Syncing playlists across devices — and why local files stay put
Anything stored in the cloud — playlists, favourites, follows, listening history — appears on every device you sign in to. Anything stored on disk, meaning imported local audio files and cached data, stays on that device. Almost every "sync problem" people report is really this boundary being misunderstood.
What travels with the account
| Item | Follows the account | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Playlists and order | Yes | May need a refresh to line up |
| Favourites and follows | Yes | Immediate after sign-in |
| Imported local files | No | Per-device, rescan needed |
| Cached audio | No | Rebuilt as you listen |
| Offline downloads | No | Re-download on the new device |
| Quality and cache settings | No | Set per device on purpose |
Settings not syncing is a feature rather than a gap: you generally want a higher tier on a desktop with a wired connection and a lower one on a phone with a data cap.
A workable division of labour
- Desktop: build and reorder playlists. Multi-select and drag-and-drop make a 300-track cleanup a ten-minute job instead of an evening.
- Phone: daily listening and offline caching. Set the cache limit once and let it evict old entries.
- Tablet: casual listening. Note that some settings sit in a second-level sidebar menu and take a moment to find.
Moving to a new device
- Sign in — playlists and favourites come back on their own.
- Copy your own audio files across, then point the client at that folder and rescan.
- Re-download whatever you need offline; downloads do not transfer.
- Set the streaming tier, cache limit and download folder again, since these are per-device.
When order or counts look wrong
Two harmless causes cover most cases: a refresh lag, and local files counted on one device but not another, which makes track counts differ. Neither indicates data loss. If a playlist genuinely looks incomplete, check the same playlist in the web player — that tells you whether the issue is the client or the data.
Greyed-out tracks are a different matter entirely. They reflect licensing status for that title in your region, not sync. Reinstalling or switching devices will not bring them back; see the FAQ for details.
Summary
Draw the line at cloud versus disk and multi-device use stops being confusing. Keep playlist editing on the desktop, caching on the device you carry, and local files on one machine you actually back up. Installer details are on the download page, and setting locations are in the usage guide.
Related questions
Do local music files sync between devices?
No. Local music means files stored on that specific machine. Only cloud playlists, favourites and follows travel with the account. On a new device you have to copy the files over and rescan the folder.
Playlist order differs between my phone and laptop. Is something broken?
Usually not. It is a refresh lag. Pull to refresh on mobile, or sign out and back in on desktop, and the order lines up again.
Should I cache offline tracks on every device?
No reason to. Cache one device you actually carry. Duplicating offline downloads across three devices wastes storage without improving anything.
Next: Download · Usage guide · FAQ
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