Can I Play Spotify in My Business in the UK?

Short answer: no. Spotify, including Premium, is licensed for personal, non-commercial listening only. Playing it in a shop, café, salon, gym or any UK business where customers or staff can hear it breaks Spotify’s terms of service, regardless of which plan you are on. The same applies to Apple Music, YouTube and Amazon Music. A personal subscription covers you at home, but never across a commercial floor.

Two separate problems

First, Spotify’s terms explicitly prohibit commercial use. Second, even if Spotify did allow it, you would still need a public performance licence from PPL PRS (TheMusicLicence). Spotify covers streaming rights, not the commercial right to play music where the public can hear it. In the UK, that public performance right is administered by PPL PRS, the joint venture of PPL and PRS for Music, and actively enforced under the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988.

PPL PRS actively contacts businesses playing unlicensed music. They send letters, make phone calls, visit premises and use music recognition technology. Businesses are also reported by competitors and former staff. “Too small to notice” is not a real category.

These services also log when an account streams the same playlist for eight hours a day, seven days a week, and licensing bodies treat that for exactly what it is: a business playing music without a licence. See the real penalties businesses face in the UK.

What playing music legally normally costs

Business type	TheMusicLicence + music source (per year)	Melodial (per year)
Small retail shop (up to 100m²)	£751+	£49.99
Café or restaurant (30 seats, background music)	£850 to £966+	£49.99
Hair or beauty salon (small to mid-size)	£652 to £788+	£49.99
Gym or fitness studio (recorded music, classes)	£3,132 to £6,055+	£49.99

TheMusicLicence fees are based on published tariffs and vary by business type, size and music use. Totals shown include a typical separate music streaming subscription.

And that is just the licence. You still need a music source on top.

What to use instead

Melodial is built for exactly this problem. Every track in the catalogue is owned or directly licensed by Melodial, and none of it is registered with PPL PRS or any other collecting society. Your subscription is your licence: the music, the commercial rights and a downloadable Certificate of Compliance, all for £4.99 per month.

1. Subscribe to Melodial, £4.99 per month, no contracts.
2. Play Melodial exclusively and switch off Spotify, radio and CDs.
3. Download your Certificate of Compliance as instant proof you are fully licensed.

Frequently asked questions

Can I play Spotify in my business in the UK?

No. Spotify’s terms of service prohibit commercial use, even with Premium. You would also need a separate public performance licence from PPL PRS, which costs hundreds or thousands per year on top.

Can I play YouTube or Apple Music in my business?

No. Their terms do not cover commercial use either. Playing them in a business is copyright infringement under the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988.

Will Spotify know I am using it in my business?

Streaming services log usage patterns, and a consumer account streaming the same playlists all day every day leaves a clear record of commercial use. Licensing inspectors also visit venues in person.

What is the legal alternative to Spotify for business?

A directly licensed service like Melodial. It includes the music and the commercial licence in one subscription for £4.99 per month, with a Certificate of Compliance you can download instantly.