Spotify lagging/stuttering PC when on the Home screen

[SpottyFyee]

I had no issues with the desktop app for years, then suddenly about a month or so ago the issue started. When I launch Spotify, it lags the entire computer for several seconds, and the same thing can happen when tabbing back into the app after a while.

Eventually I noticed it only happened on the Home screen view - if i clicked fast into a playlist view during the app startup, it stuttered for a shorter moment, and the stutter occurs every time if I click into the Home screen on my own. The same thing happens with the web browser version.

I tried the troubleshooting tips and nothing helped. My computer is up to date, I did a clean reinstall of Spotify, and the system installation itself is pretty new too (and the Spotify issue didn't appear until some time later). Other threads on this topic seem to go back even to 2017 which is pretty discouraging. What do I do with this. There's not even a way to disable the Home screen itself, so every time I start Spotify I have to click fast into a random playlist.

Plan

Premium

Country

Poland

Device/System

PC with Win10

[Maria]

Hey @SpottyFyee,

Thanks for reaching out!

Just to check, have you tried clearing hosts file from your PC? You can do so by following the steps here.

Also, if possible, could you ask a friend or a family member to log in to their own Spotify account on your device to see if they experience the same thing?

Should this behavior persist, however, it would be great if you could let us know the following:

• Make & model of your device.
• Current Spotify version.
• Any other troubleshooting steps that you've tried so far (this will help us avoid repeating steps).

Keep us posted!

[SpottyFyee]

Hi Maria! I went into the host file, and there were no Spotify entires to remove. I also logged in with a family member's account, and the Home screen had the exact same behavior as on my own account.

For the troubleshooting, I did all the steps in the [Troubleshooting] Windows topic, and tried the app with and without the hardware acceleration, cleaned the Spotify cache, and restarted my router just to see if that did anything. I did a clean reinstall of the Windows Store version of Spotify, then tried again with the installator from the Spotify website. After one clean reinstall it seemed to work properly for one launch, then it went back to the stutter.

More info about the PC:

64bit Win10 Pro

Prime Z790-P WIFI motherboard

Intel i7-12700k CPU

Nvidia GeForce RTX 4080 GPU

64GB RAM

Spotify version:
1.2.49.439.gfae492c7

[Yordan]

Thanks for the info @SpottyFyee!

Looks like the issue is not account-related in this case. To confirm this, could you log in to your account on another PC? A friend's or a relative's would do. It's also worth checking if the same behavior occurs in Safe Mode with Networking on your PC.

Let us know how it goes 👍

[oTray]

Got exactly same problem

[OscarDC]

Hey @oTray,

Welcome to the Community and thank you for joining the conversation.

Just to make sure we're on the same page, have you tried the troubleshooting mentioned previously? If not, would you mind performing a clean reinstall of the app to see if it makes any difference?

If the issue persists, if you installed the app from the official website, we'd recommend installing the version available in the Microsoft store (or vice versa) to see if it has the same behavior. 

Lastly, include in your next response the OS version of your device, along with the Spotify version you're currently running to continue investigating the case.

We'll be waiting for your response.

[Chrissi2812]

Got exactly the same problem. 
Had the Windows Store Version before and now the Version from the Official Page and still stutters.

Don't know if it helps but I noticed it after I recently swapped my graphicscard from Nvidia to an AMD one.

Spotify für Windows (64 Bit)
1.2.51.345.gcc39d911
Windows 11 Pro
Version 23H2
Betriebssystembuild 22631.4460
Leistung Windows Feature Experience Pack 1000.22700.1047.0

[Therrise]

Same here.

Im using the Microsoft Store version 

Windows (64 bit) için Spotify
1.2.51.345.gcc39d911

Edisyon Windows 11 Home
Sürüm 23H2
İS derlemesi 22631.4541
Deneyim Windows Özellik Deneyimi Paketi 1000.22700.1055.0

[Vasil]

Hey folks!

Thank you for sharing all these details!
We've taken the issue backstage and it'll hopefully get looked into soon 🙌🏼

@Therrise & @Chrissi2812, could you take a look if your systems' hardware is in any way similar to what @SpottyFyee has shared with us? We'd also like you to check and let us know if your GPU drivers are up to date. I'd check the rest of drivers too just to be sure.

Many thanks in advance! We'll be on the lookout for your replies 🙂

[caden0612]

Getting sick of the nonstop stuttering and lagging on the Desktop app.

I've had Spotify for YEARSS but as of recently the lagging and stuttering on the desktop application has made it almost unusable. Every time I load Spotify I get instant stuttering and lagging, when I try to click on the home menu or click on a playlist INSTANT STUTTERING. I'm not sure what to do anymore, below I've listed all the steps I've tried.
Cleared spotify cache
Reinstalled spotify completely
Turned off hardware acceleration and canvas displays
Restarted pc
Updated pc drivers
Removed all downloads playlists and songs
My PC Specs:
Intel i5 11600KF
32.0GB of DDR4 Ram
Z590-V Motherboard
RTX 3070 Founders Edition
Spotify is downloaded on my SSD
Does anybody have a viable solution to this? I'm not sure if it's one of Spotify's recent updates or if my computer is having issues, but I'm at a loss here. 

