The ♡ Heart button is being replaced with a (+) Plus button

[MattSuda]

In March 2023, the ♡ Heart button will start being replaced with a (+) Plus button for saving things to Your Library. Things that have been saved to Your Library will now show a green ✔ Check icon instead of a green Heart icon.

This new experience is now rolling out to the mobile and desktop apps first and will then come to the other apps (watch, TV, etc.) at a later time.

You can check out this Spotify news article for more information:

Save Your Favorite Songs, Podcasts, and More With Spotify’s Plus Button

In this post, we will show you how to use the new experience and answer your questions. You might have already seen this change being discussed in the Community recently.

New Experience:

                                   

Old Experience:

                      

How does the (+) Plus button work?

• The experience will remain similar for you. When you tap the (+) Plus button from the Now Playing View, songs will be saved to your Liked Songs. The only difference is that now you can quickly tap the (+) Plus button again to add the song to your other playlists too! When you tap the button again, you'll also see the other playlists that the song has already been added to with a green ✔ Check icon.

• The experience is the same for Podcast Episodes. You can tap the (+) Plus button to save podcast episodes to Your Episodes, and then tap the button again to add the podcast episode to your other playlists too.

• Once you tap on the (+) Plus button, the icon will change to a green ✔ Check to let you know that the track has been saved.
  
  
• The green ✔ Check icon also shows up next to the songs that are saved to Your Library on Album and Playlist pages. (but not when viewing your own playlists, only other playlists)
  
  When you see a green ✔ Check icon on a song, it means that it has been saved to Your Library. A song added to either (or both) Liked Songs or one of your own playlists counts as being saved to Your Library. Before with the heart button, the green heart icon meant that the song was saved only to your Liked Songs.
  
  If a song has a green ✔ Check icon because is has already been added to one of your playlists, you can still add it to your Liked Songs playlist. Tap on the green ✔ Check icon and select your Liked Songs playlist from the menu and it will be added.

• The (+) Plus button will also still let you save Playlists, Albums, and Audiobooks to Your Library.

• This change will not affect the things you have already saved to Your Library. The songs you've previously saved will remain in Liked Songs. The Playlists, Albums, Podcasts, and Audiobooks you've previously saved will remain in Your Library.

• The "Add to playlist" icon in the options menu will also become a (+) Plus, but the functionality remains the same.

FAQ:

This section will answer your frequently asked questions and will be updated with the latest answers.

Why are the 💚 green heart icons next to songs I've already liked missing? I used to be able to see the songs I've previously liked when viewing songs on Album and Playlist pages.

• The green 💚 Heart icon has been replaced with a green ✔ Check icon
  
  
• The green ✔ Check icon shows up next to the songs that are saved to Your Library on Album and Playlist pages. (but not when viewing your own playlists, only other playlists)
  
  
• When you see a green ✔ Check icon on a song, it means that it has been saved to Your Library. A song added to either (or both) Liked Songs or one of your own playlists counts as being saved to Your Library. Before with the heart button, the green heart icon meant that the song was saved only to your Liked Songs.
  
  
• If you don't yet see the green ✔ Check icon next to songs in track listings (Album and Playlist pages), you should see this once it rolls out to more users.

I want to add a song to a playlist from the Now Playing View, but I don't want to save it to my Liked Songs. Why do I have to save the song to Liked Songs first?

• The (+) Plus button will let you edit the destination of the song you liked. After you have tapped the button from the Now Playing View, you can tap it again to change or add it to more playlists.

• Alternatively, you can still add a song to playlists without saving it to Liked Songs. Go to the options menu by first tapping the "..." icon and then tap on "Add to Playlist" to select the playlist(s) you want to add the song to.

How do I remove a song from Liked Songs or my other playlists now?

How do I remove a podcast episode from Your Episodes or my other playlists now?

• Songs: This same function can now be done by tapping the green ✔ Check button on the Now Playing View or by going to the options menu and tapping on "Add to playlist". After tapping the button or the option in the options menu, uncheck the "Liked Songs" playlist and then tap on the green "Done" button at the bottom. You can also use this menu to remove the song from your other playlists.

