Spotify expands parent-managed accounts to users on its free tier

Spotify announced on Wednesday that it’s bringing parent-managed accounts for kids to its free tier. Families in the U.S., U.K., Australia, France, Germany, and the Netherlands can now create a “Managed Account” for their child, a feature previously available only to paid subscribers.

“Managed Accounts,” which launched in 2024, is a shared account feature that allows parents to control what their children listen to.

Since these accounts are separate, kids’ music choices won’t impact their parents’ algorithm or show up in their annual Spotify Wrapped experience. Children can add songs to their favorites, create their own playlists, and have their own personalized recommendations.

The expansion of Managed Accounts to free users reflects broader efforts by major tech companies to give parents greater control over how their children use online platforms, and which features are available to them in response to regulatory pressure.

With Managed Accounts, parents can control and restrict playback of specific artists and songs. By default, children can’t listen to music labeled as explicit, and video playback is also disabled by default. Interactivity features are also limited on managed accounts, which means that kids don’t get access to age-gated features like Messages.

Managed Accounts give parents more granular control over the music their child can listen to, without requiring them to use the more restrictive Spotify Kids app.

To set up the managed account, Family Plan account holders need to navigate to their account pages in the app, select the “Add a Member” option, and tap the “Add a listener aged under 13 (or the market equivalent)” option. From there, parents will be guided through some steps to get their child’s account set up, including choosing a display name and setting up content preferences. Parents have the option to make adjustments at any time.

Spotify says it plans to bring Managed Accounts to more countries soon.