The Strava app, which is widely used for fitness tracking on Apple devices such as iPhone and Apple Watch, is introducing a significant upgrade this week. As of today, Strava users will have the ability to engage with Spotify music within the app itself, without the need to exit it.
In the latest announcement, Strava unveiled its latest collaboration with Spotify, which involves integrating the popular music streaming service into the Strava mobile application. This new partnership enables users to effortlessly link their preferred music, playlists, and podcasts to the fitness tracking platform and play them instantly without having to switch between apps.
Starting today, Android and iOS users can expect to receive a groundbreaking new feature that eliminates the extra step of switching between apps. This highly anticipated feature is now available and will allow for a seamless experience when accessing the app from both platforms.
Furthermore, this integration is not just limited to music, as it also extends to podcasts and audiobooks. With this new feature, users can seamlessly access and listen to their preferred podcasts and audiobooks within the Strava app, allowing them to tap into the inspiration that drives their workouts.
Users can access the Spotify integration by clicking on the music note icon within the Record tab of the Strava app, which will provide a range of suggested playlists and tracks directly from Spotify. Premium users of Spotify will be able to play their starred tracks and curated playlists, while Free users will have access to the audio content that the streaming service offers, which may include intermittent ads.
This new feature is available to all Strava users, whether they are using the free version of the app or have a paid Summit subscription, and requires a one-time linking of the two platforms. However, one downside for Spotify Premium users is that they won’t be able to listen to music and podcasts offline within the Strava app since the audio feed requires a mobile or Wi-Fi connection to stay active.
Previously, Strava users who wanted to listen to audio on Spotify while tracking their runs or bike rides had to switch back and forth between the two apps to control their media. However, this inconvenience is now a thing of the past thanks to the new in-app media widget from Strava.
After initiating the recording of an activity, users can tap on the music icon located in the top-right corner of the Strava interface, and then link their Spotify account. Once the accounts are linked, users can browse through the Spotify widget and select the desired content to play without having to exit the Strava app.
The Spotify widget integrated within the Strava app can be accessed by both Spotify Free and Premium users. While Spotify Free users can shuffle through albums, playlists, and artists, they will not be able to select specific songs and may encounter intermittent ads.
On the other hand, Spotify Premium users have the flexibility to pick specific songs from their albums and playlists. However, options such as shuffling, queuing up specific songs, and searching for new content are only available through the Spotify app itself, rather than within the Strava app.