[BRCook]

Same issue here. Windows will stutter for about a minute when opening Spotify. Monitors connected via HDMI will flicker on and off, but not those connected via DisplayPort, strangely. CPU usage sits at 15-20% during the stuttering, then drops to ~2% during normal use.

Windows 10 Build 19045

AMD R7 5800X3D

64 GB RAM

RTX 3090

[Derid]

Same issue. Please fix it! My system:

Windows 11 23H2

AMD Ryzen 5700X

32GB RAM

RADEON RX590

[citrusun]

same here, only been happening recently on my windows 10 dell laptop. it seems to go away after a couple songs but it keeps making me think my whole computer is lagging lol

[Grab0]

Sooooo, not only you broke the GUI which was the best part of this app, but now you just broke it completely and don't do anything about for at least 6 months???? RIDICULOUS
My i9 clocking above 5Ghz goes down on both knees when I just glance at Spotify.
What I found out to help, is to quickly switch to Task Manager and this calms this **bleep** down. When you see a green leaf next to this app in the Task Manager right click it and disable efficiency mode. This helps, but only for short time before it switches itself back on. This I think, is a great gift from Intel and Dell in my case. Most expensive hardware chocked to death by unwanted and uncontrolled throttling.... This does not make Spotify any less guilty of shitting on people who actually liked the app.

[Grab0]

So, I have already spent 25 minutes trying to solve this problem, which is more than Spotify spent in last 6 months, judging on this thread alone. What I have found now is even more ridiculous. Performance problems go away when you maximize the window (rectangle icon in right corner / right side of the title bar, the one by the x (which also resolves Spotify problems XD))
Second method is to get to Details tab of Task Manager, hunt down all Spotify threads and try to give each higher priority. Don't be afraid to go to maximum one (Realtime) - it can't be any worse, can it? You can change priority of one instance and than switch to Spotify window (in windowed (not full screen) mode. If you hover you mouse over the playing clips you will either get super lag as usual or not if you were lucky with adjusting he priority. Obviously the idea to make dozen mini video players to switch as you move your mouse is ill conceived, but here it's also the worst possible implementation, almost hard to believe they published it at all, not to mention just leaving that for months... Why can't you just put the freaking PLAYLIST in the center column as it's the MAIN feature you have there. Not any of that web **bleep** you currently try to shove us. We PAID for the working APP with a PLAYLIST.

[Glassycolors]

Having the same issue. It's been ongoing for months for me now and I have yet to find a solution that works. I've cleared my cache, I've tried hardware acceleration, I've done clean installs from both the official spotify site AND windows store, even tried editing settings for my graphics card....nothing seems to fix the horrendous lag I get and its all from just the home page being open, nothing else ever gives me any trouble

[redi41]

This stuttering started for me too recently. Looks like it's not hardware related. On start up of Spotify desktop client, it lags for a good while before calming down. This is visualized by mouse stutter on screen and overall unresponsiveness of the client. Despite calming down, the issue persists in a way that alt-tabbing from another software back to Spotify it gives a small lag before registering user input (and does following actions performed by user).

Windows 10 pro 22H2

Intel i7 7700k

Nvidia gtx 1070

Crucial ssd

Kingston(?) 16gb ddr4

Spotify – Windows (64-bit)
1.2.51.345.gcc39d911

[LupusCarnifex]

Lemme add to this. The lag problem appeared recently. Occurs when opening the app, bringing it up from being minimized, switching from playlist view to Home and vice versa.
After a whole lot of troubleshooting, I have noticed that the problem does not occur if I unplug my fourth monitor. It's a Wacom tablet, that connects via USB 2.0 (DisplayLink, or a similar solution - it creates a virtual display adapter). Unplugging the tablet stops the lagging immediately. However, unplugging any of the regular displays (HDMI/DP) does not have any effect.
Not sure what to do with this, as it doesn't really help me, I'd like to keep my extra screen, and keep using the app. Maybe it will useful in your investigation.

Spotify for Windows (64 bit)
1.2.51.345.gcc39d911
AMD Ryzen 7 7800X3D
NZXT N7 B650e

Corsair Vengeance RGB, DDR5, 32 GB, 6000MHz, CL30
Windows 10 x64
Everything's up to date, did multiple reinstalls, tried switching HA off, etc.

[kris83]

I have the same issue. It started recently (like 2 weeks ago) and it's the most noticeable when my machine has just booted and I open spotify. Mouse/input lag for like 30 seconds. After that initial hiccup it's mostly fine though. But I do have a brand new and high-end PC so this is definitely not normal and should be looked after.

Edit: it's not fine after the initial hiccup. as soon ass I go back to the home screen it starts lagging again. I never noticed this since I almost never go back to the "home" screen. 

Spotify for Windows (64 bit)
1.2.51.345.gcc39d911

AMD Ryzen 9 7950X3D

Nvidia Geforce RTX 4070 Super

G.Skill DDR5-6000 CL30 RAM

Windows 11 Pro 10.0.22631 Build 22631

[Froink]

Same here! Also dealing with this issue. I'm assuming it's GPU-related, but shouldn't be a problem for me since I'm running pretty new hardware.