Spotify Lets US Users Directly Edit Their Recommendation Algorithm

Spotify is rolling out Taste Profile to Premium users across the US, handing listeners direct control over the algorithmic engine that powers the service's recommendations. The feature, which launched in beta in New Zealand earlier this year, lets subscribers see how the platform interprets their listening habits—and reshape that understanding through conversational commands.

How It Works#

Users can access Taste Profile via their mobile app by tapping their profile picture and selecting the feature. Rather than passive tweaking, the tool leverages AI to interpret natural language requests: users can ask for more variety in a genre, dial down recommendations for certain artists, or adjust the overall vibe—say, more energizing tracks versus mellow ones. After submission, Spotify's system processes the request and refreshes the Home feed's suggestions within hours.

The feature also extends beyond music. Subscribers can now steer podcast and audiobook recommendations the same way, offering more granular control across Spotify's full catalog.

Addressing a Long-standing Friction Point#

Spotify's recommendation algorithm has been central to its competitive advantage, driving both discovery and retention. Yet the system has historically struggled with nuance: users often find themselves drowning in the same few artists or genres when their tastes evolve, or watching irrelevant content—like sleep sounds or music a teenager plays on a shared account—skew their personal recommendations.

The platform introduced incremental fixes over the past two years, letting users exclude individual tracks or playlists from their taste profile, and more recently preventing children's music from affecting parent recommendations. Taste Profile represents a more direct solution: letting users actively shape the algorithm rather than just blocking outliers.

Expansion and Timeline#

The feature was first announced in March at SXSW by co-CEO Gustav Söderström. The US rollout—Spotify's largest market by traffic and revenue—will test the tool among users 18 and older at a much broader scale than the New Zealand pilot. However, Spotify has not disclosed when Taste Profile will exit beta or become universally available.

The underlying model powers recommendations across Discover Weekly, Made for You playlists, and the annual Spotify Wrapped feature.