• Podcast Episodes: This same function can now be done by tapping the green ✔ Check button on the Now Playing View, on Podcast pages, or by going to the options menu and tapping on "Add to playlist". After tapping the button or the option in the options menu, uncheck the "Your Episodes" playlist and then tap on the green "Done" button at the bottom. You can also use this menu to remove the podcast episode from your other playlists.

What happened to the "Like all songs" menu option on Album pages in the mobile app?

• This same function can now be done by tapping the "Add to playlist" menu option on an album page and then selecting the "Liked Songs" playlist.

What happened to the "Swipe left to Like" gesture to quickly like and unlike songs in the mobile app?

• When you use the "Swipe left to Like" gesture on songs in playlists or in album pages, the song will still be saved to Liked Songs. However, now when you swipe again, the "Add to playlist" menu will open up so you can now quickly add to or remove from Liked Songs and your other playlists all in one step.

Why can I no longer add a song to a playlist more than once using the "Add to playlist" menu in the mobile app? There used to be a popup telling me if a song was already added to a playlist and there was an option to ignore that and add it again.

• Right now the ability to add a song to a playlist more than once using the "Add to playlist" menu in the mobile app is currently not possible. As a workaround you can still add songs to a playlist more than once using the desktop app. In the desktop app, you can drag the song into the playlist, or use the "Add to playlist" option in the right click menu.

Feedback:

Where can I give my feedback about the new (+) Plus button?

• We welcome your feedback about this change. The best way to share your feedback is to comment here in this thread.

[disc_count]

Ba[b?]yecho: When you have 13,638 songs in your library and you're driving or need to see quickly if you've liked something on an album, this is not a solution. You could do it before without tapping on A N Y T H I N G. Just by LOOKING.

In addition, this issue combined with the fact that Spotify has been unliking songs in many users' libraries for years (including mine) makes it nearly impossible for me to even notice that I need to re-add songs once that happens... and it happens a lot!

I got a free month of premium as a result of this "update". I urge others to ask for the same and cite this thread. Money will likely catch this company's attention much quicker than any comments in this thread (although comments in here or on the app stores are also great).

[cheesywotsit]

There’s the odd person saying we need to get used to the update but in the original post it said they were bringing back the likes against song tracks soooo which is it?  Apart from the original post no one really knows do they.

Lots of chatter on forums and votes and stuff but basic things people want never get implemented.

But either way, after a lot of years I cancelled and took an offer on apple music.

I was pretty skeptical at first and didn’t like it. That too doesn’t even have likes in the same way.  It has “love” album and tracks and “dont like” which sways the recommendation system but it’s not taken away/broken something it never had.

I find the recommendation system really good, I can just get it to play music and it’s really just picking some great stuff.  It may be what spotify is trying to do but the implementation is terrible as is the communication to users.

If you need a blog post to explain how a button works then I’m sorry but thats a UI fail.

Apple wins hands down on the clean Ui.  It has both light and dark mode, and coloured backgrounds on albums.  Decent lyrics, karaoke mode where you can turn down the volume of just singing on songs,  *lossless playback*, decent album art.  Hey ho.

Don’t get me wrong, never say never but spotify’s gonna have to work hard now for me.

[BabyEcho0_YT]

@Efremych

I apologize for any mistakes I may have made in my words that were mistaken, And hey what you said was rude and yes i do use the app, please be more mindful and respectful to others (NOTE: It's important to pause and think before typing online. Consider how your words will be interpreted, the potential consequences of what you are about to say, and whether your comments will add value to the conversation. Taking a moment to think can help you engage in more respectful and productive conversations and you could be breaking one of the community guidelines) I'm just trying to help. I could report you but this for ME is your first warning and  what you're saying is an example. Next time when I see that you've been saying rude stuff I will report you and  i will be looking through your recent replies but ONLY if i have too.Thank you for understanding.

(The red means not respectful and the underline words were misspelled/not made sense in the sentence.)

