How to Fix Spotify Waiting to Download/Not Downloading Songs

Have you ever encountered a situation where you added all the songs on Spotify to your download list and attempted to batch download them, only to find that none of the songs were downloaded or it keeps showing the "waiting to download" icon? Such instances can be quite frustrating, wasting both time and effort.

Many Spotify Premium subscribers have reported similar errors, prompting Spotify Official and many tech websites to provide tutorials on resolving Spotify download issues. Luckily, you don't have to search for solutions separately anymore. This article will comprehensively compile the reasons behind Spotify not downloading songs, offering some effective ways as well as a professional Spotify to MP3 converter, to help you overcome the troubles once and for all.

1. Why Is Spotify Not Downloading Songs?

In general, when facing this problem, your initial instinct would likely be to check the network status. However, when both the Wi-Fi and cellular data are confirmed to be stable, what is causing this error to occur? Here are some common factors that you can cross-reference with your situation before troubleshooting.

● App Version: Check and ensure that you are using the latest version of the Spotify program, as outdated versions may have errors affecting downloads or compatibility issues.
● Offline Mode: Verify whether your Spotify application is in "Offline Mode", as the download feature is only accessible when the application is online.
● Account Issues: Confirm that your Spotify Premium subscription has not expired and that there are no problems with your account.
● Regional Restrictions: Due to copyright restrictions, certain songs may be subject to regional limitations, preventing downloads in specific locations.
● Spotify Service Status: In rare instances, Spotify servers might experience disruptions for various reasons. You can check for relevant info on the official @SpotifyStatus Twitter account.

2. Fix Spotify Waiting to Download/Not Downloading Songs Issue

Spotify waiting to download errors is not hard to get rid of. If you have plugged in the problem according to the reasons listed above and confirmed that they are not causing it, here are 10 easy methods for you to figure out the issue completely. Please read.

Solution 1. Remove Spotify Download Limit

Spotify adds download limits (up to 10,000 downloads on 5 devices) to regulate the use of Spotify Premium services. It was possible to cause Spotify to wait for a download error, making the app fail to store music in the offline library for you once exceeding this amount. Therefore, it is recommended that you regularly check your offline library and remove those you are not willing to keep anymore.

To remove existing downloads, simply access and open the downloaded playlist and toggle off the "Downloaded" option. By confirming "Remove", all downloaded songs contained in the Spotify playlist will be removed from your offline library in no time. In this way, you can always ensure that there are enough quotas to save new Spotify songs for offline streaming.

Solution 2. Re-connect to Faster Network

In some cases, Spotify would keep notifying you it is waiting to download because of the unstable network condition. You can check your network status to see if the Wi-Fi or the mobile signal is weak. In terms of this, you are recommended to alter to another network connection or reset it to re-enable stabler Internet connectivity, allowing Spotify to proceed with the music download for you more quickly.

It is possible to change the cellular setting from Wi-Fi if it is too weak to handle Spotify Music downloads or Spotify not downloading on data. To make the change, please turn to "Settings > Music Quality" and toggle on the Downloading using the Cellular option. When your device is connected to a stable network, Spotify waiting-to-download issues will be easily fixed.

Related Reading: Fixed: Spotify Says Offline Even When Connected to WiFi

Solution 3. Clear Device Storage

Another possible reason causing Spotify to wait to download should be the insufficient storage you left on your device, in that you have to make sure to prepare enough storage to keep them offline. When Spotify songs fail to proceed with downloading and are just waiting in the queue, please double-check your device storage to see if it has run out of space to save more downloads. If yes, free it up by deleting some unnecessary files, and photos, or uninstall unused applications and try again.

Solution 4. Clear Spotify App Cache

Similar to device storage space, when the Spotify app runs, it uses the device's operational memory and generates numerous caches, which can also be a cause of Spotify not downloading on iPhone/Android. Therefore, it's essential to regularly clear the cache of the Spotify app to ensure its smooth operation and fix Spotify download problems on computers or mobile devices.

To do this, just simply navigate to "Settings" on the Spotify App, find the "Clear Cache" option, and press it.

Solution 5. Check Spotify Settings

At times, certain songs may be unable to download due to your personalized settings on Spotify. For instance, if the chosen download audio quality does not match the actual quality provided by the song, it can result in the Spotify download getting stuck and not progressing. Similarly, if you have configured your settings to block explicit content, but one of the songs you wish to download is tagged with an "E" label by Spotify, it won't be successfully downloaded.

