Spotify has reported its first full year of profitability, with revenue and user numbers rising substantially in 2024’s fourth quarter.
The platform saw its total revenue grow by 16% year-over-year in Q4 to reach EU€4.2 billion, above its guidance of €4.1 billion. Its monthly active users were up 12% year-over-year, and are now 675 million.
“I am very excited about 2025 and feel really good about where we are as both a product and as a business,” said Spotify CEO Daniel Ek.
“We will continue to place bets that will drive long term impact, increasing our speed while maintaining the levels of efficiency we achieved last year. It’s this combination that will enable us to build the best and most valuable user experience, grow sustainably and deliver creativity to the world.”
Spotify saw its premium subscriber numbers increase by 11% year-over-year in Q4 to 263 million, exceeding its guidance of 260 million. Growth was due to its holiday-related and Spotify Wrapped campaigns, as well as weakened competitors in some developing markets.
Its operating income and free cash flow both reached a new record high, with operating income at EU€477 million and free cash flow at €877 million. Operating expenses fell by 16% year-over-year.
Gross profits increased to €1.37 billion, up by 40% year-over-year and 10% over Q3. This will be Spotify's first fully profitable year since its launch.
The platform’s basic earnings per share were EU€1.81, up from €1.49 the previous quarter. In 2023’s Q4, Spotify reported basic losses of €0.36 per share.
Spotify continued its expansion into podcasting this year, releasing a new monetisation program and analytics suite for podcast creators. It also added a number of features to its video podcasts, offering users personalised recommendations and a comments section. More than 270 million users have watched a video podcast on Spotify, the company said.
The company paid a record US$10 billion in royalties to the music industry in 2024.
Spotify projects monthly active users will rise to 678 million in 2025’s Q1, with revenue increasing to EU€4.2 billion.
Spotify’s share price (NYSE: SPOT) soared to close at US$621.77, up 13.2% from its previous close at $549.08. Its market capitalisation is $125.65 billion.