Efremych/Music Fan/5 hours ago

@乃卂乃ㄚ乇匚卄ㄖ0 

You're funny. Have you been thinking about all this for a long time? Do you use the app at all on your phone? These tips have nothing to do with reality  

-𝓑𝓪𝔂𝓔𝓬𝓱𝓸0

[disc_count]

The first step to helping is good listening.

[BabyEcho0_YT]

@disc_countThanks for your kindness!!

Hey there, Welcome to the Community!! 😉

thanks for responding to the community!

that there is true

-𝓑𝓪𝔂𝓔𝓬𝓱𝓸0

[betonowyzolw]

Question, why do you beta test your ideas and features which are at best half-functional on users that pay for the service? That's pathetic, telling much about the quality of service this company provides.

Now the 'plus' button is lit if the song isn't liked but is on a playlist and I have to click on it check that. Tell me, how is that better than the previous behavior? I want to know whether I liked the song straight away, I don't care if it's on a playlist.

[BabyEcho0_YT]

@betonowyzolw

Hey there, Welcome to the Community!! 😉

The new behavior is better because it eliminates the need to check if the song is already liked or not. By highlighting the 'plus' button, it makes it easier to quickly identify if the song has been liked or not. Additionally, it also helps users to identify which songs are on playlists, allowing them to browse and add songs from their playlists more easily.

-𝓑𝓪𝔂𝓔𝓬𝓱𝓸0

[betonowyzolw]

@乃卂乃ㄚ乇匚卄ㄖ0

What it eliminates is exactly the functionality I was writing about, because the heart button was showing exactly that. You're wrong about the '+' button - it is is highlighted if the song is either liked or added to a playlist (or both). I want to know whether it's liked without clicking the button and '+' highlight doesn't provide this information.

[disc_count]

Old UI: Heart shows whether song is liked or not

New UI: Check indicates that a song is either:

a) liked but not on a playlist

b) liked and also on a playlist or

c) not liked and on a playlist

and on top of that also hides that ambiguous symbol behind a "..." when the check mark could easily fit on the screen.

That's like saying I made a better traffic light: Instead of red, yellow, and green lights clearly indicating what the driver should do, the traffic light now has this one green light for every scenario. Oh and I've also hidden the traffic light so you can't see it from your car while driving. It's such a huge improvement!

That's not an improvement. That's objectively bad design.

[BabyEcho0_YT]

@betonowyzolw

I understand why Spotify wants to simplify the interface and make it easier to use, but I think the removal of the heart button has caused more confusion than good. Many users are unaware of the '+' button and don't understand what it does. It would be better if the '+' button could show whether the song is liked or not, so that users can quickly see if they have liked a song without having to click the button.

-𝓑𝓪𝔂𝓔𝓬𝓱𝓸0

[havenhillm5]

I am a long distance runner and play Spotify while I run and usually listen to new songs on other peoples playlist so during my run I just look down at my Apple Watch to see if I have already liked the song or not. How am I supposed to do this now when the plus button literally means that it’s just been added to a playlist I just want to know if it has been liked or not. With the heart it was very easy to look down and press the heart if I liked the song and wanted to add it to a playlist later after my run. Now it changing my whole running routine which is very frustrating. I could go on all day about how this change is not for the better with every situation in my life. 🥲

[damyang]

Quote:

"... It would be better if the '+' button could show whether the song is liked or not, so that users can quickly see if they have liked a song without having to click the button."

-𝓑𝓪𝔂𝓔𝓬𝓱𝓸0

And me adding:

Or maybe just adding "+" button next to the "heart" button on the upper side of the UI and keep existing "heart" next to the songs in playlists.