To address this issue, you can temporarily adjust these options in the "Settings" menu. Once the song downloads are complete, you can then revert these settings to their original configuration.

Solution 6. Turn Off Other Apps

As mentioned earlier, the operational memory on devices is limited. Downloading Spotify songs can be quite CPU-intensive, which may lead to your device reaching its capacity and causing the Spotify song downloads to halt. Additionally, if it's for an Android phone or a Windows computer and they have installed programs like "memory cleaners" or "device assistants," they may perceive Spotify's song download operations as high-load actions and restrict them in the background.

Given this situation, if you want to download Spotify songs via its app, it is advisable to proactively close all other apps, leaving sufficient place for Spotify to operate smoothly.

Solution 7. Disable Antivirus or Firewall

If you have installed any antivirus or firewall protection app on computers to safeguard your devices, they are the possible reasons causing Spotify to wait for download issue unexpectedly. Therefore, it is possible to double-check whether Spotify is prohibited by such protection applications that run improperly for you. On Windows, please follow the procedures provided below to free Spotify from the banned list and enable the download function to work properly again:

1. Head to "Control Panel > System Security > Windows Defender Firewall".

2. Select "Allow" an app or feature from the sidebar.

3. Scroll the list to find "Spotify.exe" and check the Public box.

Once complete, please try processing Spotify download again to see if the problem has been resolved.

Solution 8. Check Authorized Devices

As mentioned before, Spotify places a download limit on only 5 authorized devices with one single Spotify account. Therefore, when Spotify waiting for downloading circumstances occurs, you ought to consider whether your account has been logged into over 5 devices, in that the Premium function fails to work for you. To resolve this problem, simply locate the target device and remove it from your account to try again. In most cases, the issue will be successfully resolved.

Solution 9. Uninstall & Reinstall Spotify App

At times, when the Spotify app has been running for so long, unexplained issues may arise. Therefore, in addition to the solutions mentioned above, you might also consider uninstalling Spotify from your device to address the problem of songs not downloading. When reinstalling, ensure that you install the latest version of Spotify on your device.

Solution 10. Contact Spotify Official Help

Finally, if the above solutions don't help, you can directly contact Spotify's Official Support to check if something is wrong with your account, which restricts you from downloading songs and leads to Spotify not downloading songs issues.

3. How to Bypass Spotify Stuck Downloading Permanently

When Spotify Premium still has unexpected errors and restrictions to processing Spotify Music downloads for you, some of you may wonder if it can remove Spotify download limits and bypass Spotify waiting to download.

TuneFab Spotify Music Converter is the one to help. It directly embeds the Spotify web player, so you can directly select the Spotify tracks/playlists/albums/podcasts to process the 35X-faster download even without Spotify Premium and its app. In addition, you can get unlimited Spotify downloads in MP3, M4A, WAV, FLAC, AIFF, AAC, and ALAC lossless audio files with ID3 info, and then easily transfer them to any device you like to manage them or share them with your friends.

Now, let's walk through simple manipulations to preview how to use TuneFab Spotify Music Converter to solve Spotify not downloading songs error without the download limit.

Step 1. Open TuneFab Spotify Music Converter, click on the "Open the Spotify web player" button on the screen to enter the main feed, and tap the "LOG IN" option to complete the Spotify account authorization.

Step 2. After logging in, please search for the Spotify songs and playlists you wish to download. Subsequently, drag them to the "Add" button and wait for the conversion to proceed.

Step 3. To further personalize the output quality, location, and archive, you can turn to "Menu > Preferences" to adjust them under the "General" and "Advanced" modules.

Once finished, click the "Convert All" button to initiate the batch conversion. Once the download completes, turn to "Finished" to "View Output File".

Final Words

It would be frustrating when you are going to process a Spotify playlist download but discover Spotify not downloading songs for you. Therefore, with this post provided, you can easily remove the Spotify waiting to download error with the methods shown above, or completely get rid of all sorts of Spotify Premium issues by trying the alternative TuneFab Spotify Music Converter. As the program offers a free version, feel free to install it and start an effortless Spotify offline streaming without Premium!