stop Spotify keeping playing songs that you haven't added to your playlist before, please follow the guide below:

Step 1. Search songs you wish to add to your playlist, and tap on the three-dot '...' icon to pull down a new menu.

Step 2. Select the 'Add to Playlist' option, then you can make it.

add spotify songs to playlist

✅ Fix 6. Clear Spotify Cache

If you're experiencing issues with Spotify playing songs not on playlist, clearing the cache can help. This is because the cache can sometimes contain outdated or incorrect information about the songs on your playlist, leading to playback errors. It's important to note that clearing the cache will also remove any downloaded Spotify songs or playlists from your device. So, you'll need to re-download them if you want to listen to them offline.

Step 1. Open the Spotify app on your desktop or mobile device. Next, tap on the gear icon in the top-right corner of the screen to open the Settings menu.

Step 2. Scroll down and select "Storage" and click on "Clear Cache" at the bottom of the screen.

Step 3. A pop-up message will appear asking if you want to clear the cache, then hit on "OK" to confirm.

clear spotify cache android

✅ Fix 7. Reinstall Spotify App

The problem may occur due to various reasons, such as a software glitch or a corrupted installation. By reinstalling the Spotify app, you can ensure that you have the latest version and a clean installation, which can resolve any underlying issues. Remember to save any offline Spotify playlists or downloaded songs before uninstalling to avoid losing them.

View also: How to Backup Spotify Playlists

reinstall spotify app

✅ Fix 8. Update Spotify App

By updating the app, you ensure that you have the latest bug fixes and improvements. This can help resolve any glitches or errors that may be causing the Spotify playing songs not on playlist problem. To update the Spotify app, you can go to the Spotify app or the app store on your device to check for updates and proceed.

update spotify app

✅ Fix 9. Log Out of Spotify from All Devices

Sometimes, when you use multiple devices to access your Spotify account, the app may get confused and start playing random songs or tracks that are not on your playlist. So, you need to log out of your Spotify account from all devices. By doing that, you can ensure that your account is not being accessed by any other device, and this can help resolve the issue.

To log out from all devices, you can go to your Account Settings on the Spotify website or app and select the option to log out from all devices. This will sign you out of your account on all devices, and you will need to log in again manually. Once you have done this, you can open your playlist and start playing songs without any interruptions or issues.

log out everywhere spotify

Part 3. How to Stop Spotify Playing Songs Not in Playlist Forever

If the above methods are to no avail, don't worry. We also prepare an ultimate way to resolve Spotify playing random songs not on playlist. All you need is a third-party Spotify-converting gadget. We recommend you use AudFree Spotify Music Converter, an all-around and one-stop downloader and converter for Spotify.


AudFree Spotify Music Converter is designed to help both Spotify Free and Premium users download all Spotify music locally. And it can convert Spotify music in popular output formats embracing MP3, FLAC, WAV, etc. It also preserves the lossless audio quality and original ID3 tags. Moreover, it supports transferring and playing Spotify music on any device or player for offline listening. In this way, you can rearrange your Spotify songs in any playing mode you like and prevent you from playing Spotify songs not on your playlist.

Can't help wondering how to use this powerful Spotify music converter? Here is a specific user guide for you.

Step 1Import Spotify Songs to AudFree Spotify Music Converter
import spotify songs to audfree spotify music converter
Please install and launch AudFree Spotify Music Converter from your Windows or Mac desktop. Spotify app will also appear on your desktop at the same time. You can either right-click on the single songs or tap the three-dot '...' icon on the right side of Spotify to copy and paste the audio link from Spotify to the converter. Then press the right green '+' icon to add files. Also, this smart tool offers a quick way: Drag a single song or a playlist directly and drop it into the converter.
Step 2Customize Relevant Parameters for Spotify Songs
customize relevant parameters for spotify songs
Hit the top-right toolbar to draw down a new menu. Then choose 'Preference' > 'Convert' to set output formats like FLAC, WAV, MP3, M4V, M4B, and AAC. Besides, you can set other parameters including audio channels, sample rates, bit rates, etc. to create a phenomenal sound quality for Spotify without randomly playing songs not on playlist.
Step 3Start to Download Spotify Songs
download spotify music locally
All you need is to hit on the bottom-right 'Convert' button. Then the program will download Spotify songs at a fast speed and store them in a local folder on your computer. Tap the bottom 'History' icon and then double-click one Spotify song from the list to play it. You can add and listen to Spotify music offline with any device or player.
Video GuideHow to Download Spotify Music by AudFree Spotify Music Converter

Part 4. Summary

In this post, we have discussed possible reasons that lead to Spotify playing songs not in playlist and presented feasible troubleshooting on how to fix it. Most important, we provide an ultimate way to fix the problem. That is to use a third-party tool such as AudFree Spotify Music Converter.

This Spotify converter allows Spotify users to download all Spotify music without Premium with original sound quality. With it, you can achieve to import and listen to Spotify tracks on all devices or players. In this way, you can avoid such Spotify playback issues as Spotify keeps playing random songs not on playlist and more forever. Just try it!

Charles Davis

Charles Davis

Chief Editor

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Charles Davis is the chief-editor of AudFree Company, who writes a variety of tech articles and music reviews, such as hot software releases and Spotify music tips.
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