[Efremych]

Or maybe

• green “v” - track was added to liked songs (and It doesn't matter if the track is in the library)

• black “v” - track wasn’t added to liked songs and was added to the library

• “+” - track wasn’t added to the library (or just only added to the currently playing playlist)

maybe

• dubble tap - add/remove track to liked tracks

• “long” swipe - add/remove track to liked tracks

and keep existing "heart" next to the songs in playlists.

maybe…

[BringBackTheHeart2]

I use playlists to discover new music. I go through numerous Spotify, artist and community playlists - like Altar, track ID playlists and record label suggestions. I put these into my own playlists which I update weekly. I also have ‘crate digging’ playlists that can have thousands of songs I want to listen to. I then listen through to these playlists and ‘like’ the songs I like (wow how intuitive) and also sort those songs into various playlists - songs I want to buy, songs I want to put into sets, I also record my mix ideas by adding tracks to a playlist [in order for this to work I need to be able to add a song more than once, as a song can transition into numerous tracks]. 

Conflating songs I like with songs I might have added to any of my numerous ‘to listen’ playlists is absolutely useless. Changing the design so I now have to listen to a song, click the plus button, then check if one of the playlists the track belongs to is ‘liked songs’ is absolutely useless. Not being able to add a track to the same playlist more than once is absolutely useless. 

I now can no longer use Spotify in the way that I want - no amount of clicking will workaround the fact that they’ve removed functionality that enabled my workflow. My workflow might not be typical, but a good app will have functionality that affords flexibility in workflow. A good app does not impose arbitrary changes, despite user protest and monolithically negative feedback, arbitrarily. 

Some people are defending this change, while conceding that it is not optimal, removes useful functionality and is irritating users. This seems to come from a place of very misguided loyalty. Blindly defending a company or service or app (anything) while it worsens due to human decisions only hastens that things decline (and demise). Constructive criticism is actually a better form of brand loyalty, as it might see their service improve (or in Spotify’s case, prevent their complete self sabotage). Don’t enable the design team

making the app worse by acting as if this change is inevitable (this is how it is now) or something to be happy about. Doing so will only make things worse. 

[Alexwiese]

Plan

Premium

Country

Australia 

Device

iPhone 14 Pro max

the like song button on Home Screen is missing, the like song button on the song context menu is missing, the heart icon showing what songs you’ve liked is missing. Please revert this change. 

[iconicfourdoor]

1.  Did spotifys UI team actually take the time to justify why you should have to click the check mark, click “liked songs”, then dismiss the popup rather than just click the heart to remove a liked song? Seriously? Even worse, the check mark is so sterile and boring compared to a heart. I might use my old iphone backup just because it has old spotify. This is bad.

I just don’t understand who asked for this - i can no longer remove songs i don’t like with one button. Now it takes three presses.

[kaworu_bloodpaw]

Hi @Alexwiese

In March, Spotify replaced the heart icon with a plus in the Now Playing view in the Spotify mobile app. This change will come to other devices at a later time. This change also includes the icon showing if you've liked a track next to the title. According to the FAQ section in the post linked below, this feature is planned to be reimplemented.

Check out this blog post to learn more.

If my answer was useful, don't forget to give it a 'Like!' If my answer was the solution, don't forget to mark it as the solution! Thanks! 😇

If you need anything else, please reply and ask, or shoot me a Private Message! Feel free to follow my Spotify or Community profiles!  Disclaimer: I am not affiliated with Spotify.

[ericbuman]

Better Business Bureau Complaint!!!

Here’s a link to file a complaint with the Better Business Bureau.

https://www.bbb.org/file-a-complaint/0121-127561 

Maybe Spotify will listen if we get enough complaints here!!!!

[disc_count]

@BringBackTheHeart2 Wow, just realized after reading your post that adding multiple of the same track to the same playlist is broken as a result of these changes in addition to the other things I mentioned on this thread already. I have a mix idea playlist as well and often add multiple of the same song to it, especially while driving or on the go. This ruins that workflow for me as well. What a mess.

[StopTheBadChanges]

Bring back likes. There was something special about liking a song before, now its just acting as a playlist and makes it harder if you want to add something to a playlist without liking it. You have to add to to your liked songs, add it to your playlist, remove it from liked songs...? What was the though process behind this change. Can't even see which songs are liked in a list anymore. Whats with the random unnecassary changes noone asked for?