- Spotify has rolled out new upgrades for its Messages tabs, the first new update of 2026
- You can now view what your friends are listening to in real time through chats in your Spotify Messages, and send requests to join Jams
- There’s also talk of groups chats making an appearance in the future, but it’s all hush-hush at the moment
We’re only a week into the new year and Spotify is already rolling out its first major upgrade of 2026, building on last year’s Messages feature with two new additions: Request to Jam, and Listening activity.
As of today, Messages will give Premium subscribers on iOS and Android an insight to what your friends are listening to via an opt-in feature that shows your current listening activity in the Messages tab.
You’ll also be able to send Jam requests directly though the Spotify app, which for me is where the real money’s at.
Joining Jams just got a lot easier
If like me you rely on Jams for group listening sessions then you may also find that joining them can be quite tedious. Until now, users have been restricted to joining Jams via QR codes and invitation links – or by relying on in-app pop-ups when someone is playing music from a nearby device.
With this handy new upgrade, users can request Jams simply by sending invites straight through Spotify Messages, allowing you to see when your friends are available to listen together instead of chasing them up elsewhere.
You don’t even need to be in the same room to join the same Jam, so you can enjoy a group music listening session when you’re apart – and joining them is very simple.
All you have to do is open the Messages tab by tapping your profile image, then head to a chat and tap the new ‘Jam’ button at the top-right. From there, your friend will have the option to join your Jam, and will become a host if they choose to accept.
View your friends’ listening activity in real-time
Over the past year, Spotify has rolled out some great new features, including my personal favorite Spotify Mix. Alongside its incorporation of Jams with Messages, Spotify is letting you see exactly what your friends are currently listening to.
Spotify introduced Listening Stats in November last year, and while this new update doesn’t display your full stats in Messages, it does spotlight what music you’re currently streaming. You can see your friends’ listening activity via the side drawer’s chat row or in the chats themselves – and you can even add songs to your library, start playback, and use new emoji reactions.
As mentioned, listening activity is an opt-in feature that you can amend in the ‘Privacy and social settings’ tab – so it’s completely up to you if you want your listening activity to be visible. It’s also only shared with those you’ve already messaged. Even if you decide to disable it, you can still see what your friends are listening to given that they’ve chosen to opt in on their end.
Group chats could be next
These two new upgrades will add welcome depth and purpose to Spotify Messages, but there’s still room for improvement, and the next step is group chats – which would be the icing on the cake for me.
What better place is there to discuss music and share songs with your friends other than a music streaming service? It would certainly save me bags of time copying and pasting links to other social platforms.
Spotify has revealed that it’s currently working on a ‘Groups’ feature for Messages, but a launch date has yet to be announced. We’ve reached out to Spotify for more information, so we’ll keep you updated as we learn more.
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rowan.davies@futurenet.com (Rowan Davies)
