Spotify is refining how podcast episode performance is displayed across its app, following backlash from creators after the platform first introduced a public-facing “Plays” metric, designed to provide more immediate insight into podcast engagement.
Earlier this month, Spotify announced that “Plays” would serve as a key new metric, distinguishing how many times a listener actively tapped into an episode, akin to YouTube’s “Views.” The platform framed the change as a way to give creators faster, broader visibility into content performance while helping users discover the most popular episodes more easily.
However, not everyone welcomed the shift. Some independent podcasters voiced concern that a public “Plays” count could intensify pressure to compete on popularity rather than content quality. Critics argue that such metrics favor large shows with built-in audiences and may discourage creative risk-taking among smaller creators.
Under the retooled system, listeners will no longer see exact play counts unless a show passes the 50K mark. From there, episodes will be labeled with milestone markers—starting at 50K and increasing to 100K, 250K, and beyond as listenership grows. Below that threshold, play counts will be hidden entirely.
Even with the change, Spotify maintains that “Plays” is meant to streamline the experience for fans and offer more celebratory benchmarks for creators, rather than detailed numerical transparency. Detailed data like exact play counts, streams, downloads, and new consumption hour metrics will remain accessible through Spotify for Creators and Megaphone dashboards regardless of episode size.
The company says its intent is to balance audience clarity with creator empowerment while continuing to educate users about how the platform’s measurement tools work.
