Spotify requires some Premium family members to personally scan a QR code on the plan manager’s phone.
The code is located in the Spotify mobile app under the Premium settings of the plan manager and is refreshed every few seconds, so a screenshot sent via the messaging app will not pass verification.
Because of that refresh cycle, both people need to be standing in the same place with the latest version of the app installed.
The QR step stands in addition to the existing process described at Spotify support pageswhere members enter their full address when they join, when a manager moves, or when Spotify can’t confirm a match.
Whichever method Spotify asks for, members have seven days to complete it after they receive the request, and anyone who misses that window drops to the free tier with ads and loses access to other family or duo plans for 12 months.
This restriction does not mean a complete lock-out as affected members can still rejoin the original Family Plan or pay for an individual subscription such as Premium Individual over a 12-month period.
Workarounds and earlier crashes
Those fines are already coming, with Reddit users describing sudden inquiries for members who live far away from their plan manager, with some saying they’ve passed verification by sharing the code screen to another device.
The QR check isn’t Spotify’s first attempt to control family plans, as the company tried GPS-based location checks in 2018 and wrote periodic location checks into its terms in 2019.
User pushback over privacy concerns dampened those earlier efforts, and Spotify’s support pages now state that the company doesn’t track members’ locations and only verifies addresses when verifying a plan.
Streaming rules and prices in the UK
Home enforcement has become standard across streaming, with Netflix restricting password sharing in 2023 and other music and video services using periodic Wi-Fi check-ins to verify family plan members are living together.
Spotify’s own pricing shows what’s at stake for UK users sharing a plan, with Premium Family costing £21.99 a month for up to six accounts compared to £17.99 for Duo and £12.99 for Premium Individual.
Spotify didn’t say how many members will get QR prompts or whether the check will reach every market, and its support pages say the QR request applies to some members of the Premium family, not all of them.
